James M. ‘Mike’ Myatt
Major General Myatt was commissioned as a Marine Corps second lieutenant after graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in Physics from Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas. He holds a Masters Degree in Engineering Electronics from the Naval Post Graduate School.
General Myatt served two combat tours in the Republic of Vietnam. He commanded the 1st Marine Division during Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm in 1990-91. His Division defeated seven Iraqi Army divisions in the zone, seized Kuwait International Airport, and liberated Kuwait City. His personal medals and decorations include: two Distinguished Service Medals; the Silver Star Medal for gallantry in action; the Defense Superior Service Medal with Gold Star; the Legion of Merit; the Bronze Star Medal with Combat “V” for heroism, and the Republic of Korea Distinguished Service Medal and the Vietnamese Honor Medal, 1st Class.
General Myatt retired from the U.S. Marine Corps in 1995 to work for Bechtel Corporation. While working for Bechtel, he managed the $22 billion construction project to build the Korean High Speed Rail from Seoul to Pusan.
In September 2001, General Myatt was selected to be President and CEO of the Marines’ Memorial Association. He served in that position until November 2017.
General Myatt has continued to serve in a variety of public positions including as a Commissioner in the San Francisco Telecommunications Commission, serving as President of that Commission in 2003 and 2004. He was responsible for a Mayoral Conference on Public Security and Safety in July 2003, held in San Francisco, with over 25 Mayors and their offices of emergency services in attendance. He sponsored a Table-Top Exercise with DOD Office of Homeland Defense and the City and County of San Francisco and piloted a conference on Biometric Technologies for Homeland Security with the US Naval Institute. He was appointed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to the Base Closure and Relocation Commission Council in October 2004, completing the report in April 2005. In January 2007, he organized and sponsored a conference on Communications Interoperability for the greater Bay Area. In May 2007, he was appointed as a Trustee to the San Francisco War Memorial Board of Trustees and in January 2010, the San Francisco Mayor asked him to become the Chairman of the San Francisco Fleet Week Committee, which he continues to do each year.