Vance, Cyrus R. (Cyrus Roberts), 1917-2002

Cyrus R. Vance was born on March 27, 1917, in Clarksburg, West Virginia. He attended Yale University and earned his B.A. in 1939 and his LL.B. in 1942. He began governmental work in 1957 by helping to draft the National Space Act of 1958. In 1961, John F. Kennedy appointed him general counsel and, in 1962, promoted him to secretary of the army. In 1964, Lyndon B. Johnson appointed Vance deputy secretary of defense. After resigning in 1967, Vance was asked by Johnson to ensure federal recovery assistance at the 1967 Detroit riot, and in 1968, to negotiate with Greece and Turkey to avert war in Cyprus. Later that year, he and W. Averell Harriman represented the United States at the Paris Peace Talks on Vietnam. Jimmy Carter appointed Vance secretary of state in 1977. After 1980, Vance became involved in many organizations, such as the Council on Foreign Relations, the Center for National Policy, and the Palme Commission on Disarmament and Security Issues. In 1993, Vance and Lord David Owen traveled to the former Yugoslavia as United Nations envoys to advise on peace-making efforts. Vance died on January 12, 2002.

Grace Sloane Vance was born on June 2, 1918, in New York City. She attended Bryn Mawr College and the Parsons School of Design. During the 1960s, she was vice-chairman of the Tom Sawyer Project, which, in association with the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, selected children from around the country to create and to paint large panels representing their home states. She also directed Widening Horizons, a project of the D.C. public schools Urban Service Corps, which allowed teenagers to experience governmental and business professions, cultural events, and educational opportunities first hand through job fairs, summer camps, and field trips. During the Carter presidency, Vance traveled to Latin America with First Lady Rosalynn Carter to relate the administration's policies and to foster good will. Throughout the 1980s, she was active in the work of the Foreign Policy Association. Vance died on March 22, 2008.

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