For Walter Raymond, Jr.
April 23, 2003

I was looking for help for Youth for Understanding, the international youth exchange home stay organization I had joined in 1978, when I first realized how extraordinary my friend Walt was. To my surprise, I found that the national security staff in the White House was the best place in the US government to find both a sympathetic ear and practical assistance. They were supplied by Walt. Thereafter, whatever the cause I was working on, my first thought when I needed official help, was always Walt.

Since others had similar experiences, it was not surprising that we all turned to our friend Walt when a group of us in the ’80s, inspired by Jim Huntley, were trying to find a way to involve President Reagan in a big project. This was our effort to recruit a susceptible billionaire to give his name (and a bundle of money) to a new foundation to foster collaboration among democratic nations. We couldn’t believe our eyes when, instead of a letter signed by someone else on his behalf, the President himself gave us his personal blessing in the Roosevelt Room at the White House. Of course, we didn’t find that susceptible billionaire--or at least haven’t yet— but who knows?

More recently, Walt, launched our latest creation, the Council for a Community of Democracies, as the CEO. He successfully managed, among other things, its crucial initial challenge as the private coordinator of the participation of American Non Governmental Organizations last November in Seoul, South Korea. We were active participants there in a conference paralleling the second biennial ministerial meeting of the global Community of Democracy.

Walt was one of a kind.

And it was obvious to me that he knew how blessed he was to have been married to Vi all these years.