David Patterson Lambert was born in Little Rock, Pulaski County, Arkansas, on December 22, 1939.
Lambert earned a B.S.B.A. from the University of Arkansas and a J.D. from George Washington University Law School.
Lambert began working for Senator John McClellan in 1962 and then served as legislative assistant to Senator J. William Fulbright. He went on to work on the New York Stock Exchange for twenty-one years where he helped negotiate a historic meeting with Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping during the US-China Symposium on Financial Markets. In 1999 President Bill Clinton appointed Lambert as a Foreign Agricultural Service counselor to the US Mission to the UN Agencies in Rome. He formed Lambert Associates in Washington, DC, a firm specializing in nutrition issues.
Lambert made significant contributions to public service, including serving as a delegate to the UN’s Codex Alimentarius Commission and as Distinguished Fellow for Iowa State University’s Seed Science Center.
Lambert passed away on October 16, 2015.
#1: Composite image of early photo of David P. Lambert and still frame from Pryor Center video interview
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#2: David Lambert's great-grandfather, Beverly Joel Lambert, 1838-1890
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#3: "Mules and Horses Sale or Trade" advertisement for L. G. Renfro and B. J. Lambert, David Lambert's grandfather; Holly Grove, Arkansas, ca. 1920
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#4: David Lambert's father, Beverly Joel Lambert Jr., at Washington and Lee University, ca. 1928
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#5: David Lambert's mother, Rose Hayden Hess (Lambert), at age 14; Friars Point, Mississippi, spring 1925
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#6: David Lambert's mother, Rose Hayden Hess (Lambert), engagement photo, spring 1932
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#7: David Lambert's stepmother, Moka Naomi Mankin (Lambert), at age 17 in her high school graduation picture, 1936-1937
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#8: David Lambert in 1940 at eight months of age
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#9: David Lambert in 1943 at age three
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#10: David Lambert with his extended family; Hot Springs, Arkansas, 1948
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#11: David Lambert's Boy Scout portrait, ca. 1949
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#12: David Lambert with his grandparents; Hot Springs, Arkansas, ca. 1951
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#13: 1952-53 eighth-grade class officers: Thomas Bryant, president; David Lambert, vice president (back row on right); Betty Simmons; Francis Rogers; Ginger Gardner; Holly Grove, Arkansas
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#14: Lambert family home; Holly Grove, Arkansas, ca. 1950
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#15: David Lambert at George Washington University Law School, ca. 1938
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#16: Senator David Pryor (2nd row on left) with Senator J. William Fulbright (3rd row, 3rd from left) and members of his staff, including Lee Williams (3rd row, 2nd from left), Hoyt Purvis (2nd row, 3rd from left), and David Lambert (1st row on right); 116 Club, Washington, DC, ca. 1972
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#17: David Lambert (front row on left) with his brothers, Bev (front row on right) and Hayden (back row on right), and their father, Beverly Joel Lambert Jr. (back row on left); Holly Grove, Arkansas, 1977
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#18: David Lambert (right) with his brothers, Bev and Hayden Lambert; Forrest City, Arkansas, 1984
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#19: Chinese Senior Leader Deng Xiaoping greeting David Lambert and other members of the New York Stock Exchange Delegation at The Great Hall of the People, on occasion of US-China Symposium on Financial Markets; Beijing, China, November 14, 1986
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#20: David Lambert with some members of New York Stock Exchange Delegation prior to private meeting with President Mikhail Gorbachev, on occasion of The USSR/NYSE Seminar: Stock Exchanges and Their Role in Financial Markets; The Kremlin, Moscow, October 10, 1990
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#21: David Lambert's family; Fonterutoli, Italy, 1991
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#22: David Lambert (2nd from left) visiting the Oval Office with Bruce Lindsey, President Bill Clinton, Senator J. William Fulbright, Marsha Scott, and Lee Williams; 1993
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#23: David Lambert with his sons, Taylor (age 7) and Walker (age 16), at the Eiffel Tower in Paris; 1994
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#24: David Lambert (right) with Joe O'Neill, President Bill Clinton, and Lee Williams; Belle Haven Country Club, Alexandria, Virginia, 1995
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#25: David Lambert (left) and Senator George McGovern; Rome, Italy, 2001
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#26: David Lambert (left) with Mary Lambert, Walker Lambert, and Blanche Lambert Lincoln at the 2004 Democratic National Convention; Boston, Massachusetts
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#27: Luncheon in honor of Lee Williams at the establishment of the Lee Williams Fellowship in Public Service: (back row, left to right) David Lambert, Katie Eldridge, Taylor Lambert, Marsha Scott, George Eldridge, Huey Yu, Mary Berry, Paul Berry; (front row, left to right) Joe O'Neill, Harriet Fulbright, Lee Williams, Vicky Williams; Doe's Eat Place, Little Rock, Arkansas, 2006
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#28: David Lambert with his sons, Walker and Taylor Lambert, at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, Washington, DC, 2006
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#29: David Lambert with his cousin, Blanche Lambert Lincoln
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#30: David Lambert with his brothers, Bev and Hayden Lambert; Hot Springs Village, Arkansas, 2004
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#31: David Lambert with daughter-in-law, Nelly Lambert, and his sons, Taylor and Walker Lambert, at Taylor's graduation from Bard College; Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, 2011
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#32: David Lambert (2nd from right) at the Lambert Cousins' Reunion; Hot Springs Village, Arkansas, 2011
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#33: David P. Lambert
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#34: Still frame from Pryor Center video interview with David Lambert at the 116 Club; Washington, DC, 2012
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#35: Still frame from Pryor Center video interview with David Lambert at the 116 Club; Washington, DC, 2012
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
