On December 8, former Secretary of the Navy Paul R. Ignatius will speak in conjunction with the publication of his memoir Now I Know in Part by NAASR’s (National Association for Armenian Studies and Research) Armenian Heritage Press, highlighting NAASR’s 2011 Christmas Open House, The Armenian Weekly reported.

Ignatius served for eight years in the presidential administrations of John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson, first as an assistant secretary of the army, then as under secretary of the Army and assistant secretary of defense, and finally in 1967 as secretary of the navy. Following his government service, he was president of the Washington Post for 2 years and president of the Air Transport Association for 15 years.

Ignatius is the recipient of the Army Distinguished Civilian Service Award, the Navy Distinguished Public Service Award, and the Department of Defense Distinguished Public Service Award.

A descendant of Armenian parents from the Kharpert region of Historic Armenia, Ignatius is a native of Glendale, Calif., and a graduate of the University of Southern California. He earned an MBA from Harvard University after serving as a naval officer in World War II. He is also the author of On Board: My Life in the Navy, Government, and Business (Naval Institute Press, 2006).

In Now I Know in Part, Ignatius looks back on his family history, childhood in Glendale (long before it had a “Little Armenia”), colorful characters (both famous and obscure), Hollywood brushes with greatness, military service during World War II, and more.

The limited first edition of Now I Know in Part was published privately in 2000. Chapters newly added for this second edition include reminiscences of Ignatius’ former boss, Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara, and two homecomings of a sort: one to Hoover High School in Glendale and the other a visit to ancestral lands in Historic Armenia.