Grand Rapids, Michigan
“I am acutely aware that you have not elected me as your president with your ballots, and so I ask you to confirm me as president with your prayers. I have not campaigned for either the presidency or the vice presidency, I am indebted to no man, and only one woman – my dear wife – as I begin this very difficult job.”
Gerald Ford spoke these words as he was sworn into office on August 9, 1974, following the resignation of the presidency by Richard Nixon. The nation was dealing with the cover-up of the Watergate scandal and needed a President who could help heal the divisions within the nation. The U.S. was in a precarious state in 1974. We had only been out of the Vietnam War for about a year. We had just endured an oil embargo from OPEC that led to long lines and gas shortages. Some school districts in the United States were still fighting against integration, although it was outlawed 20 years prior by the Supreme Court. The Cold War was still ongoing and could have escalated at any moment.
Gerald Ford didn’t want to be President, and now he found himself in the Oval Office. Shortly after he became President, he decided to pardon Richard Nixon. This one decision probably cost him the presidency in 1976, but he made it because he thought it was the right thing to do for the nation.
Americans didn’t realize it at the time, but Gerald Ford was the President our nation needed at that time in our history. Ford was President when the U.S. celebrated its Bicentennial. In what could have been a divisive day, it turned out to be a great day of celebration. It was because we were starting to heal. President Ford brought a calmness that was needed in the Oval Office to deal with the events that our nation had to overcome at that time.
The Presidential Museum does a great job of highlighting the progression of Gerald Ford’s life. Gerald Ford was born under the name Leslie Lynch King. His biological father was abusive towards President Ford’s mother, and she divorced him. Gerald Ford later legally changed his name to that of his stepfather. As a young boy and man, Gerald Ford was an outstanding athlete, student, and Boy Scout. To this day, he is the only former U.S. president who was an Eagle Scout. It was a thrill for me, as a fellow Eagle Scout, to see his Eagle Rank, his merit badge sash, and to read about some of his adventures as a scout. Knowing the Scout Oath and Law the way that I do, I can see that he applied those points to his daily life.
To pay for college, Gerald Ford won a scholarship to the University of Michigan. He was an outstanding player, but made a very early stand against segregation in 1934 when he threatened to quit the team because Georgia Tech did not want to play against an integrated team from the University of Michigan that featured his fellow player and friend, Willis Ward. The game was played, and it was the only game the Wolverines won that year. Although it wasn’t a particularly great season, Michigan had won the National Championship the previous two years, and he was the star player on the team. Ford was offered the chance to play for the Green Bay Packers and the Detroit Lions, but instead attended Yale Law School. While he was at Yale, Gerald Ford first became involved in politics, campaigning for Wendell Willkie for President in 1940
After law school, Ford briefly ran his own law practice at home in Grand Rapids before serving in the Navy in World War II. Ensign Ford served in the Pacific theater of the war on the USS Monterey, an aircraft carrier. I didn’t realize before my visit that Gerald Ford was almost swept overboard during Typhoon Cobra.
After his time in the Navy, Ford came home and decided to run for Congress. He beat an incumbent in the Primary and represented Michigan’s 5th District from 1949 until he became Vice President. Ford ultimately wanted to become the Speaker of the House, but was the minority leader during the last part of his time in Congress.
Overall, the museum also captures the events that occurred during his presidency and post-presidency. One thing that I like about this museum is the recreation of the Oval Office. These recreations, found in multiple presidential libraries and wax museums, are as close as many people will get to the real thing.
The museum also had a recreation of the cabinet room. I’ve decided to write about Ford’s Cabinet in a separate post.
Overall, Gerald Ford’s Presidential Museum is a great tribute to the man who rose to the presidency without being elected. President Ford’s integrity was consistently demonstrated throughout his time in office, and the museum provides a valuable account of his deeds, serving as a tourist destination for his hometown of Grand Rapids. I’m glad to have visited and to introduce my sons to this great leader. Henry Kissinger probably put it best when he gave the eulogy at President Ford’s funeral.
“According to an ancient tradition, God preserves humanity despite its many transgressions because at any one period there exist 10 just individuals who, without being aware of their role, redeem mankind. Gerald Ford was such a man. Propelled into the presidency by a sequence of unpredictable events, he had an impact so profound it’s rightly to be considered providential.”
