Maurice Pate
| Maurice Pate | |
|---|---|
Maurice Pate (centre) with Princess Astrid, Mrs. Ferner and Danny Kaye
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| Executive Director of UNICEF | |
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In office January 1947 – January 19, 1965 |
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| Secretary General |
Trygve Lie Dag Hammarskjöld U Thant |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Henry Labouisse |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
October 14, 1894 Pender, Nebraska, U.S. |
| Died | January 19, 1965 (aged 70) New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Spouse(s) |
Jadwiga Mankowska (1927–1937) Martha Lucas (1961–1965) |
| Education | Princeton University (BS) |
Maurice Pate (October 14, 1894 – January 19, 1965) was an American humanitarian and businessman. Pate served as the first executive director of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) from 1947 until his death in 1965, after being proposed by the Chairman Ludwik Rajchman.
Talking about the United Nations, Dag Hammarskjöld, its second Secretary-General, said, "The work of UNICEF is at the heart of the matter - and at the heart of UNICEF is Maurice Pate." Hoover called Pate "the most effective human angel I know" when introducing Pate at a UNICEF dinner. Pate was recognized worldwide for his efforts on behalf of children and hungry people.
Pate was born in Pender, Nebraska to Richard E. Pate and Rachel Davis Pate, of Welsh and Irish ancestry respectively. He was the oldest of seven children, three of whom died in infancy. His family moved to Denver, Colorado, when he was three years old. He graduated from East Denver High School in Denver, Colorado in 1911, then left Denver for Princeton University. At Princeton he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa, worked on the undergraduate Red Cross Committee, and earned a bachelor of science degree in mathematics and physics in 1915, with high honors.
He went to work for the First National Bank in [Hartley, Iowa|Hartley], [Iowa], where his uncle was president, immediately after graduation and stayed until the [United States] joined [World War I]. After a great deal of persuasion, he worked for Herbert Hoover's [Commission for Relief in Belgium], which began a lifelong friendship and collaboration. then served in the [American Expeditionary Force] with the 29th Engineers in [France]. After the war ended, Pate helped organize and direct efforts by the [American Relief Administration] to feed more than one million [Poland|Polish] children after the war.
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