Ari S. Merretazon
He came home from Vietnam with a mission that would last a lifetime.
Ari Merretazon served with Headquarters Recon, 3rd Brigade, 4th and 25th Infantry Divisions, U.S. Army, 1967–1968. He returned with a decorated Combat Infantry Badge, Army Commendation Medal with Bronze Star Device for Valor, Vietnam Service Medal with Bronze Service Star, and 100% disabled. But he did not retreat from service. He began counseling veterans and fighting for their rights in 1973, and he has never stopped.
His war experience is preserved for history as Chapter 7 of Bloods: An Oral History of the Vietnam War By Black Veterans by Wallace Terry, published by Random House. He served as Technical Consultant for the motion picture Dead Presidents, with Larenz Tate portraying his character. He is one of the Bloods of Vietnam and one of its most enduring voices.
The law became his weapon. Justice became his cause.
At Antioch School of Law — now the University of Washington D.C. Law School Ari trained as a Legal Technician under Professor William Statsky, Class of 1978. He went on to manage the Teaching Law Firm as Special Assistant to the Deans, Edgar and Jean Camper Cahn, the husband-and-wife co-founders of the institution. He specialized in representing vulnerable veterans before U.S. Military Discharge Review Boards and Veterans Administration hearings.
In 1977 he founded the Incarcerated Veterans Assistance Organization the first veterans affairs office ever recognized by the Veterans Administration inside a U.S. prison. President Jimmy Carter honored him at the White House for that achievement. He later joined the VA itself as a member of the first team to establish and staff a Vet Center in Little Rock, Arkansas. Today he serves as Male Co-chair of the N’COBRA Philadelphia Chapter and is a nationally recognized thought leader on reparations for Descendants of Africans Enslaved in the United States.
Try not to become a man of success, but rather try to become a man of value.
Ari’s professional career spans decades of institution-building across Philadelphia and the nation. As Director of Foundation Relations for the Salvation Army’s Divisional Headquarters in Southeastern Pennsylvania and Delaware, he raised more than $1.5 million in his first year. As Director of Resource Development at Germantown Settlement, he organized a full fundraising and community development operation across eleven affiliate agencies. He has taught community economic development at Southern New Hampshire University, helped establish CED programs at San Diego State University and the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, and delivered keynote addresses from Minneapolis to Indianapolis.
He served as Project Manager for the African American Chamber of Commerce of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware, as Program Coordinator for the United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania, and as Managing Editor of the Arkansas State Press when it relaunched under the late Daisy Bates after a 24-year hiatus. He holds a Master of Science in Community Economic Development from Southern New Hampshire University one of the first graduates of that program and has spent his career turning that knowledge into measurable change for communities that need it most.
A life of service, recognized by a nation.
Ari Merretazon has been honored by the White House, the United States Congress, and foundations across the country. President Jimmy Carter named him a Presidential Honoree for founding the Incarcerated Veterans Assistance Organization. The U.S. Congressional Black Caucus presented him with the Veterans Braintrust Award in 2013. The W.K. Kellogg Foundation awarded him $25,000 for outstanding service to veterans in Philadelphia. The BMe Community recognized him for exceptional contributions to military veterans in the city he has called home for decades.
He has been appointed an Honorary Hoosier by the State of Indiana, recognized by San Diego State University for his guidance in establishing its Community Economic Development program, and served on the Mayor’s Office of Re-entry Research Advisory Committee in Philadelphia. Today he continues his work as Chief of Staff of Pointman Soldiers Heart Ministry, a 501(c)(19) veterans organization, and remains one of Philadelphia’s most respected voices on behalf of its 88,000-plus military veterans.
Book Ari Merretazon for your next event, panel, or speaking engagement.
Ari brings more than five decades of lived experience to every stage as a decorated Vietnam veteran, reparationist, community economic development practitioner, and tireless advocate for those who served. His presence commands a room and his story moves people to action.
Ready to connect?
Whether you’re organizing a veterans event, community forum, university lecture, or civic gathering. Ari is available for keynotes, panel discussions, and consultations.