May 9 – Benjamin F. Adams, III, Brigadier General, United States Army (Retired)
LEXINGTON, KY – The Rotary Club of Lexington held its weekly meeting on Thursday, May 9, at The Mane on Main, Chase Bank building on Main St. The guest speaker was Benjamin F. Adams, III, Brigadier General, United States Army (Retired).
This meeting will also be on Zoom. For the Zoom link please email, [email protected].
If you would like to have lunch, please contact [email protected] to reserve your meal.
Brigadier General Benjamin F. Adams III, served as the 5th Commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Veterans Affairs. Through forty years of service in the U.S. Army, General Adams served with honor and distinction, culminating in his positions as Deputy Commanding General US Army Aviation Center of Excellence and Assistant Adjutant General, Kentucky National Guard.
General Adams received his commission through the Reserve Officer Training Corps program at the University of Mississippi in 1978. He earned a Master of Business Administration Degree from Xavier University and Master of Strategic Studies from the US Army War College. He has commanded at the company, battalion, and brigade level and served as Deputy Commanding General of the United States Aviation Center of Excellence. His significant active-duty assignments include tours at the United States Army Aviation Center, Fort Rucker, Alabama; the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) and the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) at Fort Campbell, Kentucky; and the Combined Forces Land Component Command, Kuwait and Baghdad, Iraq.
He has earned numerous awards and decorations to include the Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit (with two Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters), Meritorious Service Medal (with four Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters) and Air Medal, Joint Service Commendation Medal, and numerous other awards and decorations. He is a Master Aviator and is Airborne and Air Assault qualified.
General Adams is a member of the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Veterans, and the Disabled American Veterans. He is a member of the board for the Lexington VA Fisher House, Habitat for Humanity, and numerous other professional organizations. He is a past president of the Bluegrass Chapter of the Army Aviation Association of America, the Lexington Veterans Commission and the current Chair for the Kentucky National Guard Memorial, the Joint Executive Council of Veteran Organizations and Honor Flight Kentucky.
General Adams’ remarks will focus on the Honor Flight Kentucky program. The Honor Flight Kentucky mission, as taken from its web page, is a proud one: “To fly World War II, Korean, and Vietnam War veterans to Washington DC for a one-day, all-expenses-paid visit to the National memorials that are dedicated to honoring their service. Our goal is to fly as many Veterans as we can from Central, Eastern, and Southern Kentucky. We currently have several hundred Veteran applicants on our waiting list.”
The next mission is right around the corner, on May 18, 2024.
