The University will present its 2008 American Free Enterprise Medal to John M. Gregory, managing partner of SJ Strategic Investments, LLC. SJ Strategic Investments is a private, family-owned investment vehicle with a diverse portfolio of public and private investments.

    The medal ceremony is set for 10:45 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 13, in the Rubin Arena of the Greene Complex for Sports & Recreation, 1100 S. Dixie Hwy. in West Palm Beach. The ceremony is free and open to the public. For more information, call 561-803-2010.

    The driving force behind SJ Strategic Investments, Gregory founded three other successful businesses with his entrepreneurial family before establishing this company. In 2002, he received the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award, honored as the national winner in the Health Sciences category.

    “We believe our success stems from a strong foundation in faith and family, which has allowed us to grow, explore, take risks, and pursue adventure while sustaining stability,” says Gregory. 

    Gregory is the president of The Lazarus Foundation and manages this benevolent fund with his wife, Joan. He is also the founder and president of the Kingsway Charities, an international benevolent medication ministry. 

    After graduating from the University of Maryland with a degree in pharmacy, Gregory moved to Bastian, Va., where he opened the town’s first retail pharmacy. Seeing an opportunity to expand, in 1984, John co-founded General Injectables and Vaccines (GIV), a company that supplied injectables and vaccine products directly to physicians’ offices. As president and CEO, he turned GIV into a successful enterprise with 550 employees and annual revenues exceeding $150 million per year.

    Then, in 1993, with a small initial investment in their pockets and a lot of debt on their shoulders, Gregory and his brothers purchased a pharmaceutical manufacturing facility in Bristol, Tenn. Under his leadership as chairman and CEO, King Pharmaceuticals grew from a 90-employee family business to an S&P 500 Index company on the New York Stock Exchange with revenues exceeding $1 billion.

    John M. Gregory has been married to Joan P. Gregory for 31 years and they attend Shelby Street Church of God in Bristol, Tenn. They have two children – Susan Gregory (30) and James M. Gregory (26).

    American Free Enterprise Day has been an event at Palm Beach Atlantic since 1984. Previous medal recipients include Karl H. Watson, CEMEX, 2007; Stuart W. Epperson, Salem Communications Corporation, 2004; Sam Moore, Thomas Nelson, Inc., 2003; Joseph R. Gregory, Kingsway L.L.C., 2002; Lester J. Woerner, Woerner Holdings, Inc, 2001; Rich DeVos, 2000, Orlando Magic; John J. Brogan, 1999;Thomas R. Pledger, Dycom Industries, 1998; Carl DeSantis, Rexall Sundown, Inc., 1997; Lowell "Bud" Paxson, Paxson Communications Corp., 1996; Richard S. Johnson, Johnson Investment Group, 1995; David Mahoney, Charles A. Dana Foundation, 1994; William G. Lassiter, Jr., W.G. Lassiter Co., Inc., 1993; Alexander W. Dreyfoos, Jr., The Dreyfoos Group, 1992; S. Bradford "Skeet" Rymer, Jr., Magic Chef, 1991; S. Truett Cathy, Chick-Fil-A, 1990; Stewart Morris, Stewart Information Services Corp. and the Hugh J. Andersen Foundation, 1989; Frederick M. Supper, Alexander Proudfoot Co., 1988; Henry J. Rolfs, Downtown/Uptown West Palm Beach, 1987; Theodore R. Johnson, United Parcel Service, 1986; Marshall E. Rinker, Sr., Rinker Materials Corp., 1985, and Sir John M. Templeton, Templeton World Funds Ltd., 1984.