by Alan Langstaff
On January 20th President-Elect Donald J. Trump is due to be sworn in as the new President of the United States. He is only our second President to be elected in non-consecutive terms. I have come to realize that many people are not familiar with his life story so this week I want to write about him in this letter. I will deal mainly in terms of his life story and then next week look at his involvement in politics. Here then is a look at the Life story of Donald Trump.
THE TRUMP FAMILY
Donald J. Trump was born on June 14th, 1946 in Queens, New York. He was the fourth child of five children. His parents were Fredrick and Mary Trump. Fredrick his father was also born in New York and his parents were German immigrants. Frederick Trump was a real estate developer who specialized in construction and running middle-income apartments in Queens and nearby Brooklyn.
In 1930, Donald Trump’s mother came to the United States, where she met Frederick, who was 7 years older than her. They were married in 1936 and lived in the Queens and Jamaica area, which at that time contained many Western European immigrants.
Trump’s father prospered due to the postwar real estate boom. Fred Trump died in 1979 and his wife, who was a philanthropist, died a year later.
Donald Trump had two older sisters and an older brother as well as a younger brother. His sister Maryanne was a Court Judge for 30 years. His brother Fred joined their Father’s real estate business but his passion was aviation and eventually became a TWA pilot. He struggled with alcoholism and died at the age of 43. However, this led Donald Trump to abstain from alcohol, cigarettes, and drugs.
EARLY LIFE
His father’s successful business provided the children with a life of luxury. However, they were guided by strict rules as his father was a hard-driving disciplinarian.
His mother was the one to instill religious values. He was raised Presbyterian and also attended Marble Colligate Church led by Reverand Norman Vincent Peale. He also attended an Episcopalian church “Bethesda by the Sea.”
Donald Trump, in those days, tested boundaries. As a boy he was aggressive. When he was 13 his parent sent him to the New York Military Academy in upstate New York. Both socially and academically he did well, becoming a student leader and a star athlete. He graduated in 1964. He then entered Fordham University but transferred to the Wharton School of Finance. He graduated with a degree in Economics.
During that time he began to work with his father. He secured a exemption to the Vietnam War draft and later received a medical deferment.
BUSINESS CAREER
He followed in his father’s footsteps and began a career in real estate and eventually took over the company in 1973. He renamed it “The Trump Organization.” Over the years the business went on to include Hotels, golf courses, and commercial properties.
As a result by the 1980s, he was regarded as one of the best-known businessmen in America. In turn, he became a best-selling author. He built many buildings including the Trump Tower in 1983. It combined luxury retail, residential, and offices. When he became President in 2016 the management of the company was handed over to his sons Donald and Eric Trump.
HIS MARRIAGES AND FAMILY
Trump has been married twice. Firstly he was married to Ivana from 1977 through to 1992. Late in 2005 he was married to Melania. From those two marriages, he is the father of five children. They are Donald Jr., Ivanka, Eric, Tiffany, and more recently Baron.
Trump is a big man physically and is 6 feet 3 inches in height.
TV CAREER
In 2006 he began his TV career with “The Apprentice” which originally was created by Mark Burnett for the BBC. The TV Program often was a mixture of general discussion, expert opinion, interviews, and small sketches.
The phrase “You’re Fired” became a popular phrase. So Trump became a reality TV star.
TRUMP’S FAILURES
Although Trump was successful over many years nevertheless had his failures and he certainly had his critics. He declared bankruptcy 6 times. He was not always a moral person and many people have pointed that out. He wrote some 15 books often describing his business enterprise including the best-selling book “The Art of the Deal” – a New York Times best-seller that sold over a million copies.
TRUMP UNIVERSITY
In the 2000s Trump launched his for-profit “Trump University” offering classes in real estate. It however remained the subject of multiple lawsuits which in turn were settled out of court. He had other cases with the IRS.
WEALTH
Trump has not publicly released his tax returns so it’s not possible to definitely determine his wealth. However, in 2017, Trump valued his business at least at 1.37 billion.
For his TV fans his presidential bid seemingly came out of nowhere, but in turn he became one of the most recognizable politicians in the world. He wasn’t always a registered Republican but in 2009 he switched back to the Republican Party. He supported Mitt Romney in his presidential bid in 2012.
SOME CLOSING THOUGHTS
Well there you have it, a concise outline of his life story. He is obviously a man that many people admire and also many people despise.
He has achieved a great deal in all his business ventures. He has been a successful author and a TV star. He has known success and he has experienced failure, but he never stops; and as we shall see next week, he tackles the biggest job (as some people see it) in the whole world – that of President of the United States.
There is no doubt, whether you love him or hate him, he is a most remarkable man.
Kairos Ministries 
One key event that took place that isn’t mentioned here is his mother’s visit to her ancestral home in the Hebrides Islands (west coast of Scotland) during the revival there in the 1950’s. Donald was about four years old at the time of this visit, and he may or may not have accompanied here on that trip (he claimed to have been to the island “once before, when I was a boy, though I don’t remember it…” — this comment took place during the 2016 presidential campaign, when he made a stop there while checking on progress on his golf-course being built on the mainland. I found the article on all of this on the internet years ago, but neglected to print it off, and now am unable to find it again!) At any rate, rumor had it that his mother dedicated her son Donald to the Lord’s service during the revival, and had him prayed for — either in person or in absentia? — before her return to the States. I wonder whether Trump has that sense of “destiny” within him, or if he is just doing what comes “naturally” without any knowledge of said “dedication”. Guess we will have to wait and see the final outcome….
Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, Harrison, Lincoln, Grant, McKinley, Truman…
Each share commonality with Trump. These are the Presidents who have filed bankruptcy.