This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Tesscass (talk | contribs) at 01:29, 13 February 2010 (+ ref, rm BLP unsourced tag). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Revision as of 01:29, 13 February 2010 by Tesscass (talk | contribs) (+ ref, rm BLP unsourced tag)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff) For the New Zealand rugby union footballer named William McCormick, see Fergie McCormick. For the Upper Canada politician, see William McCormick (Upper Canada politician). | The neutrality of this article is disputed. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. Please do not remove this message until conditions to do so are met. (December 2007) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
William (Bill) P. McCormick (born August 18, 1939, in Providence, Rhode Island) is an American businessman and diplomat. He served as the United States ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa from October 21, 2005 until January 10, 2009. He is married and has six children.
McCormick attended Roger Williams University and Boston University while serving in the United States Army Reserve Military Police until he was honorably discharged in 1963. He then moved to northern California and worked in the brokerage office of Connecticut General Life Insurance Companyin San Francisco until 1965. It was at this time that he became a partner in the Refectory Steak House Restaurant chain. By the early 1970s McCormick had moved further north to Portland, Oregon, and sold his interest in the Refectory Restaurants.
In 1974 he purchased the restaurant, "Jake's Famous Crawfish", and within the year had partnered with Doug Schmick. While growing the restaurant company, he attended the Harvard Business School, Executive Management Program, in 1979. There are 90 McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurants in 24 states employing over 8,000 people. The company went public in July 2004 and is traded on the NASDAQ. McCormick currently serves as Chairman Emeritus.
Throughout his business career McCormick’s civic and charitable involvement was far-reaching. For example, he has provided thousands of pounds of food for the Pasadena, California, food bank and 11,000 books for disadvantaged children in Los Angeles County. He began the Shamrock Run twenty-seven years ago for the benefit of many service organizations in Portland, Oregon. McCormick was awarded the Secretary’s Award by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs for his contributions to, and recognition of, the nation’s veterans. Each year McCormick & Schmick Seafood Restaurants provides over 17,000 complimentary meals to veterans visiting any McCormick & Schmick Restaurant on Veterans Day.
As co-chair of the Portland Opera Foundation, he was successful in raising $24 million to help sustain that organization in the future. Under President George W. Bush, McCormick served on the President's Committee of the Arts & Humanities, whose Honorary Chairman is First Lady of the United States, then Laura Bush.
| Diplomatic posts | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded byCharles J. Swindells | U.S. Ambassador to New Zealand Also accredited to Samoa 2005 – 2008 |
Succeeded byDavid Huebner |
References
- "McCormick, William P." U.S Department of State.
- Misplaced Pages neutral point of view disputes from December 2007
- 1939 births
- Living people
- Roger William University alumni
- Boston University alumni
- Harvard Business School alumni
- Oregon businesspeople
- Ambassadors of the United States
- United States ambassadors to New Zealand
- United States Army soldiers
- People from Providence, Rhode Island