CITATION TO ACCOMPANY THE AWARD OF THE
MEDAL FOR MERIT
TO
MR. RUDOLPH FORSTER (DECEASED)
HE SERVED his Government faithfully, intelligently, and modestly for a period which spanned almost a third of our national existence, assisting eight Presidents through peace and war, through good times and bad, in the solution of the multitude of administrative problems, related to every branch of a great Government's activities, which find their way to the White House; he distinguished himself, from the beginning of the present emergency, by outstanding success in expediting critical decisions and actions when every minute gained was important in the over-all strategy of the war; and he thereby rendered a service of incalculable value to all of his fellow citizens.
FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT
Note: President Truman made the award at a ceremony attended by members of Mr. Forster's family. Mr. Forster served in the White House from March 5, 1897, until his death on July 7, 1943, at which time he was Executive Clerk in charge of the White House staff. The release accompanying the citation stated that President Roosevelt signed the citation some time before his death, but that an opportunity to make the presentation did not arise before he left Washington for the last time.
Harry S Truman, Citation Accompanying Medal for Merit Honoring Rudolph Forster. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/232076