General Franks’ Farewell Message to the Corps: Fulfill Trust

After graduating from the U.S. Military Academy in 1959, General Frederick M. Franks ’59 (Retired) served the U.S. Army for 35 and a half years. Since 1999, he has been the Class of 1966 Chair and Visiting Scholar of the Simon Center for the Professional Military Ethic (SCPME). On November 1, 2016, Franks’ 80th birthday, his career came full circle as he bid a soldier’s farewell to the Corps.

“General Fred Franks has done more to advance the Army profession than anyone I know,” Superintendent Lieutenant General Robert L. Caslen Jr. ’75 said during Franks’ farewell dinner. “His drive, his commitment to excellence, and his passion for our Army has never faltered. He is, above all, a soldier.”

By Michelle Eberhart, USMA Public Affairs

“After retiring as a four-star general, he could have gone on to make millions of dollars in the private sector, or just take it easy, play a little golf, and enjoy retired life,” Caslen suggested. “Instead, he committed his post active-duty life toward contributing to the profession and mentoring future leaders.”

Throughout his speech, Franks addressed the Corps about their future as Army officers, advising them that fulfilling trust with their soldiers is one of the most crucial things an officer can do.

Franks strongly believes that “to lead is to serve,” and after retirement he continued to serve as a leader. He has treasured his time as a visiting chair for SCPME, noting that he was gratified to give back to his alma mater, which had given him so much. In fact, when he was teaching “Battle Command,” the course that would eventually evolve into MX400, now the Superintendent’s Capstone Course on Officership, he would travel to West Point from Virginia or Florida an average of two or three times a month. “I was thrilled at the opportunity to do my part, within the Academy team, to see to it we did everything possible to help cadets transform to be officers and fulfill the trust of the American people,” Franks said.

As he steps down from his position, Franks feels assured about the state of the Corps and the Army going forward. He told the Corps during his speech, “Sometime after graduation and commissioning, and I cannot predict when, our nation will look to you to accomplish a mission of extreme difficulty and importance, and one that only you and your soldiers can do. You will fulfill that special trust. I know you will.”

Read the full text of General Franks’ remarks at WestPointAOG.org/fulfilltrust

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2016 Thayer Award Presented to Robert S. Mueller III

On October 6, 2016, the West Point Association of Graduates presented the Sylvanus Thayer Award to the Honorable Robert S. Mueller III, sixth director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Mueller’s career in public service spans nearly five decades, beginning in Vietnam as a Marine officer leading a rifle platoon, then serving as a litigator, U.S. Attorney, and the Acting Deputy Attorney General for the Department of Justice. Finally, he was sworn in as Director of the FBI just one week before the terrorist attacks of 9/11. He led the FBI during one of the most critical periods in U.S. history, transforming the Bureau from a traditional law enforcement agency into a threat-driven, intelligence-led national security organization that “balanced the security needs of the nation with the civil liberties of its people.” During the day, Mueller met with small groups of cadets and was honored with a parade. At dinner in Washington Hall, Mueller addressed the Corps of Cadets, sharing leadership lessons from his career in public service to help them as they embark on their own careers as public servants.

Since 1958, the West Point Association of Graduates has presented the Sylvanus Thayer Award to an outstanding citizen of the United States, other than a West Point graduate, whose service and accomplishments in the national interest exemplify personal devotion to the ideals expressed in the West Point motto: Duty, Honor, Country. 