Rear Admiral Ron Tucker had a distinguished career as a Navy officer, and then as a mover and shaker for the Bechtel Corporation. After retiring from these important positions, he lived up to the MOAA motto of “Never Stop Serving,” and made a big impact in his community. He will discuss his various “careers,” and then outline for the Chapter scholarship winners what it takes to serve their country and their community.

Admiral Tucker was born in Santa Monica, California. He graduated from Cal State Northridge in 1963 and was commissioned upon graduation through NROTC. During his Navy career, he commanded the Guided Missile Destroyer, USS Cochrane, the U.S. Naval Station in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, the Battleship USS New Jersey, and Task Force 73 and Logistics Group, U.S. Seventh Fleet in Singapore.

Ashore he had important and demanding assignments on the Navy staff in the Pentagon.

He is a distinguished graduate of the U.S. Naval War College.

Following his Navy career, Admiral Tucker joined the Bechtel Corporation. He served Bechtel as Vice President for Asia Pacific Region Management in Hong Kong, General Manager of Bechtel’s Phoenix Service Center, and Bechtel’s Country Manager in Japan.

Admiral Tucker retired in October 2003, to Anthem, AZ where he has been very active in community, veteran, and charitable endeavors. In 2009 he led a project that built an award-winning veterans memorial in Anthem. The memorial's five white pillars represent the nation's military branches, and each pillar has an elliptical opening that slants downward toward the Great Seal of the United States. On Veterans Day – 11 November– the design allows the sun's rays to spotlight the Great Seal at 11:11 am Mountain Standard Time.

In 2012 Admiral Tucker was inducted into the Arizona Veteran’s Hall of Fame.