Honoring a Dear Friend of ISI
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Dear Members of the ISI Family,
We are deeply saddened to hear of the recent loss of our dear friend Richard V. Allen, who served on the ISI Board of Trustees for over 50 years and left a profound legacy for liberty and the American tradition.
In 1955 an unexpected event left an indelible mark on Dick Allen’s life: a mail piece from ISI addressed to the room’s previous occupant appeared in Allen’s mailbox during his sophomore year at the University of Notre Dame. Noticing the intriguing return address, he decided to open the third-class letter and found an engaging book review written by a Yale student, M. Stanton Evans.
“I joined ISI immediately,” Allen later remembered, “and began a close friendship with Stan that only deepened in the half century of our cooperation.”
Allen was impressed that ISI students and scholars were not only influencing higher education but also contributing to the national dialogue. Through ISI, he was shaped by great thinkers like Russell Kirk, Edmund Burke, and Ludwig von Mises.
“I became involved with ISI because it opened a most important door, providing insight and reading I might never have encountered,” Allen said in an interview.
Allen went on to serve as an advisor to President Richard Nixon and, later, as candidate Ronald Reagan’s chief foreign policy advisor before becoming President Reagan’s first national security advisor. Together with fellow ISI alumnus John F. Lehman Jr., Allen helped formulate a comprehensive defense policy for America’s 40th president.
Allen described participation in our programs as a “lifetime experience…that remains with the individual, influencing thinking, choices, and actions.” His own commitment to the organization embodied this: he joined ISI’s Board of Trustees in 1968 and he continued to serve in that capacity until 2021, faithfully stewarding our programs that identify and educate the most talented young conservatives.
As we mourn Dick’s passing and keep his family in our thoughts and prayers, we also give thanks for his contributions to ISI and the American cause. As he once said: “Political power comes and goes, while true values and worthy ideals never lose their strength.”
May Dick’s legacy inspire us all in our vital work to renew the roots of ordered liberty in America for generations to come.
Sincerely,
John A. Burtka IV
President & CEO
Intercollegiate Studies Institute
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