 |
| General P.X. Kelley, USMC (Ret) |
|
On Saturday, 5 November 2011, General Paul X. (P.X.) Kelley, USMC (Ret.), the 28th Commandant of the Marine Corps, will be the 5th Guest of Honor in the history of the Wine Country Marine Corps Birthday Ball. He will be the first former Commandant of the Marine Corps and the first retired 4-star General to be our Guest of Honor. The following is a short biography of his extraordinary career:
General Kelley served as the 28the Commandant of the Marine Corps and as a Member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from 1983 until his retirement in 1987. Subsequently, he served three Presidents as Chairman of the American Battle Monuments Commission. In this position, he was responsible for the design and construction of the Korean War Veterans Memorial. General Kelley also spearheaded the congressional legislation as well as the construction and dedication of the National World War II Memorial.
He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Economics from Villanova University is a Distinguished Graduate of the Air War College and has received honorary doctoral degrees from Villanova University, Webster University, Norwich University, Jacksonville University, The United States Sports Academy and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
During his 37-year military career, he commanded Marine Corps organizations at every echelon from platoon though division, including command of an infantry battalion and infantry regiment during two separate combat tours in the Republic of Vietnam. He also has had the unique experience of duty with the Army, Navy, Air Force, and he commanded a Commando Troop of Royal Marines in Singapore, Borneo and Malaya.
In December 1979, he was appointed by the President as the first Commander of Rapid Deployment Joint Task Force, and spearheaded the initiative, which eventually culminated in its re-designation as the U.S. Central Command. He then moved up to Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps and served in this position for two years prior to becoming the 28th Commandant of the Marine Corps.
General Kelley was selected twice for accelerated promotion, once to the rank of Colonel and again to the rank of Major General. He remains the youngest Marine to be promoted to the rank of General, and is a Marine Corps Parachutist, Army Master Parachutist, and Navy SCUBA Diver.
General Kelley's military decorations include Distinguished Service Medals from the Department of Defense, the Department of the Navy, the Department of the Army, and the Department of the Air Force; the Silver Star Medal; three awards of the Legion of Merit; and two awards of the Bronze Star Medal. His foreign decorations include the Republic of Vietnam Distinguished Service Medal; Republic of Vietnam Cross of Gallantry with two palms and three gold stars; the Philippines Legion of Honor Medal; the Korean Order of Security Merit Tong IL Medal; and the Republic of China Order of Resplendent Banner with Grand Cordon.
His major awards include the American Academy of Achievement Golden Eagle Award; the Veterans of Foreign Wars National Armed Forces Award; the Reserve Officers Association Minuteman Hall of Fame; the National Geographic Society General O.A. Anderson Award; the Young Republicans Freedom Award; the United States Marshal's American Star Award; the Beta Gamma Sigma Award for Excellence in Management; The Union League Silver Medal Award; the National Defense University Lyman L. Lemnitzer Award; the Navy League Admiral John M. Will Award for the Armed Forces; the Washington Times Freedom Award; the Atlantic Legal Foundation's Honoree for 1999; and the Saint Thomas of Villanova Alumni Medal.
In November 2010, in celebration of his service and leadership, General Kelley was named as an honorary Ronald Reagan Fellow at President Reagan’s alma mater, Eureka College. Past recipients are former U.S. Attorney General Edwin Meese III and former Soviet Union leader Mikhail Gorbachev.
General Kelley is Chairman Emeritus of the Irish American Partnership where he served as Chairman of the Board of Directors from 1989 to 2000. In recognition of his Irish heritage, he was named Southern California's Irishman of the Year, 1986; one of American's 100 Leading Irish Americans, 1990; Chicago's Guest of Honor for St. Patrick's Day, 1990; Baltimore's Irish American of the Year, 1992; Charleston, South Carolina's Hibernian Society Keynote Speaker, 1994; and Trustee for New York City's St. Patrick's Day since 1999. On October 30, 2003, America's Irish American Community acclaimed him for his success in gaining posthumous citizenship for 28 sons of Ireland who gave their lives in the service of the United States Armed Forces during the Korean War.
In the private sector, he has served on ten (10) New York Stock Exchange corporate boards, and twelve (12) other private corporate boards. Currently, General Kelley is on the Board of Advisors for J.F. Lehman and Company, and serves as a Director with London Life Reinsurance Company; Saul Centers, Inc.; OAO Technology Solutions, Inc.; and The Non-Proliferation Trust. He is a member of the Advisory Board of Governors for the Partnership for Public Service; the Advisory Board of the First Jobs Institute, Beta Gamma Sigma, The Council on Foreign Relations, and was the 2007 President of the Alfalfa Club in Washington, D.C.
|
