M. Victoria Cummock
Founder, CEO & Widow Passenger John B. Cummock
Victoria Cummock is a internationally recognized activist widely credited with spearheading comprehensive reforms to assist families of victims of terrorism and air disasters. Her advocacy efforts have resulted in significant gains in terrorism and air disaster crisis management, accountability for terror victims, justice, restitution, aviation security, and counterterrorism.
Cummock became a lifelong advocate for aviation passenger' rights and terror victims’ rights after terrorists killed her 38 year old husband, John, along with 269 other victims in the December 21, 1988, terrorist attack against America, with the bombing of Pan American Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. In the days and months following this tragedy, Cummock personally experienced the absence of government support for the families of victims of terrorist attacks and air disasters. As she came to learn, few protocols and safeguards were in place to help these families in need. Airline passengers were not protected by mandatory security procedures. They also had few rights under a labyrinth of international treaties and national laws that denied them the pursuit of justice, accountability, and just restitution. To address shortcomings, Cummock served as a founding member of Victims of Pan American Flight 103 and later co-founded and was president of Families of Pan Am 103-Lockerbie, both victim advocacy groups.
For over three decades, Cummock’s work, including service and testimony before 28 congressional committees and two White House Presidential Commissions, resulted in the enactment of landmark legislation, the creation and reform of numerous protocols and regulations, and the implementation of international treaties to enable and better protect the rights of American victims of terrorism, air disaster victims, and the flying public at large.
In February 1989, Cummock was the first victims' family member to testify before U.S. Congress before the House Foreign Relations Committee.
On April 4, 1989, Cummock organized and attended the first victims' family group meeting with President Bush.
In 1989 she was appointed to serve as a Pan Am 103 victims’ representative to President George H. W. Bush’s White House Commission on Aviation Security and Terrorism. Cummock assisted in the development of the Commission’s agenda and scope of work and was one of only three civilians invited to testify. In 1990, after the Commission’s final report, Cummock testified and worked with congressional leaders to fast-track, write, and enact the 1990 Aviation Security Improvement Act.
Cummock et al Families of Pan Am 103 Lockerbie led Legislation and International Treaties Initiatives:
1990 Killed in The Hands of Terrorist Act (KITA Terror Victim IRS Federal Tax Waiver)
1990 U.S. Dept. State Heroes Terrorist Reward Program (1984 Act to Combat International Terrorism)
In 1993, Cummock et al represented the Families of Pan Am 103 Lockerbie at a Royal Wreath laying ceremony, In Dryfesdale Cemetery, with Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip.
In 1995, Pan Am 103-Lockerbie Memorial Dedication, Arlington National Cemetery. Cummock and children Christopher, Matthew and Ashley lay flowers for John Cummock with President Clinton
1996 Comprehensive Anti-Terrorism & Effective Death Penalty Act
1996 Habeas Corpus Reform; International Terrorist Fundraising Prohibitions; Mandatory Justice & Victim Restitution
1996 The Iranian Libyan Sanctions Act.
1996 Federal Aviation Reauthorization Act
From 1995-1998 she served as a board member and representative of airline passengers and victims on the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA’s) Aviation Security Advisory Committee.
From 1996-1997, Cummock was named a commissioner representing airline passengers/victims to the White House Commission on Aviation Safety and Security under President Bill Clinton. She dissented from the Final Report.
1996 U.S. Dept State Counter-Terrorism Rewards Program
1996 Foreign Sovereign Immunity Waiver State-Sponsored Terrorism, which allows U.S. terror victims to sue State-Sponsors of Terrorism for damages and restitution in U.S. civil courts
1996 Ratification Montreal Protocols 3 and 4, replacing the Warsaw Convention of 1929 (Raising Limitations on Aviation Liability)
1997 Aviation Disaster Family Assistance Act
1998 The Domestic Passenger Manifest
In an unprecedented act for an American citizen, in 2006, Cummock met privately in Paris, on multiple occasions, with representatives of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and the Gaddafi Charitable Organization, to negotiate restitution for the victims of Libyan terrorist attacks.
From 2006-2008, Cummock et al led the opposition against President Bush lifting Libyan Sanctions at the behest of U.S. oil companies, prior to meeting all the terms and conditions.
In 2008, opposed Libya Seeks Exemption for its Debt to Victims.
In 2008, opposed Libyan Claims Resolution Act reversed U.S. nationals terror victims' ability to file civil wrongful death lawsuits against Libya.
During the start of the 2011 Arab Spring, on February 17, 2011, Cummock confronts former Prime Minister Tony Blair regarding his part in laying the groundwork for the early release of the largest mass-murderer in UK history, trading justice for UK commercial interests.
On April 7, 2011, as Gaddafi forces were bombing Benghazi, Cummock financed an operation and obtained sworn affidavits by former Gaddafi Justice Minister Mustafa Mohammed Jalil, detailing Qaddafi’s criminal involvement in the bombing of Pan Am 103 and other global terrorist attacks.
Subsequently, on May 13, 2011, Cummock et al provided copies of the sworn affidavits to Pres. Obama, Sec. of State Clinton; DOJ Attorney General Holder and National Security Advisor Donilon.
In September 2011, Cummock met on multiple occasions with Libya’s new head of state, Chairman Mustafa Mohammed Jalil, and various other members of the Libyan National Transitional Council, to further the pursuit of accountability and justice against the Gadhafi regime.
On December 21, 2015, Cummock, Ken Dornstein, Paul Hudson et al, met DOJ Attorney General Lynch et al, and DOJ and FBI staff to get update on the investigative case status post PBS Frontline expose “My Brother’s Bomber,” which identified and gave whereabouts of multiple suspects.
In 2018, Cummock founded the Pan Am 103 Lockerbie Legacy Foundation, established to commemorate, advocate, educate and create a comprehensive digital historical footprint of the 2nd deadliest terrorist attack against America and deadliest terrorist attack on UK soil.
The Foundation aims to be a principal institution dedicated to clarifying the misnomer “Lockerbie bombing” by documenting and educating about this pivotal attack that propelled Americans into the age of modern global terrorism and examining its relevance to contemporary society and the flying public at-large.
This attack remains the oldest cold case of mass murder in U.S. history, killing 190 Americans and 69 foreign nationals aboard a U.S. flag aircraft and 11 people on the ground. It is the second deadliest terrorist attack against American and the deadliest terrorist attack on UK soil, with the largest crime scene in global history, spanning across 845 square miles.
Our commemorative Victims Living Memorial puts a face and story to each of the 270 victims, where visitors can learn about who they were and how they lived, while loved-ones can pay tribute by adding photos, audio, video, artifacts and other tokens of memory.
The Legacy Story Library digital platform invites the entire global community to tell their story of impact and first-person accounts from victims’ families, survivors, first responders, volunteers, investigators, prosecutors, and legislators in both the United States and the United Kingdom.
The Foundation strives to create a digital encyclopedic story archive to catalog the precedent-setting changes, predominately led by the victims’ families, to improve aviation safety, security, and the rights of American victims of terrorism and air disasters, including laws passed, judicial and regulatory protocols and mandates established, and international treaties ratified.
Additionally, the Foundation will continue to fund the preservation of historical sites as well as develop and fund economic, cultural, educational and preservation programs that directly support our mission.
After the December 21, 2020 announcement of criminal charges against Libyan official Mas’ud by Attorney General Barr, and before ever arresting and prosecuting a single suspect in over 3+ decades, in early 2021, the DOJ quietly “closed” its' investigation into the December 21, 1988, terrorist attack against America.
This discreet incumbrance to criminal justice by U.S. authorities reignited the three-decade pursuit of accountability and justice predominantly led by the victims’ loved ones. On December 11, 2022 the U.S. obtains custody of Mas'ud to stand trial in U.S. courts for the second deadliest terrorist attack against America.
In November 2022, Cummock and PA103LL Foundation Exec. Director Janice Muller met with President Biden in Florida.
In May 2023, the Foundation unveiled the most comprehensive collection of 270 victim color photographs and related biographical stories published to-date. This collection of photos are presented on six "We Remember" banners at Tundergarth Remembrance Room and on line in our Living Memorial.
In October 2023, the most comprehensive collection of 270 victim color photographs and related biographical stories published to-date were placed on six "Time For Justice" banners and presented to U.S. and UK law enforcement. The banners now hang in Washington, D.C. on the walls of the U.S. Dept. of Justice Prosecution teams' trial evidence room, as an official Victims' impact statement and are of historical significance for the ongoing criminal proceedings, as well as for thousands of Victims' family members, friends, and colleagues globally.
In 2024, the Foundation in partnership with the Tundergarth Kirks Trust, began the development of the Pan Am 103 Lockerbie Memorial Museum, across the road where the nose-cone of Pan American 103 plummeted to the ground. Within the circa 1575 Celtic Kirk Ruin will be a place of tribute and education to include an expanded exhibition to tell the story of human dignity, courage, sacrifice and contemplation.
While Cummock’s advocacy efforts have had far-reaching impact worldwide, she has also championed more humane and better treatment of people, in particular women and children, much closer to home. She currently supports several charities and organizations as a volunteer and benefactor in her home state of Florida and in other areas across the nation.
ACTIVISM, DISASTER RESPONDER & LEADERSHIP
American Red Cross - National Disaster Responder and Board Member
• August 1992, Hurricane Andrew, Miami, FL
• April 1995, Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building Terrorist Bombing, Oklahoma City
• December 1995, Chalk's Flight 101, off Miami Beach, Florida
• May 1996, ValuJet Flight 592 Air Disaster, Florida Everglades
• July 1996, TWA Flight 800 Air Disaster, New York
• 2000-2006, Board Member & Disaster Responder, Miami Chapter, Miami, FL
• June 2005, American Red Cross Commendation - For support of the humanitarian needs of victims and families of transportation disasters
• August 2005, Hurricane Katrina, Miami, FL
• September 2005, Hurricane Rita, Miami, FL
• October 2005, Hurricane Wilma, Miami, FL
• 2006-2009, Board Member & National Disaster Responder, ARC National Board of Governors, Washington, DC
Big Brothers–Big Sisters, Miami, Board Member
Children’s Bereavement Center, Miami, Founding Board Member
Families of Pan Am 103 Lockerbie, Founding Board Member and President
Louvre Museum, AFL Paris, Board Member
Mindful Kids Miami, Honorary Board Member
National Trust for Scotland, USA, Board & Patron’s Club Member
New Life Homeless Family Shelter, Miami, Founding Member
Tundergarth Kirks Trust, Lockerbie, Scotland, Member
University of Miami UMindfulness, Advisory Board Member
Victims of Pan Am 103 Lockerbie, Founding Member
Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, Miami, Board Member
SUPPORTER
• American Cancer Society, Miami, FL
• Barnacle Historic State Park, Coconut Grove, FL
• Cape May Stage, Cape May, NJ
• Children’s Movement, Miami, FL
• Dade Heritage Trust, Miami, FL
• Deering Estate 100 Ladies, Miami, FL
• Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Miami, FL
• Feeding South Florida
• Flyers Rights Org, Sarasota, FL
• Habitat for Humanity, Miami, FL
• Honey Shine Mentoring, Miami, FL
• Humane Society, Miami, FL
• Junior League, Miami, FL
• Kampong National Tropical Botanic Garden, Coconut Grove, FL
• Lockerbie Old School Community Hub, Lockerbie, Scotland
• Lockerbie Scouts, Lockerbie, Scotland
• Louvre Museum, Paris, France
• Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial, Washington, DC
• Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, Miami, FL
• NAACP
• National 9/11 Memorial & Museum, New York, NY
• New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, MA
• Planned Parenthood
• Ransom Everglades Schools, Miami, FL
• Southern Poverty Law Center, Montgomery, AL
• Syracuse University Lockerbie Scholars & C2S, Syracuse, NY
• Thelma Gibson Health Initiative, Coconut Grove, FL
• Tundergarth Church, Lockerbie, Scotland
• Tundergarth Kirks Trust, Lockerbie, Scotland
• UNICEF, New York, NY
• United Way, Miami, FL
• Vizcaya Museum, Miami, FL
• 911 Voices Center for Resilience, New Canaan, CT
• Whispering Manes, Miami, FL
• World Monument Fund, Washington, DC
• Women’s Fund, Miami, FL
• Wounded Warriors, Washington, DC
PUBLICATIONS
Books
• Storm in the Desert, Mark Muller Stuart, 2017
• The Price of Terror, Gerson & Adler, 2001
• The Fall of Pan Am 103, Emerson & Duffy, 1990
• The Clinton Years, McNeely, 2000
• Living with Grief After Sudden Loss — “Journey of a Young Widow,” Doka & Hospice, 1996
• In Their Name — Oklahoma City Bombing, Irving, 1995
CURATED ARCHIVES UPON REQUEST
• Journals
• Magazines
• National Library of Congress
• Newspapers
