Vicente Fox to Speak at Breakfast

Vicente Fox, former president of Mexico, will speak at the fifth annual Westmont President’s Breakfast Friday, Feb. 19, at 7 a.m. in the Grand Ballroom of Fess Parker’s Doubletree Resort. More than 700 people will attend the breakfast, which sold out in less than three days.

Fox will also speak in convocation Friday, Feb. 19, at 10:30 a.m. in Westmont’s Murchison Gym. At the convocation he will answer questions from a student panel that includes John Evancoe ’10 (Economics & Business), Hannah Cochran ’11 (Political Science), Manuel Hernandez ’10 (Sociology), and Andrea Owen ’10 (Spanish).

Fox, whose victory in 2000 peacefully ended the 71-year rule of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), will speak about “The Future of the Americas: Immigration, Globalization and Free Trade.”

Fox’s life reads like a movie script with his improbable rise from truck driver to CEO and resounding defeat of the reigning political party in Mexico. The second of nine children, Fox was born in Mexico City and grew up on a ranch in the state of Guanajuato. He attended a Jesuit high school in Wisconsin and studied business administration at the Mexico City campus of Ibero-American University. In 1964, he became a route supervisor for Coca-Cola de Mexico and drove a delivery truck throughout the country.

His hard work propelled him to the presidency of Coca-Cola in Mexico. After this success in business, Fox returned to Guanajuato, entered politics and was elected to the federal Chamber of Deputies. He ran unsuccessfully for governor of Guanajuato in 1991 but won by a significant margin in 1995. Effective leadership of the state led to his nomination as the 2000 Alliance of Change (PAN) presidential candidate.

Limited by the constitution to one six-year term as president, Fox promoted the rights of indigenous peoples, reduced Mexico’s foreign debt and rate of inflation, and worked with the United States on the difficult problems of drug trafficking and illegal immigration. In his memoir, “Revolution of Hope: The Life, Faith and Dreams of a Mexican President,” Fox tells the story of his life, recounts the opportunities that allowed him to succeed, and shares his aspirations for his country.

Fox founded the Vicente Fox Center of Studies, Library and Museum, joining universities and research institutions to examine ways to preserve and promote democracy in Mexico and all of Latin America. The Fox Center, the first of its type in Latin America, allows Mexican citizens to review documents, images and records from a former president for the first time in Mexico’s history.

The Westmont Foundation and area businesses sponsor the President’s Breakfast to promote discussion and consideration of current issues among local community leaders. This year’s lead sponsor is Anodos Group. Gold sponsors include Axia, Davies, Jo and Carl Lindros, Melchiori-MATT, Melchiori Cole Capital, Montecito Bank & Trust, Rabobank, Santa Barbara Capital, Santa Barbara Bank & Trust and V3 Corporation.

Past President’s Breakfast speakers include: Walter Isaacson, president of the Aspen Institute and former chairman and CEO of CNN; Fareed Zakaria, host of “Fareed Zakaria GPS” on CNN, Thomas Friedman, author of “Hot, Flat, and Crowded” and “The World is Flat”; and American historian and bestselling author David McCullough, who has twice won the Pulitzer Prize.