1 James P. Grant, who led UNICEF until days before his death last month, was eulogized Friday by U.S. first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton as a tireless champion of the world's children.
2 'Thank you for being our conscience, our example and our spur,' Ms. Clinton told some 2,500 people at a memorial service at St. John the Divine Cathedral.
3 Grant emphasized simple, cheap methods of improving children's health, such as immunization campaigns and oral rehydration, during his 15 years as executive director of the U.N. Children's Fund. He died of cancer on Jan. 28 at age 72.
4 Norwegian-born actress Liv Ullmann recalled trying to keep up with Grant as a UNICEF ambassador while he scoured the globe to promote the agency's goals.
5 'We flew and we walked and he was never tired,' she said. 'We would run between villages in Africa and Asia because time for Jim was always limited.'
6 Grant, an American, met with scores of government leaders, always carrying a packet of oral rehydration salts in his pocket. The salts are used to treat diarrhea, a leading child killer in poor countries.
7 Ms. Clinton said she was struck when Grant once whipped out the packet at a White House meeting.
8 F.H. Abed, executive director of the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee, had worked with with Grant in child health campaigns.
9 'There will be a bit of James Grant in every child in Bangladesh,' he said.
10 Ms. Clinton announced in her eulogy that the United States will sign the 1990 U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child, one of Grant's major projects.
11 More than 170 countries, including all major industrial nations and the Vatican, have joined the pact. It requires nations to guarantee the survival of children and access to education and sets standards for fighting child neglect.
12 U.S. conservatives have opposed the pact in the past for not defining the fetus as a child with rights and for banning the death penalty under 18.
13 The White House said President Clinton will ask for 'a number of reservations and understandings' in seeking U.S. Senate ratification of the convention.
14 The government will make clear that the convention will not interfere with the U.S. criminal justice system or educational policy, the White House said.

James P . Grant , who led UNICEF until days before his death last month , was eulogized Friday by U . S . first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton as a tireless champion of the world ' s children .
his death
What caused his death?