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General Colin Powell was the youngest and the nation's first black chairman. the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the highest position in the U.S. military. He was also the first black man appointed Secretary of State. the world's leading diplomat.
The world saw him as a military leader, diplomat, senior statesman, and an advocate for young people. But to friends and family, He was so much more. We have one of those friends here to share some of the stories about the general. Let's take a listen. I'm Leslie Laudensleicher.
And I have recently written a book. Called My Time with General Colin Powell: Stories of Kindness, Diplomacy, and Protocol. And in essence it's a memoir of my twenty five over twenty five years. serving beside him uh mostly on the s the international speaking circuit. but also with him at the State Department.
And In July of Twenty sixteen The pals were in the Hamptons on vacation and I was in Atlanta, Georgia for my annual conference. On this particular day we were gathered for a plenary session focused on state funerals. We were at Ebenezer Baptist Church. And the plenary was taking place in The Fellship Hall.
Well, I was doing something that I preach on for everybody else. Do not look at your cell phone when you are in. an event, at a show, whatever. Do not look at your cell phone.
However, I was in the back of the room. And General Powell was texting me. Naughty as I was, I looked at it and Reminded him where I was. He knew where I was at the conference, but he at that moment did not realize I was in Fellowship Paul of Ebenezer Baptist Church. which to put it in context, that of course is where Martin Luther King was a co-pastor, and also that was where his funeral had taken place.
And for us to be having a state funeral plenary session there, it was very specific and very, very meaningful.
So I reminded the general, you know, basically, don't bother me. Quit texting me. I'm here for this plenary session. And a moment went by. And he ticked a bat and he said Little Bird, one of his nicknames for me.
Little Bird, you do realize you'll be doing that for me one day, don't you? And I froze. I felt the blood drain from my face, I broke out in a cold sweat, I teared up of chorus. And he then texted right away and he said, you know, Leslie, you're not Surprised by this, are you? And I admitted in a quick text back, and I said, Well, okay, maybe I'm not surprised, but why are we talking about this?
This is not something we need to talk about.
Well, he then went on and did his normal bullet list of, no, we will use Gawler's funeral home when it happens. We which in the end we did. We will. Not have the service at St. John's Episcopal Church, which was his local church there in McLean, Virginia.
We won't have it there because I realize it's probably too small. We will not have it. Yeah. the National Cathedral in Washington. It is too big and too important.
And I will be buried, of course, at Arlington National Cemetery but not near the eternal flame. not near the tomb of the unknown soldier, I want to be buried down with the troops.
Now, in the end, we did use Guller's Field Home. We negated his thought not to have it at the National Cathedral, in the end, that was the appropriate place. and he is in fact buried down with the troops. And if you look at his his tombstone. It is a very basic tombstone.
He had many very important titles that could have been on the Tombstone. But it's not. It is the simple Soldier.
So that was That was a sobering moment in 2016 to be faced with this. And he did say at the time. Texted at the time.
Okay, we'll talk about this. I realize we don't have to talk about it right now, but we'll talk about it. We'll have an ongoing conversation about it. We never talked about it again.
So my over a quarter century with General Powell started out very serendipitously. As I said, I had had a career in protocol. During the Reagan administration, so it was soon after I graduated from college, I fell into a job at the State Department. with Lucky Roosevelt as the chief of protocol.
So at the end of the Reagan administration. my job ended when his administration ended. But I had gone around to do other things in protocol. I worked at the Battle of Normandy Foundation. And then in April of nineteen ninety six.
Out of the blue, I get a phone call. from a friend of mine, saying there's this job with my name on it. With the Washington Speakers Bureau. with somebody to take care of in essence the golden goose. one of the world's most popular speakers on the international speaking circuit.
i.e., General Colin Powell. And Sure enough, I was offered the job. And The world, you know, if this were on camera, I would demonstrate by saying the world knew him as a military leader, and I would put my hand to my forehead in a salute. And then I would also say, World Newham is a diplomat, and I would put my hand over my heart. That's what the world knew, from the headlines, from the camera, from whatever.
But he was so much more. General Powell had been invited to present a series of awards and a gala dinner, a black tie dinner. With Washington DC. And it was at the Ronald Reagan. And it was after we were at the State Department.
So he's back in private life. And also presenting awards was Tom Sillick. When John Powell and I got to the VIP reception early. We worked the crowd the VIP reception. As soon as the general had worked the room, It was time that he could then I see a scoop.
get out of the feeding frenzy, so to speak, and retire to a private holding room that had been set up for him. And then we got word that Tom Selick had arrived, but Tom Selleck did not have Leslie. Tom Selleck was by himself. And he was in the VIP reception and Jennifer Powell realized that he needed to take pity on his friend and and Tom Zelligan and Jenner Powell were friends. And so he he said, Well, I was like, Go go save Tom.
Just just see if he wants to come out uh and hang with us in the VIP hold room. Side note, Jar Pal knew that I was a big Mac the PI san. I've been in love with Megan P. Eye since I was a teenager.
So he knew this was not a hardship for me, but he also knew it was.
Something that probably would make me blush.
So I wade through the VIP perception, probably 100 people. And sure enough, they are f feeding. It's a shark attack feeding on him.
So I Tap him on the shoulder. It's at Mr. Seller, excuse me, my name is Leslie Lattensinger. I work with John Coleman Powell. And your friend the general has has asked me to to say, Would you like to join us in the Whole room.
He, of course, absolutely.
So he hightails it out of the crowd with me. Go into the room.
So they're catching up, whatever.
Well, then we're joined by the rest of the VIPs that are at the head table. And again, this is black tie.
So the gentlemen are in tuxedos. The ladies are in twinkly sequins and heels.
Well, one of the women. who's part of the head table comes in and jumps into Joe Pell's arms. Colin, Colin, I'm so happy to see you. And she proceeds to tell the rest of the VIP hit table people. The story that Colin saved my life one day.
We were seated at the table together at dinner at the White House. And I started choking on a piece of chicken. and the general saved my life. Yeah. did a Heimbuck maneuver, and sure enough, I escaped death's clutches.
Well, Tom Sillick then says, Well, you know what? I live in fear that one day I will be at a dinner, and somebody will choke and will die because I do not know how to the heim maneuver. Suddenly, I see the twinkle in John Powell's eyes. And I think, oh, sugar, I know exactly what's coming next. Joe pats Tom Selk on the shoulder and said, Tom?
Tonight you're lucky night. I'm gonna teach you the hump maneuver. And he looks across at me with twinkles in his eyes and yells loudly Come here. And you've been listening to Leslie Lautenslager tell the story of General Colin Powell. My goodness, the part of him being buried with the soldiers at Arlington.
is just well, it's Colin Powell. Here's what his tombstone says. Coland Luther Powell. General U.S. Army.
Vietnam. Persian Gulf. april fifteenth, nineteen thirty seven. october eighteenth, twenty twenty one. No mention of his service at the State Department.
No mention of his service. as chairman of the Joint Chiefs. Power. was not really what Colin Powell was after. He wanted to be buried with his boys.
with the soldiers, with the men and women who serve the country. And that tombstone says it all. When we come back, more of General Colin Powell's story here. on Our American Stories. Yeah.
Support for the show comes from Public, the investing platform for those who take it seriously. On Public, you can build a multi-asset portfolio of stocks, bonds, options, crypto, and now generated assets, which allow you to turn any idea into an investable index with AI. It all starts with your prompt: from renewable energy companies with high-free cash flow to semiconductor suppliers growing revenue over 20% year over year. You can literally type any prompt and put the AI to work. It screens thousands of stocks, builds a one-of-a-kind index, and lets you backtest it against the SP 500.
Then you can invest in a few clicks. Generated assets are like EFTs with infinite possibilities, completely customizable and based on your thesis, not someone else's. Go to public.com/slash podcast and earn. An uncapped 1% bonus when you transfer your portfolio. That's public.com/slash podcast.
Paid for by Public Investing. Brokerage Services by Open to the Public Investing Inc., member FINRA, SIPC. Advisory Services by Public Advisors LLC, SEC Registered Advisor. Generated Assets is an interactive analysis tool. Output is for informational purposes only and is not investment recommendation or advice.
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Conditions and restrictions may apply. And we continue with Our American Stories and with Leslie Lautenslager. And she's the author of My Time with General Colin Powell, Stories of Kindness, Diplomacy, and Protocol. Let's pick up. where we last left off.
So I Do you have fleeing? With beet red face, I have no doubt. I hoddle over in my little high heels. Chur Pal grabs Tom Sulk's arms, Puts them around my waist, tells Tom, okay, no, no, no, do it a little tighter now.
Now you squeeze here, and he goes into great choreography in making sure that Tom Selleck.
Now has dutifully been taught. the appropriate procedure for saving a life with a Heimer maneuver. On me. My only regret is that there was no photographer in the room who could take an official picture of me as the dummy. used to teach Tom Savik I have a number.
When we first went to the State Department. The Secretary of State of the United States of America has suddenly Burst into the room. Then he says, Okay. I on Wednesday, so maybe this was a Monday, because on Wednesday, it will be my time to host. The Foresome.
And the Foresome was the the National Security For some, which was the Vice President, in this case, Vice President Cheney, Secretary of Defense. Rumsfeld and National Security Advisor Cundelisa Rice and Secretary of State.
So it's gonna be It's Mr. Powell's turn to host this this monthly lunch.
So he's telling my stat, because I know where's Leslie, and they explain, oh, she's at this meeting.
So what can we do? What can we do? And Taking notes, you say, Okay. on Wednesday. For this lunch, I want it to be.
in one of the diplomatic receiving rooms upstairs. W and for those of you who don't know, the State Department has the third largest collection of American antiques.
next to Winter Tour and Claude Williamsburg. beautiful, one of the kind American history i is just resplendent in the in the eighth floor um diplomatic receiving rooms. And that was where we did all our entertaining.
Well, for this small lunch, he was gonna have it in one of those rooms. He wanted. Spotless tablecloths and napkins. He wanted the Perfect. Fristol etched with the Great Seal of the United States.
He wanted the beautiful China With the Great Seal of the United States, the silver. Everything looked beautiful. And then he wanted each plate to then have this the silver domey things, as he told my staff, the koches. wanted each one to have a silver don.
Now my women, my staff, they're taking Vestifir's nose 'cause he's very very serious about this giving them orders. He said, and that I want that the white staff, I want them to be in black tie? And and I want everything choreographed so that exactly the right moment they they reveal. I want them to reveal the s you know, take the the silver domes off the plates. And then I want served.
Peanut butter and jelly sandwich is a white bread. A bag of chips. A cookie And What's that yucky chocolate drink that, you know Yahoo. View. What are the taco drinkers?
and I want it all in a brown paper bag. and I want scribbled over the top in crayon. Rummy, Condi, Chaney And My stuff. They say but but he he was serious. And Isaac, the one who was most traumatized, I had a calligrapher on my staff and she's so talented.
I think she was more traumatized than anybody else because the idea of using a crayon to scribble. on a brown paper bag when she's used to doing dip pens and ink. And sure enough, that's what we did.
So so when it comes time for the luncheon. these very important officials of the United States of America. They come in and I I've got the the wait staff. We're all dressed and we're behind each chair. Yeah, and I could think The wink from the general of the secretary.
And I cue the others and we grab the silver domes, pull it up. Ta-da? And there's a moment of silence. And then Cheney looks up and says. Good one, Colin.
Good one.
So that was the general. Yes, make everybody work hard, but make sure that everybody realizes that there's joy in life. You know, when the general died, he um My father died when I was eight. And uh which of course you Nothing is like that. But I had general power three times longer than I had my own dad.
But it was devastating, and I was out of town at the time, and got a text from Michael, the son.
So I texted Michael right back and Michael. Hidden. kindly said Leslie, you're not to work the funeral. Your family. And I said, but I have to.
This is what I do. Let me, this is my gift to him. And I, of course, let. everybody know about the conversation he and I had had back in July. Um in the text conversation.
uh, from the basement of the Ebenezer Baptist Church about, you know, Little bird, you'll be doing this for me one day.
So then the agreement was that, okay, they would let me play in and help organize the funeral, but the day of the funeral, I would be. seated with the family and and part of the family and that was fine. But we were able to make sure that the funeral had very special treats in it. The military musical group that pushes on. They incorporated Dancing Queen from ABBA.
Jerome Pappa's a big ABBA fan.
So Daisy Queen from ABBA was part of the musical tribute. Um also Bob Marley's Three Little Birds. Michael Powell, the oldest of the three p Powell children, had a breathtakingly beautiful part of the service. My sisters and I were raised under the stars. The stars of the story general we eulogize today.
Dad was famous for his thirteen rules. But our family life was unregimented. No morning reveille of marching drills. It was a warm and joyous and loving home. Anchored by our strong and graceful mother Alma.
Our parents taught us right. They taught us wrong. And they taught us to take responsibility for our actions. and never to blame others. disappointing them was the worst punishment.
You could imagine. The example of Colin Powell does not call on us to emulate his resume, which is too formidable for mere mortals. It is to emulate his character. and his example as a human being. We can strive to do that.
We can choose to be good. One of the general's favourite singers was the Scottish singer Lulu, who made famous the song To Sir With Love. which was written by Don Black and Mark London for the movie of that same name starring Sidney Poitier. Although the lyrics of the song are written as if sung by a young schoolgirl adoringly to her teacher. My eyes tear up whenever I think of that last verse.
A friend who taught right from wrong. and weak from strong. That's a lot to learn. What can I give you in return? If you wanted the moon, I would try to make a start.
but I would rather you let me give my heart. to serve with love. If I could have given him the moon to go with his four stars, I surely would have. As a military leader and later as a senior statesman on the world stage, he had our admiration and respect. As a boss, a dear friend, and his surrogate father.
he had my heart, and I will forever rejoice in being able to share the gift of his memory, his lessons, and his joie de vivre. To serve with love. Indeed. And you've been listening to Leslie Lautenslager, her book, My Time with General Colin Powell. Stories of kindness, diplomacy, and and protocol.
My goodness, that eulogy. delivered by his son Michael. One of the most powerful eulogies I've ever heard. And I remember we have done that story of that eulogy. And I actually commented at the end that there are two kinds of men in the world and two kinds of women.
People whose sons and daughters speak about you that way. and people who don't. And we all get to choose which that is. The story of General Colin Powell. The story of the man behind the stars.
To serve with love, This is our American stories. Mm. Hey Donald, you're like flying on that treadmill. I'm trying to run as fast as T-Mobile 5G home internet, Zach.
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