Senator George McGovern Assumes Post as Official Spokesperson

National Council on Alcoholism & Drug Dependence
Friday, 1 November 1996

At its November meeting in Houston, the NCADD Board of Directors appointed Senator George McGovern as the official spokesperson for the organization in an effort to increase public support for preventing and treating alcoholism and other drug addictions at a time when the shame and stigma that are associated with these diseases threaten to reverse two decades of progress.

"Since the alcohol-related death of his daughter in 1994, Senator McGovern has devoted a great deal of his time and energy to sharing with the nation the tragic consequences that alcoholism has had on his family," said NCADD Board Chair John Howard Wilson in making the announcement. "We believe that by having Senator McGovern, a highly respected American, serve as our official spokesperson, he can add a personal resonance to our mission that will be highly effective when communicating with elected officials, corporations and foundations, and the public."

"I look forward to working with an organization that has been fighting alcoholism for more than 50 years," said Senator McGovern. "It will be my role, speaking from personal experience and using the resources of a voluntary national health organization, to provide a voice and a message of hope for the estimated 76 million American adults who have suffered due to alcoholism in their families."

Senator McGovern is the author of Terry: My Daughter's Life and Death Struggle with Alcoholism, published earlier this year. Nominated for President the by Democratic Party in 1972, he began his political career in his native South Dakota where he was elected to the first of two terms in the U.S. House of Representatives in 1956. He subsequently served three terms as Senator. Since 1991, McGovern has been President of the Middle East Policy Council, an educational organization founded in 1981 to promote better public understanding of the realities and issues of the Middle East.

For more information, or to contact National Council on Alcoholism & Drug Dependence, see their website at: www.ncadd.org