Former Navy Secretary John Phelan gives $1 million to group aiding sailors and Marines

EXCLUSIVE — Former Navy Secretary John Phelan donated $1 million to a nonprofit group that aids active-duty and retired sailors and Marines, the Washington Examiner learned on Wednesday.News of the former Pentagon official’s donation to the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society, the nation’s oldest military aid society, coincides with Veterans Day.“For more than 120 years, the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society has been there for our Sailors, Marines, and their families, helping them through unexpected challenges and difficult times,” Phelan said in a statement shared with the Washington Examiner. “As Secretary of the Navy, I told our force that I hoped they would never need NMCRS, but that it would be there if they did,” he added. “Amy and I are grateful for the opportunity to contribute $1 million to help ensure NMCRS can continue its support for those who serve and their families for generations to come.”Founded in 1904, NMCRS provides financial, educational, and emotional support to Navy service members and their families. The aid organization thanked Phelan and his wife for the generous gift.“NMCRS is profoundly grateful to Secretary Phelan and his wife Amy for this transformational gift and for the confidence it represents in our mission,” said NMCRS President and CEO Robert Ruark, a retired lieutenant general in the U.S. Marine Corps. “Their generosity will help ensure we can continue to be there for Sailors, Marines, and their families when they need us most — providing not only financial assistance and resources, but the reassurance that their Navy and Marine Corps community stands with them.”The former Navy secretary made the $1 million donation after leaving office this past spring upon learning that active-duty personnel are encouraged to donate themselves, according to a source familiar with the donation.Phelan hopes the contribution will encourage other civilian and military leaders to give back financially to the U.S. military after leaving their posts, per the source.Toward the end of his 13-month tenure as Navy secretary this year, Phelan said he would donate his federal salary to NMCRS.“Although I hope none of you find yourselves needing support from this great organization, I want all of you to know it will always be there to serve you,” he said in March.REMEMBERING WORLD WAR II VETERAN, MAJ. JIM ROGANNMCRS set up its annual Active Duty Fund Drive that month, with an $8 million fundraising goal to support critical programs and services offered by the group. The fund drive runs from March 1 through April 30 each year.After he departed the Trump administration in April, Phelan was replaced by acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao. Phelan remains actively involved in philanthropy, as evidenced by his latest donation.