REMARKS TO USAFA FOUNDER'S DAY
DINNER
AND ACCEPTANCE OF DG AWARD
General Gould, Mr. Thompson, fellow graduates, members of the Academy family, cadets, and guests. I thank the Academy and the AOG for this honor. I also thank my family and friends who have come from California, Connecticut, Minnesota, Kansas, Missouri, Virginia and Colorado for being here. And, to my fellow classmates from the class of 1960 who are here, . . . thank you all.
I am honored to share this year's award with Heather Wilson. Ms. Wilson is not only a distinguished graduate, but, in the Congress, she was a beacon of support for a strong military and a tireless advocate for airpower and space power.
That this award is presented to commemorate Founder's Day has special significance for me. In 1954, on April 1, at the time President Eisenhower signed the law creating the Air Force Academy, I wasn't in the White House but I was only two miles away. As a sophomore at Gonzaga High School on North Capitol and Eye Streets, I was laboring away at Latin II, Greek I and Trigonometry at the time of the signing. Although I had not heard of the Air Force Academy at that time, there must have been some ESP in the air because it soon came into my conscience and has been a big part of my life ever since.
And, since this is the year of my 50th class reunion, I would like to mention just a couple of the events that I recall from the initial days of your academy.
Our class spent two years at Lowry in Denver while this site was under construction. Then, in August of 1958, we marched from the North Entrance to the brand new cadet area in fatigues and full field packs. At that time, there was no Sighan Hall, no chapel, no field house, Mitchell Hall was smaller, the trees in the Air Garden were mere twigs, and, at the base of the ramp to the cadet area, the "Bring Me Men . . . " sign was not up yet, much less its replacement, the "Integrity, Service, Excellence" sign.
But, what we early cadets did transfer intact from Lowry was the set of values by which we lived, anchored by our honor code, and underpinned by the values of duty, honor and country. We brought those same values here that we had begun to learn at Lowry. And, as best I can tell, those same values are alive and well here today.
Now, 50 years later, what do I consider the most important part of an Academy education? Is it the outstanding education in the sciences, history, math, political science, or the dozens of majors here? Those all helped me in my career, to be sure. So, did the military, airmanship and athletic programs both intercollegiate and intramural. They all helped mold us graduates into Air Force officers. And they are all important.
But, thinking back, the most enduring value that I received here was the development of character. Every aspect of cadet life had the underlying goal of increasing the quality of individual and team character in each of us. It takes a while after graduation to realize how important the development of character affected our lives. Now, fifty years later, I recognize it as the dominant product of an academy education.
In my career, I came to realize that character is the basis for leadership. Without strong character, good leadership is impossible.
Character underpins honor, ethics and courage.
And, character motivates us to lead ourselves and those under our command into mortal combat with confidence.
Long after forgetting the second law of thermodynamics, how to solve partial differential equations, and to keep my hands up and elbows in while boxing (which I frequently forgot even as a cadet), I retained the lessons in character development I learned here.
And, I applaud the Academy leadership, the AOG and the Endowment, in recognition of this value, for embarking on the creation of the Character Development and Leadership Center here, at the Academy, in the Cadet Area. This center, and the lessons in character and leadership which it will display, teach and represent, will be an inspiration to the cadets in the continuing pursuit of their own personal character development.
The Character Development and Leadership Center comes at a time most needed in our country. When other colleges and universities continue to treat morality, ethics, and honor on a sliding scale as relative and declining, the military academies, led by the Air Force Academy, treat them as absolute, unchanging, and the bedrock of their existence. Your commitment to building the Character Development Center further enhances your same commitment to these time-honored core values.
So I challenge the Academy to recommit itself to creating character-building exercises and scenarios throughout the cadets' Academy experience, in sports, in airmanship, in academics, and in the spiritual domain, so that the development of character becomes deeply imbedded in the Academy's genetic code, its DNA.
Fifty six years after its creation, the Air Force Academy thrives. You are producing officers of character with a sound education and the basis for leading the Air Force in every capacity at every level of command.
I am honored to accept this award. I compliment the AOG for recognizing the importance of heritage that this award represents. And, rest assured, I will continue to speak and write on the values the academy holds highest to make me more worthy of this honor.
Thank you.
John Michael Loh, General, USAF Retired. April 9, 2010