The Foreign Service Journal, November 2003

Willis Bryant Collins Jr ., 86, retired FSO, died June 29 at the Washington Hospice in Washington, D.C. Born in Troy, Ala., Mr. Collins received an LL.B. degree from Columbus University. He joined the military in May 1942, serving during World War II as a naval officer in Africa, Italy and France. Following the war, he served in the Veterans Administration for one year before joining the State Department as a staff officer in 1947. In 1955 he became a career Foreign Service officer, and served in Europe, Africa and Asia until his retirement in 1974. He was a member of the Bar of the District of Colombia. Mr. Collins is survived by his wife Genevieve D. Collins; two daugh- ters, Judith A. Hoy and Pamela R. Collins; two granddaughters; and four great-grandchildren. Contributions may be made in his memory to the Washington Hospice, 3720 Upton Street NW, Washington, DC 20016. Albert D. “Scotty” Moscotti , 82, retired FSO and professor emeritus of Asian studies at the University of Hawaii, died of Parkinson’s disease in Honolulu on Aug. 7. Born in Atlantic City, N.J., and a graduate of Montclair University, Mr. Moscotti’s fascination with Southeast Asia began during World War II when he served as an Air Force captain in the China/Burma/India theatre. Following the war he earned his master’s degree from the University of Michigan and doctor- ate from Yale University, writing his thesis on Burma. Mr. Moscotti entered the Foreign Service in 1950 and served as a political officer in Bangkok, Madras, Karachi, Kuala Lumpur and Wash- ington. He retired in 1970 and joined the staff of the East-West Center in Honolulu and, later, the University of Hawaii. Hawaii was an ideal location to continue his active involvement with the peoples of Asia through trips to the area and visits with Foreign Service and Asian friends passing through. During that period Mr. Moscotti wrote two books, British Policy and the Nationalist Movement in Burma, 1917-1937 (University of Hawaii Press, 1974) and Burma’s Consti- tution and Elections of 1974: A Source Book (Institute of South East Asian Studies, Singapore, 1977). An active member of The Episcopal Church of the Holy Nativity, he was well known for his generosity and charitable works. He is survived by a brother, Dr. Richard W. Moscotti, and family of Phila- delphia. Donations in his memory may be sent to his church or any charity. Genevieve Oyster , 86, died Aug. 5 at the Orange Regional Medical Center in Middletown, N.Y. The daughter of Bronislaus and Elizabeth Geleziauskiuty Noraisya, Mrs. Oyster was born Dec. 18, 1916, in Brooklyn, N.Y. She began her career with the U.S. Department of State as an administrative assistant, and was posted in Vietnam, Bangladesh and Laos, as well as Washington, D.C. Mrs. Oyster retired from the Foreign Service in 1978. In 1993 she moved from Washington, D.C., to Middletown. Mrs. Oyster is survived by one son, Paul Spiegler of Middletown, N.Y. She was predeceased by her husband William Ross Oyster, who died in 1957, and by her sister Elsie Allen. Ann T. Ruegsegger , 95, mother- in-law of Ambassador Donald J. McConnell, died July 17 in Asmara, Eritrea, where Mr. McConnell is serv- ing. Mrs. Ruegsegger was well known to Foreign Service and local commu- nities at various posts in Africa, Europe and the Middle East, where she lived with her daughter Frances and son-in-law for more than 25 years. Famous for her Irish wit, quick repartee and love of meeting new peo- ple, she established rapport with peo- ple of all ranks — whether chatting with senators at embassy dinners or passing out Cokes to children at the side of the road in an African village when her car broke down. Also known for her love of cards, she became famous for her poker party dinners. Having held family reunions at Atlantic City to celebrate her 80th birthday and at Monte Carlo for her 90th, Mrs. Ruegsegger was looking forward to continuing the tradition in Las Vegas at 100. She died one month shy of her 96th birthday. N O V E M B E R 2 0 0 3 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 53 I N M EMORY