A president of the United States, U.S. senator and community newspaper publisher will be the inaugural inductees into the Missouri Public Affairs Hall of Fame on April 11, 2014 at the Oasis Convention Center in Springfield.
Harry S. Truman, John C. “Jack” Danforth and Donald M. Suggs were selected by a committee of 12 during Missouri State University’s annual Public Affairs Conference. Organizers said they were chosen “as citizens with a connection to the state of Missouri who serve as examples of global citizens who define the true essence of public affairs, and act consistently for the benefit of others.”
“They represent a wide range of interests and careers,” said Missouri State President Clifton M. Smart III, “but they have one thing in common: They exemplify what we mean when we talk about living the public affairs mission.”
Danforth and Suggs will attend the induction ceremony. Clifton Truman Daniel, Truman’s grandson, will be present to accept the award on behalf of the 33rd president.
Harry S. Truman was chosen to be President Roosevelt’s running mate in 1944, but served as vice president for only a brief period before Roosevelt died on April 12, 1945. President Truman’s years in the White House ended in January 1953, when he returned to Independence.
As president, Truman made some of the crucial decisions in recent American history. After Japan rejected pleas by the Allies to surrender, the U.S. dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and shortly thereafter, Japan surrendered and World War II ended. In June 1945, Truman oversaw the signing of the charter of the United Nations.
On the domestic front, President Truman presented a 21-point program that proposed the expansion of Social Security, promoted full employment, proposed fair employment practices legislation and initiated plans to improve public housing and clear slums.
Former U.S. Senator John C. “Jack” Danforth began his political career in 1968, when he was elected attorney general of Missouri. He was re-elected to the post in 1972. He was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1976 and was re-elected in 1982 and 1988, serving on key Senate committees.
In 2004, Danforth represented the United States as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, where he focused on ending the civil war in Sudan, a 20-year conflict that killed two million people. A peace agreement between the two sides was ultimately signed on Jan. 9, 2005.
From 1997-2011, Danforth was chairman of the Danforth Foundation. He has authored two books: Resurrection and Faith and Politics. Currently he is a partner with the law firm of Bryan Cave LLP.
Donald M. Suggs is publisher and executive editor of The St. Louis American. Despite a dramatic decline in newspaper distribution over these decades, he moved the paper in circulation from just over 4,000 in the early 1980s to now being the largest weekly in the state with a circulation of 70,200. The American under his leadership is a nine-time winner of the nation’s best black newspaper from the National Newspaper Publishers Association, and six-time winner of Missouri Press Association’s first place for General Excellence award.
He has served on the boards of many of the region’s most prominent civic and cultural institutions and participated in many innovative policy initiatives. He is founder and president of the St. Louis American Foundation, which has facilitated more than $3 million in scholarships and community grants.
The black-tie dinner event will take place 5-8 p.m. Friday, April 11 at the Oasis Convention Center in Springfield. Tickets are $35 and go on sale January 13. The Missouri State Foundation is offering table sponsorships for the dinner. For more information, call 417-836-4143.
