A Presidential Connection – Part 2
It was a hot and sunny day in Indian Wells, California. Gary and his friend Norm Jackson were enjoying a friendly game of golf. All of a sudden, someone hit into them. This is an unacceptable practice in the game of golf and can be dangerous. Since it was summer in the desert, the course was pretty deserted, and Gary and Norm were not known for playing slow so there really was no excuse. While annoyed, they understood that sometimes things happened and continued to play. However, the third time of being hit into, the ball actually rolled between Gary’s feet. Irritated, Gary immediately turned around and said, “WHAT!” At that point the Secret Service agents came out of the woodwork. It turned out that the person hitting into them was former President Gerald Ford. Gary immediately switched tactics and calmly said, “Mr. President, you can play through.”
Gary had another encounter with the former President. While living in the Palm Springs area, Gary was the principal percussionist for the Desert Symphony. One memorable time, the symphony was hired to perform at a wedding reception on Clancy Lane in Palm Desert. After rehearsal off site, Gary loaded all his equipment into his truck and went to the venue to set up while everyone else had dinner (ahhhh, the joys of being a percussionist). When he arrived at the house, he was met by several gentlemen dressed in black suits, white shirts, skinny black ties, little coily things behind their ears, and suspicious bulges under their jackets. It was the Secret Service. They asked Gary if they could search his truck and equipment. He, of course, complied and when they asked him where he would be during the search, Gary told them, “I’ll be standing in the headlights where your partner can see me at all times.” Unbeknownst to him at the time, former President Gerald Ford, former Ambassador Walter Annenberg, former Secretary-of-State Henry Kissinger, and several other high ranking governmental officials were all in attendance at this particular wedding.
Oh, if only Gary had realized that Gerald Ford and I were cousins. I’m sure their interactions would have been much more interesting. Of course, the cousin connection is a little distant. Gerald Ford and I are 10th cousins; we share 9th great grandparents, Henry Howland and Mary Newland. In my last blog post, I shared my discovery that Richard Nixon and I are also cousins; we are closer cousins because Richard Nixon and my grandfather, Donald Watkins, shared 4th great grandparents, Anthony Smith (who is a direct descendant of Henry and Mary) and Lydia Willets which makes us 5th cousins twice removed. Therefore, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, and I are all cousins (Richard and Gerald were 7th cousins three times removed).
Gerald R. Ford’s inauspicious beginning contained no hint that he would someday hold the highest office available in this country.
Gerald R. Ford was not his birth name. His parents were Leslie Lynch King and Dorothy Ayer Gardner and he was named after his father. Leslie Lynch King, Jr. was born on July 14, 1913 in Omaha, Nebraska. Unfortunately, Leslie King, Sr. was abusive. According to biographer, James M. Cannon, “a few days after Ford’s birth, Leslie King took a butcher knife and threatened to kill his wife, infant son, and Ford’s nursemaid (Gerald Ford).” Just two weeks after Leslie King, Jr. was born, his mother took him and left, moving to Grand Rapids, Michigan to live with her parents. Dorothy then married Gerald R. Ford on February 1, 1916 at which time the family began calling Leslie, Jerry.
In 1935, Leslie Lynch King, Jr. officially changed his name to Gerald Rudolph Ford, Jr. even though he was never officially adopted by his step-father.
Gerald was a good student and talented athlete, graduated from Yale Law School in 1941, and became a lawyer. After the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, Ford enlisted in the Navy.
Reminiscent of John Howland, Gerald’s and my 9th great grand-uncle, who fell off the Mayflower, “During a vicious typhoon in the Philippine Sea in December 1944, Gerald came within inches of being swept overboard (Gerald R. Ford Biography).”
After the war, Gerald returned to Grand Rapids where he became involved in the Republican party. He went on to serve 13 terms in the House of Representatives. His political ambition was to become Speaker-of-the-House. He never accomplished this goal though he did become the minority leader of the House.
According to the Gerald R. Ford Biography, he “developed a reputation for personal integrity, hard work, and the ability to deal effectively with both Republicans and Democrats.”
It is perhaps this reputation that launched him on a path that was never his intention. As reported in ConstitutionCenter.org, in 1973, President Richard Nixon appointed Gerald R. Ford as Vice President when then Vice President Spiro Agnew resigned because of accusations of unethical behavior involving tax evasion. Then Gerald R. Ford became President in 1974 when President Nixon resigned due to the Watergate scandal.
“Ford became the first, and so far the only, person to become President without winning a general election for President or Vice President (constitutioncenter.org).” According to Henry Kissinger who was Secretary-of-State at the time, “Gerald Ford saved the country. In fact he saved it in such a matter of fact way that he isn’t given credit for it.”
Perhaps we would all be better people if we would adhere to Gerald Ford’s philosophy of life that he was taught by his parents, “Work hard, tell the truth, and come to dinner on time.”
But that’s not all…my membership in the presidential descendant’s club has been expanded. Descendants of my 9th great grand-uncle, John Howland, include:
- Franklin Delano Roosevelt, my 8th cousin three times removed
- George Herbert Walker Bush, my 11th cousin two times removed
- George Walker Bush, my 11th cousin three times removed
Sources
Bomboy, Scott. “Gerald Ford’s Unique Role in American History.” National Constitution Center – Constitutioncenter.Org, 14 July 2024, constitutioncenter.org/blog/gerald-fords-unique-role-in-american-history.
“Gerald Ford.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 20 Aug. 2024, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerald_Ford.
“Gerald R. Ford Biography.” Gerald R. Ford Foundation, 23 July 2021, geraldrfordfoundation.org/gerald-r-ford-biography/.