Spring 2009

A Message From Admiral Carey

Time marches on and 2009 has indeed been a busy year for the foundation thus far. As we become more and more involved with organizations we intend to endow, the interaction and time required with each make for a busier and busier schedule. But the bottom line is that it’s giving me and the foundation a much better grasp of each of these organizations and at the same time provides experience in the development of our working relationship with them, and thus is providing excellent insights as to how best to structure our future endowment agreement[s] with them and what programs and projects we have interest in working on together.

One thing we’ve decided to avoid now and in the future is my Chairman’s Message repeating the information and articles in the foundation newsletter, since almost all of our newsletter items have accompanying documents and photos and press releases and website links and don’t need further elaboration. That also gives me more space in my message to you to talk about potential future relationships and new programs and projects.

One of the first such projects relates to a potential endowment for the Reagan Foundation, of course involved with fostering programs and projects related to the Presidency of the 40th President of the United States, President Ronald Reagan. Given that I spent over 7 years of my life working for that Administration as Vice Chairman of the Federal Maritime Commission, I have a strong interest in preserving the accomplishments of President Reagan and ensuring those accomplishments are accurately portrayed over time. I met in Washington, DC on June 2nd with Mr. John Shaw, the Chief Development Officer for the Reagan Foundation and we discussed a broad range of programs and projects that the Admiral Carey Foundation might participate in with the Reagan Foundation, including involvement in some of their prospective national public policy efforts in Washington, DC and the potential involvement of one of the Admiral Carey Foundation’s primary programs of interest, the Washington Scholars Internship/Fellowship Programs and the Future Leaders for America Foundation. There is a wealth of information on the Reagan Foundation and the Reagan Presidential Library at www.ReaganFoundation.org and we will keep you fully informed about any programs and projects that develop with them in the future.

While we try to stay focused on our foundation theme of youth leadership training and education and national public policy involvement, every once in a while, something so new and so unique comes along that we take the time to look into it and consider it for possible future involvement and future endowment because of the tremendous impact on humanity and civilization that can result. One such new program is called The Personal Genomes Project at Harvard University. I have long had an interest in the human genome and DNA research, particularly if it has a long range goal or focus on the linkage between our DNA and our propensity for specific impacts upon our health, along with how a given dosage of medication impacts on a given medical problem and its relationship to various common spikes in that persons or families DNA profile as to effectiveness or side effects or potential for cure or improvement, depending on the dosage, etc., etc. In the days of paper medical records and no understanding of DNA and the human genome, as well as no tracking of the impact of the dosage of a given medicine on a particular DNA profile and a particular health problem, in my opinion little progress was made and the approach was all too much “trial and error”. Those issues are NOW potentially solved with electronic medical records that can provide for data manipulation by computer so that, over time, the impact of such treatments can be optimized and hopefully the net longer term result will be to provide doctors with an information source on their computers that tells them, for a given medical problem and a given DNA profile, here is the best medicine dosage that has been determined over time to have the best impact upon and least side effects for that combination [i.e. specific medical problem, given DNA profile, and given medicine dosage]. The program at Harvard is called the Personal Genomes Project [PGP] and I have applied to participate in their research project, which began with 10 persons, is now expanding to 100, and eventually will expand to 100,000. Full details are on their website at www.personalgenomes.org I’ve taken their initial tests and, amazingly, passed, and now await hearing from their selection team as to whether they’d like me to participate? Time will tell, but if ever there was a non-youth leadership training effort that the Admiral Carey Foundation considers is an effort that they’d allocate precious endowment dollars to, this is it. If ever there was an “investment” in the future of humankind and civilization, in my opinion, this is it. If ever there was research that held promise of “a gift to Planet Earth”, this has to be towards the top of that list. More later, as all this develops.

Well, this brings you up-to-date with regard to a few of the things that are occurring within the foundation at present. Between this short update and the newsletter and the website, you can stay as fully informed as you wish, since there are always new programs and projects “in the works” and we are always meeting with new organizations and groups that seek our involvement or our interns or an endowment from the foundation.

With all good wishes, Yours For America,

Rear Admiral [Ret.] James J. Carey, Chairman

The Admiral James J. Carey Foundation

Past Chairman’s Messages:

• January 2009