The Foreign Service Journal - March 2018

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | MARCH 2018 63 AFSA NEWS Fund for American Diplo- macy: AFSA encourages donations to our Fund for American Diplomacy to help educate the American public about the role of the Foreign Service and the importance of diplomacy as a tool of America’s influence, pros- perity and success in the world. The FAD is organized as a 501(c)(3). You can donate to the FAD through the Combined Federal Campaign with number 10646. It is listed as “Diplomacy Matters-AFSA (Fund for American Diplo- macy).” The work supported by the FAD will remain espe- cially important in the year ahead given the lack of priority being accorded by some key figures in Wash- ington to the importance of U.S. diplomacy and given ongoing efforts to slash resources and personnel at our foreign affairs agencies. Funding from the FAD allows AFSA to work with our retiree members around the country to organize outreach activities highlight- ing the importance of our diplomatic and development assistance corps. AFSA, for example, held a very successful fundraiser for the FAD in December 2017, hosted by former Ambassa- dor Tim Carney in Washing- ton, D.C. The Fund for American Diplomacy has existed under various names and in different configurations since the 1940s. In 2000, AFSA established the FAD as a 501(c)(3), allowing tax-deductible donations. In 2016, the AFSA Governing Board created a FAD Operat- ing Reserve to provide more transparency and a solid financial foundation for the fund; we also began keep- ing monies for FAD-related activities in the Operating Budget. The FAD Operating Reserve was established with a donation of $120,202 ($20,202 from a member and an AFSA contribu- tion of $100,000 from its Operating Reserve). In 2017, AFSA moved an additional $175,000 from the AFSA Operating Reserve to the FAD Operating Reserve. The FAD Operat- ing Reserve began 2017 with $120,202 invested and ended the year with $295,381. The approved 2018 AFSA operating budget also incorporates funds dedicated to FAD activities totaling some $206,000. Sinclaire Fund: AFSA also maintains the Matilda W. Sinclaire Fund, which sup- ports excellence in language achievement. AFSA draws on that fund yearly to pay for the language achieve- ment awards. The Sinclaire Fund began 2017 with $429,966 invested and ended the year with approximately $475,014. The AFSA operating bud- get figures for 2015, 2017 and 2018 in the accompa- nying chart include FAD operating reserve as part of the total. The chart also contains key data that reflects our growth since 2000, allow- ing us to appreciate AFSA’s solid financial position and the good financial stewardship of our associa- tion’s leadership in recent decades. AFSA’s excellent finan- cial health and continued strong membership from the foreign affairs agencies will allow the association to focus on its mission to serve as the “Voice of the Foreign Service” at this time of serious challenges for our Service. We encourage your ongoing financial support to enhance our outreach and education efforts with the public and ask for your active participation in AFSA’s work and mission over the year ahead. n –Tony Wayne, AFSA Treasurer