 During the Ninety @-@ eighth Congress ( 1983 – 1985 ) , Ford served on the Select Committee to Study the Committee System , and he was a member of the Committee on Rules and Administration in the One Hundredth through One Hundred Third Congresses ( 1987 – 1995 ) . In 1989 , he joined with Missouri senator Kit Bond to form the Senate National Guard Caucus , a coalition of senators committed to advancing National Guard capabilities and readiness . Ford said he was motivated to form the caucus after seeing the work done by Mississippi Representative Sonny Montgomery with the National Guard Association and the National Guard Bureau . Ford co @-@ chaired the caucus with Bond until Ford 's retirement from the Senate in 1999 . The Kentucky Army Guard dedicated the Wendell H. Ford Training Center in Muhlenberg County , Kentucky in 1998 . In 1999 , the National Guard Bureau presented Ford with the Sonny Montgomery Award , its highest honor . 
