Ambassador Theodore R. Britton Jr will be the keynote speaker at the Del Webb Memorial Day Program. This year due to ongoing construction at the Del Webb Club House, the program will take place at:

First United Methodist Church, South Campus, 4741 Carey Station Road Greensboro, GA 30642  

Date: Monday May 30, 2022 @ 10AM-12 Noon 

Ambassador Theodore Roosevelt Britton, Jr. was born on October 17, 1925 in North Augusta, South Carolina. In 1936, he and his family migrated to New York City, New York. Britton was drafted into the Marine Corps out of high school soon after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Although the Marines now accepted African Americans, they were to be trained in a segregated  facility located at Montford Point, N C in Jacksonville, adjacent to Camp Lejeune.  For the remainder of World War II all black Marines were trained at Montford Point.

They Set Out To Make A Difference And Ended Up Making History.

In 1946, after his discharge from the Marine Corps, Britton returned to New York City and enrolled in NYU for banking and finance. Britton’s studies were interrupted after he was called back into active duty for the Korean War in 1950. After completing his service in the Marines in 1951, he resumed his studies at New York University and graduated in 1952 with a Bachelor of Arts degree. Britton then worked in banking and finance.

In 1971 Britton was named the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in the Richard Nixon Administration. 

On November 17, 1974, President Gerald Ford nominated Britton to serve as U.S. Ambassador to the island nations of Barbados and Genada.  Additionally, simultaneously serving as the SpecialRepresentative to Antigua, Dominica, Anguilla, St. Christopher, Nevis, and St. Lucia. Britton served as ambassador until April 22, 1977. 

In 1981 President Ronald Reagan appointed Ambassador Britton to serve as chairman of the U.S.-China–Soviet Union Agreement on Housing and Planning. He held that position from 1981 to 1989. During this period  Britton also traveled to over 150 countries as a lecturer,promoting international awarenessand education. Ambassador Britton retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 1989. 

In 2012, Congress authorized the Congressional Gold Medal to be awarded to each of the 20,000 Montford Point Marines or to their families in recognition of the accomplishments and sacrifices made during a time of segregation. Montford Point Marines were the first African-American Marines to serve in the U.S. Marine Corps. On June 27, 2012, 430 Montford Point Marines or family members, (after seven decades) were presented the Congressional Gold Medal in a Washington, DC Ceremony at the  Marine Barracks, For Outstanding Perseverance and Courage that Inspired Social Change in the United States Marine Corps. These men who trained at Camp Montford Point from 1942-1949, served with honor, courage and commitment in defense of freedom as a part of the ‘Greatest Generation’ and beyond. They got the name Montford Point Marines because of their segregated training site in Camp Montford Point, North Carolina near Jacksonville, NC. The awarding of the Congressional Gold Medal recognizes their military service alongside other famous World War II groups, such as the Navajo Code Talkers and the Tuskegee Airmen

The Montford Point Marine Training Facility was shut down in 1949 after President Harry S. Truman issued Executive Order 9981 which desegregated the U.S. Armed Forces. 

Between 1942 and 1949 over 20,000 African-American Marines were trained at Camp Montford Point. Of those, 13,000 served in some of the bloodiest struggles in the Pacific –Saipan, Guam Tinian, Peleliu, Iwo Jima, Okinawa and Guadalcanal. Some died in those battles; many others continued their service in Korea and Vietnam. 

Semper Fidelis, Always Faithful, USMC

Contact: Thomas H. P. Carroll Sr. Montford Point Marine Association: Email tom.carr65@yahoo.com 

Phone: 609-304-8245