The Foreign Service Journal, May 2016

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | MAY 2016 75 IN MEMORY n WilliamGarton Bowdler, 91, a retired Foreign Service officer and three-time ambassador, died on Jan. 19 in Sharps, Va. Mr. Bowdler joined the Department of State after graduating from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. He served overseas in the U.S. Army from 1944 to 1946. Prior to joining the Foreign Service, he was a member of the Civil Service from 1946 to 1954. His first Foreign Service post was Cuba in 1956, and he went on to serve at the Organization of American States and in Spain. He was appointed U.S. ambassador to El Salvador in 1968, to Guatemala in 1971 and South Africa in 1975, before returning toWashington, D.C., in 1978 to serve as the director of the Bureau of Intelligence and Research. He retired in 1980 as assistant secretary of State for Latin American affairs. Ambassador Bowdler is survived by his wife of 70 years, Margaret Clark Bowdler; a son, Charles Bowdler (and his wife, Mitzi) of Jackson, Miss.; a daughter, Ann Sullivan of Brielle, N.J.; a daughter-in-law, Bobbye Jean Bowdler of Sharps, Va.; nine grand- children: Cal, Kristin, Thomas, Katherine, Andrew, Jonathan, Sarah, William and David; and four great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his son, James Calloway Bowdler. Memorial contributions may be made toMilden Presbyterian Church, P.O. Box 31, Sharps VA 22548. n Harold G. “Hal” Davis, 91, a retired Foreign Service officer with the U.S. Infor- mation Agency, died on Dec. 24, in Palm Harbor, Fla. Mr. Davis was born inMercersburg, Pa., in 1924. He served for three years in the U.S. Navy during WorldWar II, and saw action in the Pacific theater. Prior to join- ing the Foreign Service he was connected to the Department of Agriculture as a project planner from 1957 to 1959. He then embarked on a career with the U.S. International Communications Agency (the Carter administration’s name for the U.S. Information Agency). Based in Washington, D.C., he was responsible for ushering in the computer age at the agency in the 1960s. He was a division chief with the Organization of American States and served on temporary duty at many foreign posts, overseeing computer equipment installation and training for agency staff and foreign nationals. After retiring in 1980, Mr. Davis resided in Hilton Head Island, S.C., and Pinehurst, N.C., before settling in PalmHarbor. He enjoyed golf and was active in tennis his entire life. He served as a United States Tennis Association official for many years. With three certifications (chair, line and referee), he officiated at many tennis tournaments, including at the U.S. Open in New York City. Mr. Davis is survived by his wife, Darla Vogel Davis, of PalmHarbor; a daughter and son-in-law, Darlene and Mark Parvin of Pinellas Park, Fla.; a daughter, Deborah Davis Zibolsky of Milwaukee, Wis.; and brothers Gerald Shipp of Chambersburg, Pa., and Norman Davis of Greencastle, Pa. Memorial contributions may be made to the AmericanMacular Degeneration Foundation, P.O. Box 515, North Hampton MA 01061. n Daniel Francis Geisler, 61, a former Foreign Service officer and AFSA president from 1997 to 1999, died unexpectedly of complications from surgery on Jan. 20 in Washington, D.C. Mr. Geisler was born on Oct. 3, 1954, in Pittsburgh, Pa., to Carol and Daniel Geisler. He held a bachelor’s degree inmath from St. Vincent College and a master’s degree in civil engineering fromCarnegie Mellon University. Mr. Geisler served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Togo, where he met his wife, Christiane, originally fromFrance. He began his career as a civil engineer at the Environmental Protection Agency in Washington, D.C. He joined the Foreign Service in 1985, serving in Zaire, Jamaica andMalaysia, as well as in domestic assignments at the State Department and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. A newly elected State vice president at the American Foreign Service Association in 1997, Mr. Geisler was tapped to serve as AFSA president when the elected presi- dent, Al LaPorta, had to leave to become ambassador toMongolia. During his term, Mr. Geisler testified before House and Senate panels on foreign affairs funding, security matters and government reform legislation. After leaving the Foreign Service in 1999, Mr. Geisler was a senior adviser to Senator Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and then joined Crowell &Moring International as a director, helping corporations, trade asso- ciations and sovereign governments solve problems and take advantage of economic, commercial and political opportunities. He left CMI in 2006 for a stint as vice president of Eisenhower Fellowships, a pri- vately funded organization that sponsors a unique exchange program for high-achiev- ing global leaders aged 35-45, rejoining CMI in April 2014. Mr. Geisler is loved and remembered by thousands of people around the world for his kindness, his wisdom and wit, his negotiating talents, his intellect and his drive. His children and family will remem- ber him for his creative, absolute and loving devotion to them. He volunteered as a reader of books for the blind, held various positions on the board of Friends of Togo, the alumni asso-