An Appreciation by Rocco C. Siciliano
Chairman, Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission
May 2003

PROLOGUE
As a man who has spent half of his working life in public service activity, and who worked for President Eisenhower for six and one-half years, I obviously have a personal bias. In my view, the legacy of President Eisenhower is unique. As Chairman of the Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission, I have reflected at length about the meaning and the long-term significance of what we are doing to memorialize “Ike.” In the course of this reflection I have arrived at a conviction: the theme of public service should in some way be central to this memorial. The proposal below is my personal view of what the Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial ought to be.

A feeling came over me that the expression “The United States of America” would now and henceforth mean something different than it had ever before. From here on it would be the nation I would be serving, not myself. –Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1952, remembering his first day at West Point

BACKGROUND
The creation of a new living memorial in the Capital of the United States is a powerful prospect. Bringing into being a special memorial by which Americans in all walks of life could be recognized for their service to America should be considered by the Eisenhower Memorial Commission. This living memorial would capitalize on the unique Eisenhower legacy of public service. Few American leaders in war and peace have won the affection and loyalty of their fellow citizens as singularly as “Ike.” The reason is obvious: most Americans can sense that this man made a fundamental choice to dedicate his life to his country.

In light of this powerful bond between Ike and individual Americans, a memorial in Eisenhower’s name must be accessible to as many citizens as possible. A permanent physical site – fully open to the public – ensures that a voluntary form of reflective participation in such a memorial could always take place. As a place at which Americans could recognize and celebrate public service on behalf of American values both at home and around the world, this kind of physical memorial would constitute a basic part of any living memorial program – indeed, it would constitute the centerpiece of such a program. Developing this combination of architectural and programmatic elements would of course be the memorialization’s central challenge.

THE CHALLENGE
As President, Eisenhower passionately argued for and sought to build a memorial to the freedoms for which Americans had died in the 20th century. No other American president was as knowledgeable about and committed to memorialization as it related to American values and sacrifices, especially in service to his country.

Public service is the compelling common theme amid this wide range of Eisenhower’s achievements. The range of these achievements is presented in the Eisenhower Legacy Report, which explores the many ways in which Ike chose to serve the nation. For example, Eisenhower could be convincingly memorialized either as general or as president. He could be viewed as the architect of our entry into the space age. Or, he could be viewed as the leader who changed the nature of American military power. Or, he could be viewed as the President who, through an abiding faith in science, paved the way for our long-term victory in the Cold War, while preserving our democratic values. Each of these achievements on its own could warrant memorialization. But, the common theme is obvious: all of them are public service contributions.

EXISTING EISENHOWER PROGRAMS
The recognition of public service as a signature of Eisenhower’s life achievement plays an important role in the programs of the Eisenhower legacy organizations. Each has brought its own form of recognition to the essential place of public service in Eisenhower’s personal and public history. Early major efforts of the Eisenhower Institute to recognize public servants with the Eisenhower Leadership Prize – including President George H. W. Bush, General Colin Powell, Senator Ted Stevens, and Secretary of the Treasury Robert Rubin – were followed in 2002 with the Eisenhower Institute’s creation of a Distinguished Public Service Award. The Eisenhower Institute also produces domestic and foreign policy analyses, encourages greater public understanding of American governmental institutions, and provides access to educational and leadership-development opportunities for our future leaders.

For years the Eisenhower Exchange Fellowships (Philadelphia, PA) have also supported the development of leaders to create international trust and cooperation and to work for peace. The Eisenhower Center (Abilene, KS), the American Assembly (New York, NY), and the People to People program (Kansas City, MO) work within the same ethos. Even more significant is the grass-roots recognition of Eisenhower’s public service role by a number of independent local and regional initiatives that link the name of Eisenhower with a wide range of public service achievements.

As valuable and important as all of these efforts are — individually and collectively — none of them constitute the subject matter of “dinner-table conversation” in American homes. None of them resonate with the American citizenry as Ike himself did. If they did achieve this level of public recognition — if appropriate memorialization had therefore already occurred — the Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission would not have been established.

THE NEED
The tragic events of September 11 and the war on Iraq accelerated and have heightened the public’s sense of national purpose and public service. In the wake of these events, new forms of public service are being proposed and widely discussed in all sectors of American society. Novel forms of public and private cooperation are being advocated as creative responses to past failures and new needs. The Department of Homeland Security, a large new governmental organization, was recently created to serve the public’s interests. In many of these new organizations, the roles, status, and tenure of the newly reassigned civil servants are being comprehensively redefined.

Experiencing a sense of urgency in regard to their contemporary national purpose is not a new experience for Americans. Still present in the hearts and minds of older Americans is the dissension and turmoil growing out of the Vietnam War, which resulted in a major redefinition of public military service. Today, Americans are once again seeking an appropriate personal and public service response to the new challenges being posed to their security and well-being.

Vast numbers of American citizens appear to be asking themselves what they can do to help their country address its challenges. Notwithstanding major governmental efforts to redefine civil and military service, Americans are longing for an ethic of public-spiritedness that cuts across institutions, organizations, and managerial structures. There seems to be a deeply felt need right now to reaffirm the ties that bind us, whether through government or outside of it. The time is right.

THE SITE AND THE PROGRAM
Within the framework of this concept, a permanent memorial to Eisenhower in Washington, D.C., could well become a national memorial to civic duty and citizenship in general. Conceived in the spirit of service, the memorial would become the public space in which to recognize the service of Americans — both mighty and humble — who chose to live a life that was inspired and exemplified by “Ike.” The memorial could become a great national and international focal point for awards and for tributes.

This memorialization proposal envisions two major elements: first, a physical memorial that encourages public access, participation and celebration by all visitors; and second, a living memorial program that focuses on the recognition of high excellence in public service.

The physical memorial itself could be subdivided into two design elements: a tribute to Eisenhower — as an exemplar, model and paradigm for public service — and a tribute to the democratic values of public service that his life exemplified. The two-fold nature of the physical dimension of the memorialization is crucial. As with other great leaders, Eisenhower symbolized different things to many people. But his universal resonance with the American public was extraordinary and unique. Sites previously considered by the Commission, such as those located at the intersection of Maryland and Independence Avenues, SW (near the Capitol) and at Freedom Plaza on Pennsylvania Avenue, NW (near the White House), lend themselves to these design parameters.

The living memorial program would utilize the physical memorial as a showcase — a symbolic national shrine — at which to honor the service of citizens in many ways. It could sponsor special awards and opportunities for public recognition. The physical memorial could serve as a ceremonial location at which agencies of government, community groups, and public service organizations could honor and recognize their personnel and volunteers. The overall administration and management of this living memorial program would draw upon the experienced leadership of existing organizations, such as the Eisenhower Institute.

This memorial could even begin a new Presidential tradition: it could well become the place at which Presidents bestow the highest honors on American citizens.

Created this way, the Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial could quickly take its place as America’s hallowed ground for the recognition of public service. A physical memorial designed for such a program would constitute a worthy tribute to a man who continues to inspire so many Americans to “live the good life” in civic terms.

CONCLUSION
The Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission was created to memorialize Eisenhower — to memorialize him for the qualities that made him great. The public service of Eisenhower relates to broader values that always transcend individuals. Throughout his presidency, Eisenhower stated this point of view and tried – unsuccessfully – to persuade the members of Congress to build a memorial to express America’s democratic values, the values for which men died under his leadership as general and president.

This conception of the Eisenhower Memorial would engage the American people in a timely manner. It can truly enrich our understanding of public service and contribute to its redefinition in our own time. Indeed, it can take its place in our national life as a permanent exercise in participatory democratic values.