page_title: Everett Alvarez Jr.
section_title: Post-military Life
hierarchical_section_title: Everett Alvarez Jr. / Post-military Life
caption_attribution_description: English: "Welcome Home" Sketch by combat artist, Dante H. Bertoni at the Welcoming Ceremonies at Clark Air Force Base, Philippine Islands upon Alvarez' return after being a Prisoner of War in Vietnam. On 5 August 1964, then Lieutenant Junior Grade Alvarez' plane was shot down. Held captive for eight years, he was released in March 1973. While captive, he was advanced in rank. In 1980, Alvarez retired as a Commander.
context_page_description: Everett Alvarez Jr. is a former United States Navy officer who endured one of the longest periods as a prisoner of war in U.S. military history. Alvarez was the first U.S. pilot to be downed and detained during the Vietnam War and spent over eight years in captivity, making him the second longest-held U.S. POW, after U.S. Army Colonel Floyd James Thompson.
context_section_description: Alvarez retired from the U.S. Navy with the rank of commander in 1980. He later earned a Master's Degree in Operations and Research Analysis and a Juris Doctor degree, and in April 1981, he was appointed by U.S. President Ronald Reagan to the post of Deputy Director of the Peace Corps. In July 1982, President Reagan nominated and the U.S. Senate confirmed him as Deputy Administrator of the Veterans Administration (VA). After six years with the VA he was appointed by President Reagan in 1988 to the Board of Regents of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USUHS) in Bethesda, Maryland. Alvarez served on that board for almost 21 years, including serving as Chairman of the Board twice. Alvarez has served on the President's Task Force to improve Health Care Delivery for our Nation's Veterans and recently chaired the VA's Capital Asset Realignment and Enhancement Study Commission (CARES). Alvarez also serves on Grantham University's independent Board of Governors.
  In 2015, Alvarez with his sister Delia were featured in a Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) documentary by producer Mylène Moreno On Two Fronts: Latinos & Vietnam.
  Alvarez is a lifetime member of the Board of Fellows of Santa Clara University. He served on the Board of Directors of the International Graduate University of Democracy in Washington, DC. He served on the College of William & Mary Washington, DC Council. He has served on the White House Board of Fellows Selection Committee and on the Board of Directors of the Armed Services YMCA of the USA. He is on the Library of Congress Veterans History Project Five Star Council Advisory Committee. In 2004, Alvarez founded Alvarez & Associates, an IT consulting firm in Washington, D.C. which sells IT services to the U.S. government. In March 2014, Alvarez was appointed to the Vietnam War Commemoration Advisory Council by the U.S. Secretary of Defense, Chuck Hagel.
caption: Lieutenant Commander Everett Alvarez Jr., "Welcome Home" Sketch by combat artist, Dante H. Bertoni.
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