To commemorate the 291st anniversary of the founding of Georgia, Governor Brian P. Kemp and the Georgia Historical Society will induct Carol B. Tomé, CEO of UPS, and Dr. Louis W. Sullivan, founding Dean of the Morehouse School of Medicine and 17th U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, as modern-day Georgia Trustees. It is the highest honor the State of Georgia can confer.

The induction will take place this Saturday, April 27, during the Trustees Gala in Savannah.

“Carol Tomé and Dr. Louis Sullivan are the living embodiment of the original Georgia Trustees’ motto Not for Self, but for Others,” said Dr. W. Todd Groce, President and CEO of the Georgia Historical Society. “The impact of their remarkable leadership is felt daily here in Georgia and throughout the world, making them worthy of this high honor. At their induction ceremony, we look forward to recognizing their many accomplishments and celebrating the original Georgia Trustees' ideals, which they represent.”

Carol B. Tomé is the Chief Executive Officer of UPS. She is the 12th CEO in the 116-year history of the company. Before joining UPS, Tomé served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of The Home Depot, Inc., one of the world’s largest retailers. She joined the company in 1995 as Vice President and Treasurer.

Tomé began her career as a commercial lender with United Bank of Denver (now Wells Fargo) and then spent several years as Director of Banking for Johns-Mansville Corporation. Prior to joining The Home Depot, Carol was Vice President and Treasurer of Riverwood International Corporation.

Tomé serves as a board member for Verizon Communications, Inc. She is on the board of councilors for the Carter Center and is a board trustee for Grady Memorial Hospital Corporation and the Atlanta Botanical Garden. She is also a member of The Committee of 200, The Buckhead Coalition, and The Business Council.

A native of Jackson, Wyoming, Tomé holds a bachelor’s degree in communication from the University of Wyoming and a master’s degree in finance from the University of Denver.

Louis W. Sullivan, M.D., was president of Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM)—the only predominantly Black medical school in the U.S. established in the 20th Century—for more than two decades. In 1975, he became the founding dean and director of the Medical Education Program at Morehouse College, which became The School of Medicine at Morehouse College in 1978.

Dr. Sullivan left MSM in 1989 to accept an appointment by President George H.W. Bush to serve as the 17th Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, where he led the national efforts to improve the health of all Americans.

In January 1993, he returned to MSM and resumed the office of president. He retired in 2002 and was appointed president emeritus.

A native of Atlanta, Dr. Sullivan graduated magna cum laude from Morehouse College in 1954, and earned his medical degree, cum laude, from Boston University School of Medicine in 1958. He is certified in internal medicine and hematology, holds a mastership from the American College of Physicians, and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa and Alpha Omega Alpha academic honor societies.

Dr. Sullivan currently is the chairman of the Washington, DC-based Sullivan Alliance to Transform the Health Professions, and he also serves on the boards of United Therapeutics and Emergent Biosolutions. He also serves as co-chair of the Henry Schein Cares Foundation.

In conjunction with the Governor’s Office, the Georgia Historical Society reestablished the Georgia Trustees in 2008 as a way of recognizing Georgians whose accomplishments and community service reflect the highest ideals of the founding body of Trustees. The original Georgia Trustees, a governing body chartered and appointed by His Majesty King George II of England in 1732 to establish a new colony in North America, founded Georgia upon the principle of Non Sibi, Sed Aliis, “Not for Self, But for Others.” The Governor annually appoints new Trustees whose history-making accomplishments and service reflect the original Trustees’ ideals.

The annual Trustees Gala is the Georgia Historical Society’s premier annual event and the culmination of the Georgia History Festival. Each year, this elegant and much-anticipated evening draws top local, state, and national leaders to honor and pay tribute to the best the State of Georgia has produced.

Previous inductees are Dan Amos, Donna Hyland, Dan Cathy, Shirley Franklin, David Abney, Juanita Baranco, Robert L. Brown, Jr., Robert S. Jepson, Jr., Frank Blake, John Schuerholz, Edward H. Bastian, W. Paul Bowers, F. Duane Ackerman, A.D. “Pete” Correll, James H. Blanchard, Muhtar Kent, Alana Smith Shepherd, Paula S. Wallace, Arthur M. Blank, William Porter “Billy” Payne, Truett Cathy, Herman Russell, Tom Cousins, Andrew Young, Vincent J. Dooley, The Honorable Sam Nunn, Henry “Hank” Aaron, Robert Edward “Ted” Turner, Bernard Marcus, and Marguerite Neel Williams.