vailsymposium

Susan Ford Bales is a Virginia native and now resides in Texas. She is the daughter of President Gerald R. Ford and Betty Ford. Susan is the mother of two daughters, Tyne Berlanga and Heather Devers, five grandchildren, Joy Elizabeth Berlanga, Cruz Vance Berlanga, Elizabeth Blanche Devers, Jude Devers, and Sullivan Bales, and three step­sons, Kevin, Matthew, and Andrew Bales.

Bales was raised in Alexandria, Virginia and attended Holton Arms School and the University of Kansas, where she studied. photojournalism. She is the recipient of an Honorary Doctorate Of Public Service degree, an Honorary Doctorate of Letters degree, and an Honorary Doctorate Of Humane Letters degree. She is the author of two novels set in the White House, “Double Exposure: A First Daughter Mystery,” and its sequel, “Sharp Focus.”

Bales is the Ship’s Sponsor for the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78), which she officially christened on November 9, 2013. On April 8, 2016, in recognition of her service as the Ship’s Sponsor, she was named an Honorary Naval Aviator by the United States Navy, becoming only the 31st American to receive this distinction. And history was made with her selection -Bales is the first woman to be chosen as an Honorary Naval Aviator.

During her high school years, Bales lived in the White House and served as official White House hostess following her mother’s surgery for breast cancer in 1974. In 1984, she and her mother helped launch National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and Susan subsequently served as national spokesperson for breast cancer awareness. Since the founding of the Betty Ford Center in 1982, Bales worked side by side with her mother on projects at the Center and was elected to the Center’s Board of Directors in 1992. She succeeded her mother as Chairman of the Board from 2005 -2010, and currently serves on the board of directors of the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation.

In addition to her many charitable and public service activities, Bales serves as Co­Trustee of the President Gerald R. Ford Historical Legacy Trust, Trustee of the Elizabeth B. Ford Charitable Trust, and the Honorary Advisory Committee of the Children’s National Medical Center.