Programs and Events

Honoring Former President Gerald Ford (1913 - 2006)

Gerald R. Ford, the 38th President of the United States (Presidental Library & Museum)

With pageantry, music, and eulogies from friends and colleagues, the United States paid a final tribute to Gerald R. Ford, 38th president of the United States, at a memorial service at the Washington National Cathedral on January 2. "Gerald Ford assumed the presidency when the nation needed a leader of character and humility -- and we found it in the man from Grand Rapids," President Bush said. "President Ford's time in office was brief, but history will long remember the courage and common sense that helped restore trust in the workings of our democracy."

Vice Foreign Minister Phongsavath Boupha, accompanied by a delegation of officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, paid a call on the American Embassy in Vientiane on January 2 to express condolences on the death of President Ford. Members of the diplomatic community, representatives of international organizations, and members of the public also visited the Embassy to pay tribute to the former President. The American Embassy is deeply grateful for these expressions of sympathy, which will be passed on to the Department of State in Washington, D.C. and to the family of former President Ford.

For more information: Gerald R. Ford: A Tribute