May 18, 2003

I'm immensely grateful to the University and to all of you for the honor you bestow upon me today.

As President Trachtenberg said, I arrived at the University 57 years ago this August, 3 weeks ago after I was mustered out of the Navy. I went on to law school, I practiced law, I went back into the government, and I tried always to do what I thought was right.

When I entered the government service, my wife gave me a paperweight which sits on desk today, and it reads that: "Luck is when opportunity met preparation." I discovered in most of my life that the harder I worked the luckier I got. I hope each of you will set a goal and a part of that goal ought to be to make the world just a little bit better. Your piece ought to be a little better when you leave what you're doing than when you started. And take a look at that paperweight or have it in your mind. It'll work if you work harder.

Thank you very much.

More About Cohen:

Sheldon S. Cohen, senior counsel with Morgan, Lewis & Bockius in Washington, was appointed commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service in 1964 by President Lyndon Johnson. A native Washingtonian, Cohen earned his BA with special honors from GW in 1950 and received his JD with highest honors from GW Law School in 1952. Cohen was a member of the adjunct faculty of the GW Law School for more than 20 years. He became a member of the University’s Board of Trustees in 1980, serving as chairman from 2000 to 2001.

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