Horatio Alger Association Marks Fifth Year as Lead Sponsor of National Memorial Day Concert

Concert will honor American heroes with all-star performances and tributes on Sunday, May 25

WASHINGTON, D.C. (May 22, 2025) – Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans, Inc. is a nonprofit educational organization that honors the achievements of outstanding individuals and encourages young people to pursue their dreams by providing need-based scholarships for higher education. The Association is pleased to announce that it  will serve as a  lead sponsor  of the annual National Memorial Day Concert for the fifth consecutive year thanks to the generosity of its Members. Celebrating the resilience of our nation’s heroes, the Horatio Alger Association supports the National Memorial Day Concert as a tribute to those who exemplify courage, perseverance, and the American Dream. This prestigious, multi-award-winning television event honors the men and women of the United States Armed Forces, their families and those who have made the ultimate sacrifice in service to the nation.

The Horatio Alger Association was established in 1947 to dispel the mounting belief among our nation’s youth that the American Dream was no longer attainable – a Dream that today remains within reach thanks to the freedoms protected through the service and sacrifice of our military men and women. We are proud to count over 200 veterans among our Members, whose service continues to inspire our mission. We are equally proud of our 2,300 Military Scholars—each of whom served honorably in Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. We are deeply grateful to Ambassador George and Julia Argyros, whose vision and generosity made our Military Veterans Scholarships a reality.

“Made possible through the continued commitment of my fellow Members, we are thrilled to extend our support to the National Memorial Day Concert for the fifth consecutive year,” said Barbara Barrett, president, Horatio Alger Association and 1999 Horatio Alger Award recipient. “The courage and character displayed by our country’s service members—marked by integrity, compassion, and perseverance resonate deeply with the values upheld by the Association. It is a privilege for the Association to honor their dedication and sacrifice through this meaningful concert.”

The National Memorial Day Concert will be hosted by Tony Award-winning actor Joe Mantegna and acclaimed actor Esai Morales. The concert will feature special tributes led by Blair Underwood (Vietnam War), Gretchen Mol (Gold Star Families Tribute) and Robert Patrick (World War II), as well as moving performances by Loren Allred, Yolanda Adams, Scotty Hasting, Angel Blue, Mary McCormack and the National Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Maestro Jack Everly. The concert will also salute the 250th anniversary of the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps to honor these service branches who defended America even before it was a nation.

The National Memorial Day Concert airs on PBS Sunday, May 25, 2025, from 8:00 to 9:30 p.m. E.T.,as well as to our troops serving around the world on American Forces Network. The concert will also be streaming on YouTube and www.pbs.org/national-memorial-day-concert and available as Video on Demand, for two weeks following the live broadcast.

The Association honors all our country’s courageous veterans and service men and women, including the following Horatio Alger Association Members:

Buzz Aldrin

Lee R. Anderson, Sr.

James R. Andrews, M.D.

George L. Argyros, Sr.

Robert Duane Ballard

Barbara M. Barrett

Dean L. Buntrock

Wesley E. Cantrell

James H. Clark

James A. Collins

Delos M. Cosgrove

Robert L. Crandall

John F. Crowley

Vance L. Cryer

John H. Dasburg

Peter M. Dawkins

John Paul DeJoria

Michael E. Dougherty

Archie W. Dunham

Tommy Ray Franks

Terry M. Giles

Robert Blyth Goergen

Stedman Graham

William E. Greehey

Jenard M. Gross

Edmund A. Hajim

James A. Haslam II

Clayton Paul Hilliard

Dennis Franklin Holt

Louis L. Holtz

Jeong H. Kim

Kenneth G. Langone

Gilbert Edward LeVasseur, Jr.

James J. Maguire, Sr.

Robert A. McDonald

John Thomas McNabb II

Howard M. Meyers

Alan B. Miller

Joseph R. Moderow

Michael G. Morris

R. James Nicholson

James A. Patterson

James H. Pugh, Jr.

Steven S Reinemund

Carl H. Ricker, Jr.

T. Denny Sanford

Stephen C. Schott

Tom Selleck

James M. Seneff, Jr.

Earl W. Stafford, Sr.

Peter W. Stott

J. Ronald Terwilliger

David A. Thompson

R.E. Turner

Herbert A. Wertheim

Michael B. Yanney

Walter Anderson

Joseph E. Antonini

John R. Block

Sherian Grace Cadoria

John W. Colloton

Thomas G. Cousins

Chuck Hagel

Alexander Kroll

Frank A. McPherson

George J. Mitchell

Thomas S. Monaghan

John H. Scully

Roger T. Staubach

Carl H. Westcott

Robert H. Abplanalp

Joe L. Allbritton

Wally Amos

Al Annexstad

Roy L. Ash

Gene Autry

William E. Bailey

Karl D. Bays

Sandy Beaver

Howard O. Beaver, Jr.

J. Robert Beyster

Michael Bongiovanni

John Bowles

Walter Brennan

Jack H. Brown

Art Buchwald

Harold Burson

James R. Caldwell

Lester W. Carter

Johnny Cash

S. Truett Cathy

R. Carl Chandler

Marvin Chandler

Arthur A. Ciocca

William P. Clements, Jr.

John B. Connally

William Alfred Cook

John C. Crean

Trammell Crow

Henry Crown

Emmett J. Culligan

Raymond L. Danner

William E.C. Dearden

Michael E. DeBakey

Robert H. Dedman

Jerry E. Dempsey

Richard M. DeVos

Robert J. Dole

William J. Donlon

James H. Doolittle

Adron Doran

Percy J. Ebbot

Dwight D. Eisenhower

Leonard L. Farber

Robert E. Farrell

Clarence C. Finley

Lee F. Flaherty

Sam M. Fleming

Robert S. Fogarty, Jr.

Hiram L. Fong

Gerald R. Ford

Sam Fox

Alwin F. Franz

Foster Stephen Friess

Robert P. Gerholz

Harry J. Gray

Peter M. Guida

George S. Halas

Michel T. Halbouty

Bruce T. Halle

Alexander G. Hardy

Thomas L. Harken

Leon W. Harman

Paul Harvey

Robert Wayne Hawkinson

Walter J. Hickel

Richard D. Holland

Clifford F. Hood

Edward A. Horrigan, Jr.

John A. Howard

H. Wayne Huizenga

Jon M. Huntsman

Arthur E. Imperatore, Sr.

Daniel K. Inouye

Russell L. Isaacs

Arthur G. James

Dean W. Jeffers

James Earl Jones

Earle M. Jorgensen

Ewing Marion Kauffman

Dee J. Kelly

Patrick C. Kelly

Donald R. Keough

James V. Kimsey

Henry A. Kissinger

Richard L. Knowlton

Thomas W. Landry

Harold F. Lenfest

Alfred Lerner

Richard L. Lesher

Samuel H. Levinson

James J. Ling

Bernie Little, Sr.

Allen Ludden

John D. MacArthur

Walter S. Mack

Frederic V. Malek

Vincent G. Marotta

Abraham Lincoln Marovitz

Harvey L. Massey

Warren E. McCain

John H. McConnell

Charles A. McKee

Rod McKuen

Ed McMahon

Harry A. Merlo

Thomas E. Millsop

George P. Mitchell

James R. Moffett

Thomas W. Moore

John A. Moran

Jim Moran

Charles Stewart Mott

Frank C. Nicholas

John J. O’Connor

John G. Pappajohn

Allen E. Paulson

William T. Payne

H. Ross Perot, Sr.

Ann Person

Lewis H. Phillips

Charles J. Pilliod, Jr.

Carl R. Pohlad

Harold A. Poling

Colin L. Powell

Gwilym A. Price

Ronald Reagan

D.B. Reinhart

Frank E. Resnik

Harold J. Richards

Edward V. Rickenbacker

Harry S. Rinker

Joseph Robbie

Josue Robles, Jr.

David M. Roderick

Juan Antonio Rodriguez

Richard M. Rosenberg

Darrell Royal

Howard A. Rusk

William G. Salatich

Harold G. Scheie

Peter G. Scotese

Ray W. Scott, Jr.

Walter Scott, Jr.

Beurt R. SerVaas

Mark Shepherd, Jr.

Delford M. Smith

George V. Smith

Alex G. Spanos

Jack D. Sparks

William H. Spoor

Harold E. Stassen

Manfred Steinfeld

Herbert J. Stiefel

Carl B. Stokes

L. Homer Surbeck

William B. Tabler, Sr.

R. David Thomas

Charles B. Thornton

Henry B. Tippie

Harold Toppel

Monroe E. Trout

Fred L. Turner

Romeo J. Ventres

Hicks B. Waldron

Sam M. Walton

Ronald C. Waranch

Huey J. Wilson

Kemmons Wilson

Sidney D. Wolk

Benjamin H. Wooten

Michael W. Wright

Charles E. Yeager

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About Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans:

Founded in 1947, the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans, Inc. is dedicated to the simple but powerful belief that hard work, honesty and determination can conquer all obstacles. The Association honors the achievements of outstanding leaders who have accomplished remarkable successes in spite of adversity by bestowing upon them the Horatio Alger Award and inducting them as lifetime Members. Horatio Alger Members support promising young people with the resources and confidence needed to overcome adversity in pursuit of their dreams through higher education. Through the generosity of its Members and friends, in 2025, the Association has budgeted to award more than $17.4 million in undergraduate and graduate need-based scholarships to students across the United States and Canada, and continues to provide comprehensive academic, personal, and professional support services to its Scholars. Over the past 40 years, more than $265 million has been awarded in undergraduate, graduate, military veteran and career and technical education scholarships to more than 37,000 deserving students. For more information, please visit www.horatioalger.org.   

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