Colin Powell was born on April 5, 1937 in New York City and attended both the City College of New York and George Washington University and also served in the Reserve Officers' Training Corps.
Powell served in the Army during Vietnam as both a captain and a major and later became senior military assistant to the Secretary of Defense. He joined the National Security Council and took over the Army Forces Command when he was made a four-star general. President Bush nominated Powell for Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff, where he helped plan the invasion of Panama and assisted in Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm.
Powell retired from the military and recorded his memories in his book, My American Journey. In 2012 Powell published a book about his life experiences and lessons learned entitled, It Worked for Me.
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