julius wesley becton

This autobiography highlights Lt. Gen. Becton's remarkable career and reveals the influences that contributed to his success. It reflects on his youth in the suburban Philadelphia area, his parental and family influences, and his almost forty years of service in the U.S. Army and in subsequent civilian appointments.

Becton entered a segregated Army at age eighteen and over nearly forty years rose to the rank of lieutenant general. He is veteran of WWII, the Korean and Vietnam wars. He commanded at every level in the Army from platoon commander to commanding general of the US VII Corps in Germany. Following retirement from the Army in 1983 he entered fields of international disaster assistance, emergency management, and education. Becton joined the Reagan administration in 1984 as Director of the Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance for the Agency for International Development. From 1985 to 1989 he was director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. He subsequently served as the fifth president of Prairie View A&M University. His final civilian post was as CEO/Superintendent of schools in Washington, DC.

His spiritual upbringing, race relations in America, and his devotion to leadership, education and service are all central themes in this inspiring book.