Shallie Bey Jr.: Leading the U.S. Mint with President Carter's trust
NORTH TEXAS – "Well, this is a proclamation from the U.S. Treasury Department," said Shallie Bey, pointing to a framed document.
This proclamation stands as a testament to the strides Fort Worth resident Shallie Bey Jr. made as the head of the United States Mint in Philadelphia from 1978 to 1981, from introducing the Susan B. Anthony coin to improving plant safety and leading the production of billions of coins.
"But none of that could have happened unless he had the confidence to say, 'I'm gonna give you the chance to do it,'" said Bey.
President Jimmy Carter was the one who gave him that chance.
"I was the first African American and also the youngest person in history to be assigned to manage the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia," said Bey.
At just 29 years old, Bey was nominated by President Jimmy Carter to become the 16th superintendent of the United States Mint in Philadelphia. Years later, President Carter nominated him for a second time, to be the chairman of the Philadelphia Federal Executive Board, where he oversaw the collaboration between 83 agencies and 53,000 employees.
"Here I was, 29 years old, and I was dealing with people who were admirals and generals and so forth, and they were taking my advice seriously and acting on it, and that was a phenomenal experience," said Bey.
Bey recalls attending an event at the White House with his wife and the kindness of President Carter and his team.
"We had a child on the way, and they were just making very major efforts to make sure that she was going to be comfortable—all kinds of attentiveness," said Bey. "That was the way that he was. He didn't have to do things like that, and his wife didn't have to do things like that, but that was the nature that everybody was important to them."
Throughout his presidency, Carter prioritized diversity in the government. It's a legacy that's not lost on public servants like Bey.
"He was concerned about everyone having an opportunity," said Bey. "He was concerned about all kinds of people, and so it didn't matter many of the things that we allow to become differences between people and classes of people, but he made an effort to keep everyone involved."
