For Immediate Release
January 18, 2024
Contact: Nikki Gamer, gamer@afsa.org

Washington, D.C. – This year, both the United States Foreign Service and the American Foreign Service Association (AFSA) will celebrate their centennial year. This remarkable milestone provides an opportunity to honor our diplomats and development professionals and a time to reflect on the importance of diplomacy in American history. Perhaps most importantly, it gives us an occasion to think about what the next 100 years will bring for our global leadership role.

As part of our yearlong celebration, AFSA is deeply honored to announce the members of our centennial honorary committee. Each one brings their experience and leadership to this role, while at the same time marking their dedication to and respect for the men and women of the Foreign Service.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken serves as chair of the committee. The Secretary is joined by former Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush; former Secretaries of State James A. Baker, Hillary Rodham Clinton, John F. Kerry, and Condoleezza Rice; Senators Ben Cardin, chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Dan Sullivan, co-chair of the Senate Foreign Service Caucus; U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield; USAID Administrator Samantha Power; former USAID Administrator Ambassador Mark A. Green; and Ambassadors Caroline Kennedy and Michelle Kwan.

Joining them is a truly impressive list of retired career Foreign Service Ambassadors: Barbara K. Bodine, Esther Coopersmith, Ruth Davis, Charles Ford, Marc Grossman, Lino Gutierrez, William C. Harrop, A. Elizabeth Jones, Laura Kennedy, Dawn Liberi, Gillian Milovanovic, Allan Mustard, John Negroponte, Ronald E. Neumann, Robin Raphel, Marcie Ries, Eric Rubin, Mattie R. Sharpless, Barbara Stephenson, John Tefft, Harry K. Thomas, and Marie Yovanovitch. In addition, AFSA President Tom Yazdgerdi serves on the committee in an ex officio role. We thank them all for joining our celebration. (Edited 3/29/24: AFSA was saddened by the passing of Ambassador Coopersmith on March 26, 2024.)

AFSA will celebrate its hundredth year with a series of events and programs throughout the year, culminating in a gala dinner at the Department of State on May 23.

AFSA, the voice of the Foreign Service, is the professional association and labor union of the U.S. Foreign Service. Founded in 1924, AFSA represents 31,000 active and retired Foreign Service employees at the Department of State, U.S. Agency for International Development, Foreign Commercial Service, Foreign Agricultural Service, the U.S. Agency for Global Media, and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.