Eagle Scout Gerald R. Ford - 38th President of the United States

It is with a heavy heart, that we mourn the passing, of the first Eagle Scout to ever hold the Office of the President of the United States, Gerald R. Ford, late in the evening, of Tuesday, December, 26, 2007.

President Ford routinely stated, that earning the rank of Eagle Scout, was the proudest accomplishment of his life; even greater than having held the Office of the President. The following is excerpted from his speech - given December 2, 1974, at a banquet of the National Capitol Area Council, BSA - where he was awarded, "Scouter of the Year" honors.

"One of the proudest moments of my life came in the court of honor when I was awarded the Eagle Scout badge. I still have that badge. It is a treasured possession. I am the first Eagle Scout president. The three great principles which Scouting provides—self-discipline, teamwork, and moral and patriotic values—are the basic building blocks of leadership. I applaud the Scouting program for continuing to emphasize them. I am confident that your ability to bring ideals, values, and leadership training to millions of our young people will help to bring about a new era—a time in which not only our republic will progress in peace and freedom, but a time in which the entire world shall be secure, and all its people free."

In the coming days, those who knew him best - who served with him at War, who served with him in Congress, and served him during his Presidency - will doubtless shed great light on the type of leader he was, and the kind of husband and father he was to his wife and family, which is at it should be. As a young man who joined the Cub Scouts during his administration, my thoughts are of the man who made Eagle Scout, and took the lessons he learned there, and applied them to his life, and the nation he served. They inspired me then; they inspire me still.

Gerald R. Ford, was TRUSTWORTHY: Even though he was an Eagle Scout; even though he was the Captain of his National Champion University of Michigan football teams; even though he was a WWII veteran, an officer and a gentleman; even though he was a 13 term Congressman from Michigan, trusted enough to win every election by 60+%, he knew it would take time, for America to trust her government again following President Nixon's resignation, and he was both wise enough to realize this, & patient enough to wait for it, and for Americans to trust him as their President.

Gerald R. Ford, was LOYAL: Cynics would smirk, that he was certainly loyal to Nixon. But Ford was, before that, loyal to his family, loyal to the Boy Scouts of America, & loyal to his alma mater. He was loyal to the finest traditions of the U.S. Navy, and he was loyal to the people of Michigan whom he faithfully served as a U.S. Representative. He was loyal to his beloved wife, unto the very end of his life - even as she had many difficult and public battles against cancer and alcoholism. He was loyal to the best ideals of the Republican party, and most of all, he was loyal to us, as a servant President, during the most difficult period of the America Presidency in the 20th century.

Gerald R. Ford, was HELPFUL: His constituents looked to him as their voice in Washington, and the fact that he won every election so easily and convincingly, showed that he did not look out for special interests, personal interests, or business interests, but his PEOPLE’S interests. Young, old, black, white, rich, poor - Gerald Ford was for every man; not in a lowest common denominator sense, but in the best and greatest sense - he strove to do right by everyone.

Gerald R. Ford, was FRIENDLY: His easy demeanor was first respected by his fellow Scouts, and later by his college teammates. In the halls of Congress, where power is all-too-often, a means unto itself, Gerald Ford carried himself with an easy air that did not speak of self-importance, but of genuine concern for his people, and his colleagues. As President, he inherited an office and a nation in serious crisis, and so in public, it was hard for him to always come across as the friend of the people his Michigan constituents knew him to be. In the days to come, we will undoubtedly here more stories about his friendly, more personable side, and they will be a joy to hear and remember.

Gerald R. Ford, was COURTEOUS: You could see it in how he always opened doors for his wife Betty; you knew it, when you met with him as a Congressman; you saw it in how he always conducted himself as a gentleman, despite the boorishness of the press and many political rivals towards him in those days. His personal dignity would not let him stoop to the level of those who preferred to cast stones and rake muck, and the respect due the Office of the President began to be restored because of his own courteous demeanor.

Gerald R. Ford, was KIND: He did not delight in his opponents defeat, & he did not lord victory over them. He treated others, as he would like to have been treated, and felt resorting to 'dirty politics' was beneath him personally, as well as beneath the office of both a Congressman, and later, the President.

Gerald R. Ford, was OBEDIENT: As a U.S. Navy officer, who understood & respected the chain of command, LCDR Ford was exemplary as a leader of men in combat, and faithfully followed his orders as well. He led by example, and as Commander-in-Chief, he expected his orders to be followed, and for those in his administration to lead by example as well.

Gerald R. Ford, was CHEERFUL: In a nation full of pessimism, following Nixon's scandals, the Vietnam War, and the assassinations of President Kennedy, his brother Robert, and the Rev. M.L. King, Ford knew the country didn't need a President adding to such negativism. Even 'in the midst of irksome tasks and weighty responsibilities,' President Ford led our nation's Bicentennial celebrations at an awkward time, to the best of his abilities, and showed us we were still better as a nation, than we were giving credit for.

Gerald R. Ford, was THRIFTY: Growing up the son of a salesman during the depression, he - like all Americans of his generation - learned 'thrifty' the hard way. While his policy of "Whip Inflation Now ("WIN")" was scoffed at, as being 'overly-simplistic,' Ford had decades of experience as a Congressman who worked on the Budget Oversight Committee, and understood government fiscal policy as no President has since. As a man who lived modestly and within his means, he set an example sorely needed, in the age of the over-extended credit card.

Gerald R. Ford, was BRAVE: He put his body on the line for his team at Michigan, becoming an All-American; when Pearl Harbor was attacked, he put his life on the line for his country, and enlisted in the Navy. When America faced its greatest Constitutional crisis since the Civil War, he stepped into the breach, and forsaking personal gain, put his reputation, his career, and his legacy on the line, by fulfilling the duties and obligations of the office, perhaps as no one else of his day could have done. He did not shirk his responsibilities as a man.

Gerald R. Ford, was CLEAN: From his athletic build, to his conservative dress (his ties look weird to us today, but watch TVLand sometime, and see just HOW weird clothes were back then!), to his personal demeanor, Gerald Ford was neither rude nor crude, though the jackals of the press were often so towards him. He did not demean himself or others, by reveling in the populist crudity of the times, but carried himself with personal dignity, and treated others in the same respectful manner.

Gerald R. Ford, was REVERENT: As the Vice-President, upon assuming the Office of the Presidency, being the only man never elected to either office, he asked succinctly, "I am acutely aware that you have not elected me as your president by your ballots, so I ask you to confirm me with your prayers."


I remember other things during those years - his falling down a flight of airplane steps, Chevy Chase lampooning him on Saturday Night Live, & Bob Hope making fun of his golf balls' penchant for finding spectators in the gallery. I was but a boy then, and those things seemed amusing. But I also remember the Bicentennial though; getting to tour the Bicentennial train that we went up to Virginia to see for a day. I remember Operation Sail, from Boston and New York harbors (one of my dad's last duties with the Coast Guard, was handling the logistics of that event for Boston Harbor) during the 4th of July celebrations, and the stirrings of American pride again; something that President Ford paved the way for, and would come to fruition during the Reagan Presidency, during my finest years in Scouting.

We have many reasons to be grateful to President Ford, but perhaps the most important one, is that of his personal courage - to do what needed to be done, at a time when nobody thought it COULD be done, and - quite frankly - nobody else, wanted to do it! Thank you Mr. President, for leading by example, with quiet dignity and aplomb.

To history and the ages, we commit the service and memory, of Gerald R. Ford: faithful husband, loving father, loyal friend, All-American, National Champion, honor student, trustworthy Congressman, 38th President of the United States of America

Eagle Scout

Goodbye, Mr. President - to the end, you were always the best, as one of our own.

Into Your hands, O Merciful Savior, we commend Your servant, Gerald Rudolph Ford, Jr. Acknowledge, we humbly beseech You, a sheep of Your own fold, a lamb of Your own flock, a sinner of Your own redeeming. Receive him into the arms of Your mercy, into the blessed rest of everlasting peace, and into the glorious company, of the saints in light; in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. +AMEN+