{"id":2329,"date":"2025-09-08T23:06:28","date_gmt":"2025-09-08T23:06:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/?p=2329"},"modified":"2025-09-08T23:06:29","modified_gmt":"2025-09-08T23:06:29","slug":"west-point-alumni-association-scraps-awards-ceremony-for-tom-hanks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/?p=2329","title":{"rendered":"West Point Alumni Association Scraps Awards Ceremony For Tom Hanks"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The official West Point alumni association has cancelled a scheduled awards ceremony honoring actor Tom Hanks, according to a report from The Washington Post<\/em>. Hanks \u2014 who has frequently trashed President Donald Trump and his supporters \u2014 was set to be honored for his veterans advocacy work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Retired Army Colonel Mark Bieger, president and CEO of the West Point Association of Graduates, confirmed the news in an email sent to members. Hanks had been set to receive the Sylvanus Thayer Award for \u201coutstanding\u201d non-West Point graduates who exemplify \u201cDuty, Honor, Country,\u201d\u00a0Fox News\u00a0reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ceremony was set to be held on September 25. \u201cThis decision allows the Academy to continue its focus on its core mission of preparing cadets to lead, fight, and win as officers in the world\u2019s most lethal force, the United States Army,\u201d Bieger wrote in the email.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bieger did not specify whether the ceremony had just been canceled or if Hanks would still be receiving the prestigious award. The group previously announced that Hanks would be bestowed with the honor back in June.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTom Hanks has done more for the positive portrayal of the American service member, more for the caring of the American veteran, their caregivers and their family, and more for the American space program and all branches of government than many other Americans,\u201d Honorable Robert A. McDonald, Class of 1975, WPAOG Board Chairman, said in a statement at the time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also Read : Users React to Melania Trump\u2019s New Official Portrait \u2013 Photo<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hanks called the honor \u201csimply astounding, adding, \u201cWest Point\u2019s legacy of leadership, character, and service to the nation is a powerful example for all Americans. To be recognized by an institution whose graduates have shaped our country\u2019s history through selfless service is both humbling and meaningful.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The announcement also listed a number of Hanks\u2019 veteran-driven initiatives, including serving as a spokesperson, along with the late Senator Bob Dole, for the World War II memorial in Washington, D.C., his serving as national chairperson of the D-Day Museum Capital Campaign, and the Elizabeth Dole Foundation naming its veterans caregiving award the Tom Hanks Caregiver Champion Award.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is unclear whether Hanks\u2019 politics played a role in the cancellation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The award-winning actor has long supported Democratic Party candidates and has expressed disdain for President Trump and his supporters on multiple occasions. The most notable example would be his recurring character, \u201cDoug,\u201d on Saturday Night Live, which is used to portray Trump supporters as dim-witted and out of touch.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The official West Point alumni association has cancelled a scheduled awards ceremony honoring actor Tom Hanks, according to<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2330,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2329","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2329","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2329"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2329\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2331,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2329\/revisions\/2331"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2330"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2329"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2329"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2329"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}