FORMER HONORARY CHAIR

Former CBS Evening News Anchor and correspondent was a passenger aboard the SS United States in 1953 on his way to cover the coronation of Queen Elizabeth. Often referred to as “The Most Trusted Man in America,” Mr. Cronkite has followed the ship’s fate closely since then and was featured in the documentary film SS United States: Lady in Waiting. In the film, he expressed his admiration for the ship and his outrage at her current condition. He stated that just looking at the SS United States in her heyday “could thrill you with pride and wonder” and that she had the “perfect design.” He lamented that watching the ship each year get “rustier, dirtier, windows broken…” was a “crime against history.” According to Mr. Cronkite, saving the SS United States would be a “restoration of American pride in something it should be very proud of.”

PRESIDENT

Susan L. Gibbs is the SS United States Conservancy’s President and co-founder. She is the granddaughter of William Francis Gibbs, the SS United States’ designer, who directed plans for more than 60 percent of the nation’s wartime fleet during World War II and designed over 6,000 ships during the course of his career. She has given presentations throughout the country on the SS United States and maritime history, and she has appeared in multiple media outlets, including the NBC Nightly News, National Public Radio, CNN, CBS Sunday Morning, Agence France Press, Channel N24 (Germany), and Al-Jazeera America. She has also worked for over two decades in the philanthropic sector with a focus on global women’s issues. She holds a bachelor’s degree magna cum laude from Brown University and a master’s degree from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs.

VICE PRESIDENT

Frank DeGiulio is a Partner at Palmer Biezup & Henderson LLP, a Mid-Atlantic civil litigation practice. After completing his undergraduate degree at the United States Merchant Marine Academy, he served on numerous merchant and naval vessels and holds a Coast Guard unlimited tonnage Third Officer’s license and a First Class Pilot license for the Great Lakes. Throughout his legal career Frank has handled all types of maritime casualty and commercial disputes primarily on behalf of ship owners and their insurers. He is a leading member of the firm’s oil pollution response team and has handled a number of major pollution incidents as well as recoveries on behalf of ship owners from the National Oil Pollution Fund. Frank currently serves as a member of the board of directors of the Maritime Law Association of the United States. He formerly served as an officer in the US Naval Reserve, achieving the rank of Lt. Commander.

SECRETARY

Bill is a partner in the Washington DC office of the K & L Gates law firm. His practice involves a wide range of federal regulatory, policy, and legislative matters focusing on domestic and international maritime issues among others. He is experienced in cargo and cruise shipping matters and in the commercial fishing industry and advises clients with respect to international trade, customs administrative and regulatory matters, natural resource management issues, immigration, manning, vessel construction, financing, documentation, inspection and equipment requirements as well as compliance with safety and maritime security regulations. Additionally, Mr. Myhre works with colleges and universities on a range of federal policy issues. He also serves on the Board of the American Architectural Foundation. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree in American History from Stanford University and Juris Doctor and Masters in City Planning degrees from the University of Pennsylvania.

TREASURER

Mark B. Perry is an Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning television writer and producer whose credits include such series as The Wonder Years, Picket Fences, Law & Order, Party of Five, Brothers & Sisters, Ghost Whisperer, and Revenge. In 1997, Mark was nominated for a Writers Guild of America award for episodic drama for Party of Five. Mark has been an ocean liner fan since childhood when a chance viewing of the 1960 disaster film The Last Voyage introduced him to the aesthetics of twentieth-century nautical interior design. Mark’s passion for the SS United States began in the early 1990s when he started amassing a large collection of table service ware, furniture, ephemera, signage, as well as vintage home movies, photos and slides taken aboard the ship in her heyday. In 2008, collaborating with director Robert Radler, Mark produced the award-winning and critically acclaimed documentary SS United States: Lady in Waiting which aired nationwide on American Public Television from 2008 to 2010.

Charles B. Anderson comes from a family with long maritime traditions, including his grandfather, Captain Charles R. Beard, a steamboat pilot, and his father, Commodore John W. Anderson, the longest serving master of the SS United States (1952-1964). Charles has served on destroyers in the US Navy and currently holds the rank of Commander in the US Naval Reserve. Since 1998, he has been President of Skuld North America, the general US correspondents for Assuranceforeningen Skuld, a leading marine protection and indemnity underwriter based in Oslo, Norway. He was previously a partner in Holland & Knight, and was elected a Titulary Member of the Comite Maritime International in 1998. He is the co-author of Shipping and the Environment, published by Lloyd’s of London Press, now in its second edition. He received his bachelor’s degree from Columbia College, a master’ degree from Princeton University and his J.D. from Columbia Law School.

Robert L. Forbes is Vice President of Forbes and President of ForbesLife magazine. In addition to producing various documentary films for Forbes, he has written numerous articles on food and travel. Furthermore, he has authored two children’s books, Beastly Feasts! A Mischievous Menagerie in Rhyme (Overlook Press, 2007) and Have a Bite! A Beastly Banquet in Rhyme (Overlook Press, 2010), which were both illustrated by world-renowned caricaturist Ronald Searle. Presently, Robert divides his time between Manhattan and Palm Beach, Florida.

Judge Watkins received a BA degree in English Literature from Columbia College in New York in 1964 and taught English Language and Literature at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand. He returned to the US and received a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 1968. He practiced as Public Defender, Assistant District Attorney, Chief of the Legal Division of the Redevelopment Authority, and in private practice until 1983 when he was elected as Judge in the First Judicial District of Pennsylvania. He remained on the bench for 21 years, retiring in August of 2004. In retirement, together with his wife Penelope, Judge Watkins has been active in many philanthropic pursuits and arts organization, including the Wayne Art Center, the Delaware Valley Art League, the Curtis Institute of Music, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, People’s Light and Theatre, and Natural Lands.

David is a manufacturing professional with over 25 years of business leadership experience, a multi-skilled manager who brings together people and ideas through team building, process development, and strategic planning. David serves as Sr. Vice President and CAO of AlphaUSA, is active in connecting his company to its surrounding community, and is a leader in the workforce development initiatives of his region. David’s service to the SS United States Conservancy began during the development of the Conservancy’s "Paint the Big Ship" campaign, and he has since worked closely with the operational staff and outreach teams. In an advisory role, his contributions include numerous work sessions with the Conservancy Board, and active participation in the redevelopment and curatorial teams. David has a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of Detroit and is a trustee of the Livonia Community Foundation.

Warren Jones is the CEO and co-owner of Keppler Speakers, representing keynote speakers from the worlds of business leadership, innovation, adventure and exploration, cybersecurity, global affairs, entertainment, sports, and the arts. Warren has worked in a number of marketing, legal, and general management roles in both the technology and entertainment fields. His career began with ABC (American Broadcasting Companies), and his subsequent marketing roles have encompassed corporate communications, investor relations, event management, PR, and government relations. Warren’s passion for the SS United States developed early on when he sailed from New York to Le Havre on the ship in the early 1960s and returned westbound after a year in Europe. Later he enjoyed exploring the decks of the Big U while she was docked in Norfolk, Virginia in the 1980s with all her fittings, furniture, and artwork still in place. A graduate of Syracuse University’s S. I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, Warren also holds a J.D. degree from the University of Richmond School of Law.

BOARD MEMBER, IN MEMORIAM

Joe Rota was a member of the New York Herald Tribune’s Publication Department from 1952 to 1954. In April of 1955, he began serving as a member of the steward department aboard the SS United States and held positions of first class elevator operator, cabin class bellboy, chief steward’s bellboy, radio bellboy, waiter, and ship’s photographer. After pursuing a portable display equipment business, he returned to sea and sailed on the America, Independence, Constitution and the United States. After leaving the sea in 1964, he was appointed as highway patrolman on the Bergen County, NJ Police Department. He served as police academy instructor, SWAT sniper, hostage negotiator, SCUBA division training officer, and detective. He subsequently held posts as supervisor of the town of Dresden, New York, chairman of the Washington County Board of Supervisors, member of the town of Putnam, New York’s planning board, and executive director to the Adirondack Park’s Local Government Review Board.