Togo D. West, Jr.

Togo Dennis West Jr. (June 21, 1942 – March 8, 2018) was an American attorney and Army officer who served as the third secretary of veterans affairs in the administration of President Bill Clinton from 1998 until his resignation in 2000. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the second African American to be Secretary of Veterans Affairs.

He subsequently entered Howard University, obtaining a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering in 1965.

While a freshman at Howard University, he became a brother of Zeta Phi chapter of Alpha Phi Omega service fraternity. Around that time, he met Gail Berry, who later became his wife.

West was a member of the National Executive Board of the Boy Scouts of America, the organization's governing body. He was named a Distinguished Eagle Scout by the Boy Scouts of America and was awarded the Silver Buffalo Award for his national contributions to America's youth. In 1996, as Secretary of the Army, West earned the Grand-Officer of the Order of Military Merit by the Brazilian President Fernando Henrique Cardoso.

West was nominated by President Bill Clinton on January 27, 1998, during Clinton's second term, and was confirmed by the Senate on May 4, 1998. He was a strong supporter of and past board member of the Mount Vernon preservation society.

West died of a heart attack on March 8, 2018, at the age of 75, while on a cruise between Barbados and Puerto Rico. He was interred at Arlington National Cemetery on April 26, 2018.