httpss://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_f1DG3N3uU
Detroit Lions owner Martha Ford reads a statement to the media about the firings of team president Tom Lewand and general manager Martin Mayhew on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2015.
Detroit Lions owner Martha Ford quietly walked to the podium Thursday at team headquarters in Allen Park and announced some of the biggest changes the organization has seen in years.
“We are very disappointed with the results of the season so far and believe a change in leadership was necessary,” Ford said in only her second public comments about the team since taking over from her late husband, William Clay Ford, on March 10, 2014.
Sheila Ford Hamp – the second-oldest of the four Ford children, all of whom have had the title of vice chair of the team – has taken a prominent role within the organization, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.
Asked by WJR-AM radio host Paul W. Smith on Oct. 9 whether Martha Ford was in charge of the Lions, Ford Jr. replied: “She is in charge. She absolutely is – and since my father passed away over a year ago, my mother is in charge, and she makes all the decisions.”
Bill Ford Jr.: “She is. She is, you know. And since my dad died, I’ve been less involved in the Lions and the NFL. … But she is very much in charge, and she’s got the decision-making role.”
She is vice chair of The Henry Ford and serves on the boards of Henry Ford Hospital, the Ford Motor Company Fund and the College for Creative Studies.