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The National Guard Educational Foundation celebrated an eclectic mix of major donors during a ceremony Saturday evening.
The special reception applauded 10 donors who contributed a combined $100,000 to the NGEF via its Legion de Lafayette program.
The benefactors were honored at the National Guard Memorial, the NGAUS headquarters in Washington, D.C.
The donors included six corporations, three couples and one association.
"Our second LdL is in honor of my wife, Jane, who has been a phenomenal supporter of the Guard and NGAUS throughout my 39-year career, and during my involvement with NGAUS," said retired Maj. Gen. James K. "Red" Brown, who served in the Texas Army Guard.
"She has impacted countless soldiers and their families, and she is an exceptional Guard wife," he continued. "I have been blessed to travel this journey with her."
The NGEF preserves and shares all 388 years of the Guard’s story, which includes the National Guard Memorial Museum, a facility inside the NGAUS headquarters.
The museum boasts 5,600 square feet of Guard artifacts, images and interactive exhibits within walking distance of Capitol Hill.
The LdL was created in 1987 to recognize patrons who significantly advance the NGEF’s work.
The program is named after the Marquis de Lafayette, the French military officer from the Revolutionary War who gave the Guard its enduring name.
Besides the Browns, the NGEF recognized two other Guard couples on Saturday who made the $10,000 minimum contribution to become LdL members.
Retired Maj. Gen. James A. Hoyer — who served as the chairman of NGAUS and the NGEF and as the adjutant general of West Virginia — was recognized alongside his wife Amy.
Retired Maj. Gen. Timothy E. Orr — the former adjutant general of Iowa — was also spotlighted with retired Lt. Col. Suzanne Orr, his wife.
"It has been a big part of our lives and now it is only fitting that we give back to the NGEF to support those who have served, and to those who gave the ultimate sacrifice for our states and nation," Timothy Orr said of the Guard.
"The National Guard has been an indispensable part of our nation’s security since Washington called for the colonial militias to form the Continental Army," Hoyer said, referencing President George Washington.
The Hoyers and Orrs are new LdL donors who were contributing to the program for the first time.
The only new corporate donor was Acuity International, while the other four corporate donors are repeat contributors.
BAE Systems, Boeing, Shepard Exposition Services, the Armed Forces Benefit Association and New York Life — the NGAUS Insurance Trust’s carrier — have previously contributed to the NGEF.
Dan Morgan was additionally honored Saturday. The Nevada National Guard Association recognized Morgan as the Nevada Guard’s honorary commander. Morgan is the president of the Nevada Military Support Alliance, an organization which aims to support all Nevadans who are presently serving or have served in the nation's military.
"Dan has a longstanding passion for, and commitment to, the military service men and women of our great nation and the state of Nevada," the NVNGA said.
A complete list of LdL members is available here.
— By Mark Hensch
