Power Presented with Alexander Hamilton Award

The National Coast Guard Museum Association, Inc. presented the 2016 Alexander Hamilton Award to Coast Guard veteran and founder of J.D. Power and Associates, Inc., J. David Power III, who served as an officer aboard the Coast Guard icebreaker EASTWIND during the mid-1950s.

Power was honored in recognition of his years of outstanding service in support of the National Coast Guard Museum.

Powers has spent almost 50 years as a pioneer in studying consumer opinions, with 40 years as founder of what has become one of the most prestigious marketing information companies in the world, J.D. Power and Associates.

In his four years as an officer aboard the Coast Guard’s historic icebreaker EASTWIND, Power helped lay the groundwork for a new understanding of the Polar regions through three trips to the Arctic and one to the Antarctic. Braving volatile weather and treacherous ice, Power and his shipmates supplied scientists with valuable geophysical data.

At a special ceremony in New London on Monday, Mr. Power was presented with the award named in honor of Hamilton, who established the Revenue Cutter Service, a predecessor of the U.S. Coast Guard, in 1790.

Power, who is Honorary Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Coast Guard Museum, Inc., was recognized for his remarkable efforts and success in establishing the National Coast Guard Museum, which is being constructed on the historic downtown waterfront in New London, Conn.

Admiral Bob Papp, National Coast Guard Museum Association Director and former Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, said Power was chosen to receive the award because of his steadfast commitment to the museum. The project, which is now in the pre-construction design phase, will be a celebration of the Coast Guard’s 226 years of service to the country, a salute to the courage and skill of its dedicated men and women, and a glimpse into its exciting and vital future.

“Exemplifying the spirit reflected in Alexander Hamilton’s letter (establishing the Revenue Cutter Service), Mr. Power has led the efforts of the NCGMA to create the nation’s first national Coast Guard museum,” Papp said. “Through his exemplary leadership, vision, and support, Mr. Power’s significant and enduring contributions have made this important museum a reality.”