Suzanne Rice

Jun 14 2026

A Tribute to America’s 250th Birthday

When you are born in the United States and live most of your life here, you become accustomed to the many benefits of being an American. It’s only when you experience America through the eyes of foreigners that you can truly appreciate our nation.

I was blessed, in my military and industry career, to live overseas and to travel extensively in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, sometimes with my wife, Ona, accompanying me. We were always treated with such kindness wherever we traveled, and we both developed a special affection for the international community. After I retired, we found an opportunity to return that kindness by hosting foreign delegates in our Alabama home under the State Department’s International Visitors Program.

Over a decade. we hosted dozens of delegates, typically two at a time, from all parts of the world, representing many different nations, occupations, and religions, as well as exchange students from Central America. While “Mrs. Ona” treated them to southern meals and comfortable beds, I provided transportation and often escorted them to meet with local officials, educators, and businessmen. Experiencing and hearing their observations about our country taught Ona and me to appreciate things we had taken for granted. It was an eye-opening experience for us as we saw our nation in a new light for the first time.

On one occasion, we hosted a University STEM professor from Moscow and a high school STEM teacher from St Petersburg. We took advantage of their well-spoken English and invited several local high school STEM teachers to join us for supper. Our Russian visitors were amazed to learn that every child in the United States—regardless of family wealth or status—can attend school for free. They were even more baffled to learn about the diversity in our local Alabama schools, where more than twenty languages, other than English, were spoken. America is truly the land of equality.

**John and Ona with their Russian Visitors**

Two of our favorite visitors were attorneys from Kosovo whose goal was to understand how disagreements between citizens are handled at the local level. In addition to attending small claims court, they met with local judges to discuss procedures and best practices. Their biggest surprise was attending a city council meeting where they listened to average citizens register complaints and discuss solutions directly with the mayor and city council. In their region of the world, such open and informal communications between the citizenry and elected officials were unthinkable. America is the land of “We the People”.

One of my most challenging times as a host came when I escorted five “Imams” who were religious leaders of the Sunni Muslim faith. They were visiting under a State Department program to improve interfaith dialogue. We met with the chaplain of one of our largest hospitals, who, I discovered upon arrival, was a female. My experience conducting business in male-dominated, Muslim countries made me anxious about how our visit might go. The chaplain explained that she was a Christian but served patients and staff of all faiths at the hospital, including Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, and Buddhist. When asked by one of the Imams how she cared for patients of the Islamic faith she replied, “When asked, I provide them with a Koran and pray by their bedside or with their family. I strive to respect their faith and be impartial in meeting the religious needs of all our patients.” I was surprised at how pleased the Imams were with her response and wondered how they might apply what they had learned when they returned to their own country. Freedom of religion is a cornerstone of the American experience.

Many of the delegates Ona and I hosted were young professionals from Eastern Europe visiting to learn how to start and grow a business. Their homeland, formerly part of the Soviet Union, had little history of free enterprise, and these young, inexperienced entrepreneurs had few resources and mentors to help them get started. During their visit, they learned what I had already experienced in growing a business in Alabama. There is a unique culture of entrepreneurship in our nation, supported by a partnership between local and federal government, the financial community, and our educational institutions. The support our businesses receive is unmatched anywhere in the world. Since its founding, America has been a land of opportunity.

America is not perfect. We are a large, diverse nation of more than 340 million people, of many different religious, economic, and political persuasions. Nevertheless, we remain united in our love of the country and our goal to make life better for future generations.

**America, the home of the brave and land of the free**

Jun 14 2026

My Country, Tis of Thee…and Me!

Sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. To celebrate America’s 250^th Anniversary, here are 250 words highlighting my thoughts about my own place in our Country’s history.

At a very young age, I experienced two recurring dreams. The bad one first, I dreamt I was resisting having a vacuum-tube device pressed into my brain, which would turn me into a robot. The second one had me dreaming of flying. It would take no great mind to convince me that both dreams had to do with freedom and the love of it.

Skip a few years, and I would be watching “Mr. Wizard,” the kids’ TV science show that fascinated me with its explanations of how things worked.

Later, Richard Feynman would wax eloquent on the Eureka-like joy of seeking and understanding reality with his book “The Pleasure of Finding Things Out.”

Still later, I would be reading about Aristotle’s law of non-contradiction and Bacon’s scientific method, both tools for the mind to reason about what works and what doesn’t in the world we live in.

And what has seemed to work for me throughout my life is searching and striving for personal virtue. My time at West Point, in particular, has impressed upon me the importance of character, with one of its finest embodiments being George Washington. Here was a person who understood that freedom, liberty under law, really works. Indeed, it has made America great! So, from every mountainside, let freedom ring!

**Thank you, George, for Leading the Way**

(This is the earliest known image of George Washington painted

in 1772 by Charles Willson Peale at Mt. Vernon, VA)

Jun 13 2026

Thoughts on America’s 250th Celebration – 2026

Jeane Kirkpatrick, American ambassador to the UN during Reagan’s administration, once said, “Americans need to face the truth about themselves, no matter how pleasant it is.”

**Ambassador Jeane Kirkpatrick (1926-2006)**

Most of us love the song “God Bless the USA” written and sung by Lee Greenwood. The tune and lyrics are unashamedly patriotic and memorable. One stanza, however, has always bothered me: “And I’m proud to be an American where at least I know I’m free / And I won’t forget the men who died who gave that right to me …”

While Lee’s words – “the men who died”- may have meant our Founding Forefathers, I think many assume he meant our military men and women who died and “gave that right to me.” The simple truth is that our rights were given to us by God – not men. But throughout our history, our rights have been secured and protected by our military forces, who have put their lives on the line for us.

Here are a few brief reasons why I believe America is so great and why we should celebrate its 250th:

Our God-given rights are protected by our written Declaration of Independence and Constitution. (For the text of the Declaration, click here: Declaration of Independence: A Transcription | National Archives) America is not perfect by any stretch, but we have a built-in expectation of improving (“perfecting”) what we have inherited, how we live, and the way we treat others, even though we are fallen and flawed creatures ourselves.
Liberty … the ability to do what we ought to do, not necessarily only what we want to do.
Freedom of speech (and conscience) … to stand and speak publicly in disagreement with others and against lies and forces opposing the truth.
Freedom of religion … much more than freedom to worship as we choose … the right to speak and to live out publicly what we believe in our hearts.
Right to bear arms … to protect ourselves, our family, and our community against those who would do us harm.
America is a meritocracy … If you are willing to work hard and apply your God-given talents, you can succeed, even beyond what you thought possible.
America is generous…America has done more good for the poor and downtrodden than any nation in history.

Some may choose to focus on our flaws and failures. I encourage all Americans to look at our potential and focus on recommitting to the great principles of our exceptional Republic. As for me, I thank the Lord that I was born an American, have been blessed to raise my family as Americans, and that I am alive to participate in this 250^th celebration of our great Nation under God!

Jun 13 2026

Caught Between a Bench and a Chain

The week after our grandson entered USMA as a member of the Class of 2022, my husband Jim and I had business to attend to on a beautiful, sun-filled, see-as-far-up-the-river as possible, unbelievably, quiet day at West Point. This was the day after thousands had attended the 4^th of July concert, and West Point’s relative quietness now allowed us to be deep in thought and reflection. We were drawn to the twelve stone benches donated by the West Point Class of 1934 on Trophy Point. I remembered how I was always inspired by one bench in particular when I was jogging while we were living at West Point—perseverance.

As we were reading all the inscriptions on the sides of the twelve stone benches, I was lucky enough to overhear one of the West Point tour guides, who was standing next to the Great Chain, speaking of its history. She of course mentioned the old adage, “That a chain is only as strong as its weakest link.”

**The Great Chain on Trophy Point, West Point, NY**

I turned to my husband and said, “That also goes for the inscriptions on the benches: Compassion, Trust, Service, Courage, Perseverance, Determination, Dignity, Discipline, Responsibility, Dedication, Integrity, and Loyalty.” These values echo the U. S. Army values (Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity, and Personal Courage – Framing the Army of the Future – 1995 – The Days Forward) and forge the moral chain—backbone–that makes the leaders who lead by the examples they set. My husband and I spoke about each one of the values engraved on the benches and concluded that, while all were critical for success, without integrity a leader would ultimately fail. In other words, a lack of integrity would be the weak link that could cause an individual’s moral chain to break. Leadership is built upon all of these values working together, but without personal Integrity, the chain of values critical for leaders of character might be broken.

So, the next time you have the opportunity to visit Trophy Point, take a few moments to visit the stone benches and the remaining links of the Great Chain.

Battle Monument on Trophy Point overlooking the Hudson River

The first is made from stone, and the other from iron. While both are hard to break, weakness of a single link in the latter might have had lasting repercussions for Fortress West Point and its defense of the Hudson River against British forces. Equally, the lack of integrity by one of West Point’s graduates at a critical moment in time could affect the fate of the Nation.

Feb 07 2026

Vignettes from Ancient Times – 1976 – 1977 and 1992

It is truly unfortunate that my most interesting stories about life in the hotel business can’t be put in writing. The really good ones involve famous people, hotel owners, entertainers, mistresses, and members of the oldest profession. But for the sake of privacy, the following vignettes involve only me in my early days as a GM in Sheraton hotels in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Birmingham, Alabama. Certainly, the statute of limitations has expired by now, as I left Sheraton in 1992.

After serving my five-year commitment in the military, I was fortunate enough to secure a position as an assistant to the general manager at the Sheraton Dallas Hotel. Basically, it was a management trainee role. I was equally fortunate to have one of the most senior and best training GMs in the Sheraton Corporation. I worked in every department, even taking over for the executive housekeeper for a little while due to the expected opening of the position.

After about a year and a half in this role, the day before Labor Day, I received a call from human resources at Sheraton’s headquarters, asking me to “babysit” the Sheraton Tulsa Airport hotel until a permanent GM could be assigned. The GM was leaving the next day, by “mutual agreement.” It wasn’t unusual for Sheraton to give you a day’s notice to move to a new assignment. It happened again eleven years later, when I moved from Palm Springs, California, to Bangkok, Thailand, but that is a story for another day. In any event, I didn’t mind, as the job carried a temporary GM’s title and I was very pleased about that.

Upon arriving at the hotel late in the evening, there was a farewell party in the bar to say goodbye to the GM. It’s a little unusual not to get any verbal or written handover notes, but given the GM’s history, that might have been for the better. Everyone at the party was at least “two sheets to the wind,” but I tried to be as accommodating as possible and accept what was going on. A lady who asked me to dance turned out to be a waitress in the bar. I heard the GM was indeed very “close” to the staff and loved his grog.

The GM departed the next day, and I began my “babysitting” assignment, assuming it would last a week or two at the most. I thought I would soon be replaced and return to Dallas. (Also, Sheraton was going to sell the hotel, as it did not fit into their overall strategy.) Well, it wasn’t until a year and a half later that they sold the hotel, and I was the GM for the duration.

My days of being a bootlegger started my first day on the job in Tulsa.

Some counties in Oklahoma were what we called “dry.” The county the hotel was in was one of those counties.

We used to say “the Baptists staggered into the polling station to vote dry.” You could bring a whole bottle of liquor into the bar and drink what you wanted, but you couldn’t buy a single drink. Obviously, being adjacent to an international airport meant that many of our guests arrived without a bottle and expected a drink.

Every hotel in Tulsa accommodated those guests by serving them individual drinks, and so did my hotel since its inception. Thus . . . my bootlegging days began. I would take the hotel station wagon to the local liquor store and fill it up with booze, bringing it back to the hotel to keep the bar well stocked.

It was a misdemeanor if you got caught selling an individual drink, and the unlucky bartenders and waitresses usually got caught. Fortunately, misdemeanors were wiped out after a certain number of years. Even so, I had to be extremely careful not to get caught in the bar during one of the raids by the local police.

All the hotels had a system to notify the others that “Paul Revere is riding again.” On most occasions, we were able to shut down our illegal operations before they arrived. But obviously, if you were first on their list, the system didn’t help. We got caught several times, and on the third ding, we lost our liquor license and had to get a new one under a different name. It was quite easy, though, as many lawyers specialized in this area.

Fortunately, I was never nabbed, so kept my record clean. Not too many of my classmates can claim that they were bootleggers!

A Fish Story

Early one Monday morning, I received a call from the president of Sheraton Corporation. Now, I did know him, as he was a friend of my father. However, it’s like a newbie tac officer receiving a call from the Superintendent of West Point. Why on earth would he be calling me? After a few pleasantries, he asked me if I had any fish in the freezer. I said, “Well, yes, I am sure we have fish in the freezer,” as it was on our restaurant menu. What a strange question. “Well,” he said, “You have a friend of mine’s salmon in your freezer.” It turned out that the president of Avis Car Rental had flown in the night before from Alaska. He had been on a salmon fishing trip and had brought his fish with him on the plane. Upon arrival, he asked the receptionist to put his fish in our freezer, which she did.

In a hotel of this size and location, anything not locked up had a tendency to go missing. So, it was a strict policy to lock all freezers and refrigerators at night. The chef on the opening breakfast shift had the keys. But, unfortunately, the gentleman checked out extremely early on Sunday for his flight to New York, leaving his fish locked up in our freezer. You can imagine the ennui of a fisherman having to leave his hard-earned, extremely expensive prized fish behind.

This turned out to be the most expensive salmon per pound ever caught. My president advised me to put the salmon on the first flight to New York—with the appropriate means to keep it frozen the entire way—and to have a limousine waiting to pick it up and deliver it to the president of Avis at his New York office. Of course, valuing my job, I did so immediately . . . and went over budget that month.

Sheraton decided to move me from Sydney, Australia, to Birmingham, Alabama, to open the 757-room Sheraton Civic Center Hotel. It involved a complete restoration of an old hotel and a new build of approximately 350 rooms. It was quite an experience, as when I arrived there was only one other Sheraton employee (a director of marketing), and all we had was one computer. Construction was about one-third done, and we had about sixteen months before the hotel’s opening.

Very soon after opening, we hosted a delegation from Saudi Arabia, including a prince and the king’s sister. It seems that when you have most of the money in the world and your sister needs a knee operation, you send her to one of the most famous orthopedic surgeons in the world. At that time, it was Dr. James Andrews. It just so happens that Dr. Andrews had operated on Roger Clemens, Michael Jordan, Drew Breese, Bo Jackson, Jack Nicklaus, and other celebrities.

The visiting Arabs had twelve rooms and suites to stay in and four additional rooms for their luggage. The prince made it very clear that he was unhappy to have been given this assignment in the “backwater of nowhere.” He was always in a foul mood, as he pranced in and out of the hotel at all hours of the day and night, complete with a gold-headed walking stick.

One night at about 10 p.m., I got an urgent call from the hotel saying that the prince wants to see me immediately. I put on a suit and headed to the hotel about thirty minutes away. When I arrived, the prince was seated in the lobby, holding court with his minions. As I approached, he rose up and threw a huge wad of $100 bills right at my chest. He said, “Here, you want money, here is money.” The Benjamins flew all over the floor of the lobby. I had no clue as to what he was referring to. My mind was racing, and my first thought was wouldn’t it be nice to punch the little dandy right in the nose. Of course, since I didn’t want to create an international incident, I decided against that option. What I thought of later is that I should have said, “Thank you, I will donate all this money to a local charity.” However, I didn’t do that either. I just remained silent until he sat back down and one of his minions explained to me that room service had failed to deliver a steak to a member of the delegation as ordered. An incident of epic proportions!

As it turned out, room service took the order, but back in 1990, the phone systems weren’t advanced enough to list the room number of the person calling room service, and on this occasion, the caller hung up before the order taker could get the room number. It could have been any one of the delegation’s twelve rooms. The prince, having made his big show, cooled down and the incident drew to a close. Not sure what happened to the $100 bills, but I didn’t pick them up.