The SS United States Trust is fortunate to have a Board of Directors who bring much more to the table than their love of Country, history and ocean liners:

• Ernest L. Raab, Chairman - New York, New York
• Devon M. Scott, Executive Director - Houston, Texas
• Dan Trachtenberg - New York, New York
• Ian Robertson - New York, New York
• Eric H. M. Lee, Secretary - Washington, D.C.
• Richard A. Schmidt - Los Angeles, California

Ernie is a blend of artistic and cultural sensibility with pragmatic financial and organizing skills. He sees himself as a preservationist by nature as well as a passionate lover of classic ocean liners. He has sailed the QE2, France/Norway, QM2 and SS Atlantic many times, and has been onboard the United States, Independence, Constitution, and many other classic liners that he visited in port on high school dates.

For the past 25 years, he has headed a successful financial advisory team practice at several well-known national financial services firms. He has witnessed and been part of the process of fundraising, both in the public and private arenas.

Prior to coming to Wall Street in 1984, he was Director of Sales and Marketing for a well-known major film distribution and production company and ran their lectures and programs bureau. This was the logical evolution of his start as a University Administrator at several top-tier universities, organizing festivals and programs and writing fundraising grants.

Ernie has earned a B.A. from Hobart College, and an M.A. and his doctoral coursework from Syracuse University. He has also earned a professional designation from the College for Financial Planning. He has extensive experience as a volunteer in charitable and community organizations, and has headed several 501(c)(3) non-profit groups. 

Devon M. Scott is best known in the Ocean Liner community as Ship's Historian of the S/S Norway and founder of the S/S Norway Preservation Foundation. In addition to operating the onboard history program and working to create awareness for the ship shoreside Devon was a pivotal part of the ship's entertainment staff. During his tenure the ship set an all time record high guest satisfaction rating and realized dramatic increases in revenues. It was partly due to these results and promotional efforts that the ship was returned to service after her "Farewell Season" in 2001.

Devon is also known as producer and host of The Nashville Country Showcase at the Texas Troubadour Theater in Nashville, Tennessee. The Showcase was a for-profit production of his non-profit Entertainer's Foundation and one of the highlights of his career in the radio broadcasting, music and live entertainment business.

In addition to being a veteran entertainment producer, Devon brings a variety of skills ranging from database architecture and computer multi-media and print production to marketing, promotions and management. His Horizon Communications & Entertainment specialized in cooperative marketing and promotions.

An enthusiast of classic automobiles as well as ocean liners, architecture, and aircraft, Devon is a member of the Rolls Royce Owners Club of America. He is proud to offer his talents and experience with the S/S Norway, non-profit/volunteer organizations and marketing to the worthy cause of rescuing the SS United States.

Dan Trachtenberg has over a decade of experience on museum object conservation, exhibit design and installation, and collections management.  He has worked for several museums in the New York area, including South Street Seaport Museum, the Cold Spring Harbor Whaling Museum, the Sea Cliff Village Museum and the American Merchant Marine Museum. At the American Merchant Marine Museum he archived the entire public relations files of United States Lines, the one time owners and operator of the SS United States. He has lectured and written on maritime history on the local and national level.  An avid reader of all things maritime, he has been the President of the SS United States Foundation from 1999-2001 and from 2005 through the present.  In September of 2009, he was named Chairman of the Foundation. He is a graduate of Brooklyn College and a lifetime New Yorker.

Ian was born into a family of three generations of Merchant Seaman. He attended the National Sea Training Academy at Gravesend, Kent.  He sailed on the RMS Queen Mary, the RMS Queen Elizabeth, the SS Ocean Monarch, the SS Queen of Bermuda and the SS Lurline Matson Line.  Ian is a retired Merchant Marine who worked on the SS Swathmore Victory and the Seatrain Georgia — Ammunition Ships which sailed to Vietnam.  He received the United States Merchant Marine Vietnam Service Medal.

Ian served as Project Coordinator for the SS Mariposa and SS Monterey Project—two bankrupt Pacific Far East Liners docked in San Francisco.  The goal was to transform these ships into Senior Citizen low income housing.  He worked with Donald Turner, then Director of Housing and Urban Development for the State of California.

For the past 30 years, Ian has collected Ocean Liner Memorabilia.  He is dedicated to the preservation of our Maritime History.  Ian is the Founder of Ocean Liner Row, www.oceanlinerrow.com, an organization committed to designing exhibits for public venues in the Tri-State area.  His current offering  is on display at the Port Authority Bus Terminal at the George Washington Bridge, NYC.

Ian is a member of RMS Queen Mary Foundation, the World Ship Society PONY Branch, the National Maritime Historical Society, the Steamship Historical Society and the US Merchant Marine War Veterans.

Eric H. M. Lee is the head of the Washington, D.C. consulting firm Lee and Associates.  His firm specializes in providing advice on telecommunications regulation and Internet public policy issues.  Eric was formerly Legislative Director to Senator Daniel K. Inouye (D-HI), current chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee and former chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee.  After leaving Senator Inouye's office, he worked for AT&T's Public Affairs office and was the Public Policy Director of the Commercial Internet eXchange, the first entity to engage in commercial activities over the Internet.

Richard A. Schmidt has been a prosecutor for the City of Los Angeles since 1981.  He is in charge of a branch office staffed by 52 attorneys and support personnel.  In that capacity he works closely with a variety of law enforcement agencies, and regularly meets with community groups, neighborhood councils, victim advocacy organizations and local governmental entities. In addition to his duties as a prosecutor, he conducts trial advocacy courses for large civil law firms under the auspices of the Los Angeles County Bar Association.  Richard received his BA in English Literature from California State University, Northridge, and his law degree from Loyola Law School.

Richard has been recognized by Los Angeles Mayor James Hahn's Office for his assistance with program planning for the Los Angeles Community Court Pilot Project.  He has received five annual awards from Mothers Against Drunk Drivers (MADD) and the California Office of Traffic Safety for his leadership in the development and operation of LAPD's celebrated Habitual DUI Offender Task Force."

An avid ocean liner enthusiast and traveler, Richard collects liner memorabilia and maintains an extensive library on the subject of liners and the history of the great Atlantic steamships.  He is currently completing the second of what will be seven films documenting various transatlantic crossings aboard the QE2, including her final west and eastbound crossings in October of 2008.

We are honored to have the only living U.S. President to have sailed aboard the SS United States endorse our efforts to preserve the ship by generously accepting the post of Honorary Chairman. President William Jefferson Clinton crossed the Atlantic on America's Flagship in 1968 en route to accept his Rhodes Scholarship at Oxford University.

"I strongly believe that in this age of rapid change, we must maintain what is good and constant in our past if we are to imagine a better future."
- President Bill Clinton