The Foreign Service Journal, July-August 2010

E very year, the Foreign Service community hopes therewill benoneed toadd names to the AFSA Memorial Plaques. Unfortunately, every year the ceremony takes place. This somber tradition, held on Foreign Affairs Day, honors Foreign Service personnel who have lost their liveswhile serving their country abroad. On Fri., May 7, in the lobby of the State Department, AFSA President Susan R. Johnson opened the ceremony with a brief welcome, then turned the pro- ceedings over to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. Behind them, a black shroud covered the West Plaque and its three newly engraved names. The Secretary read a message from President BarackObama and spokewarm- ly about the three individuals being hon- ored: Terrence L. Barnich, Victoria J. De- Long and Dale J. Gredler. Looking out at their relatives assembled in front of her, she said, “When someone goes overseas to serve, the family serves as well.” TERRENCE L. BARNICH TerrenceL. Barnich, 56,wason a limited non-career Civil Service appointment as deputydirector of the Iraq Transition Assistance Office in Baghdad, Iraq, when he was killedby an improvisedexplo- sivedeviceonMemorialDay,May25, 2009. At the time, hewas returning fromawaste- J U L Y - A UGU S T 2 0 1 0 / F OR E I GN S E R V I C E J OU R N A L 59 T he American Foreign Service Association is proud toannounce the winners of the 2010AFSAConstruc- tive Dissent Awards and Outstanding Performance Awards. The awards cere- monywas heldon June 24 in theBenjamin FranklinDiplomaticReceptionRoomat the Department of State. Each award winner received a certificate of recognition and a prize of $2,500. Lifetime Contributions to American Diplomacy Award This year’s winner of the award for LifetimeContributions toAmericanDiplo- macy isAmbassadorL. Bruce Laingen. (See p. 38 for an interview with Amb. Lain- gen.) After serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II, Amb. Laingen joined the ForeignService in1949. He was posted to Germany, Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Washington, D.C., before being appointed ambassador to Malta in 1977. In 1979, Amb. Laingen returned toTehranas chargé d’affaires; but withinmonths of his arrival, student pro- testors overran the U.S. embassy. He and two other American officials were at the IranianForeignMinistry at the time of the assault, andweredetained there for thenext 14 months. Amb. Laingen subsequent- ly received the State Depart- ment’s Award forValor, along with several other honors, in 1981. His next position was that of vice president of the National Defense University. He retired from the Foreign Service in1987 and later served as president of the American Academy of Diplomacy. Constructive Dissent Awards AFSA’sConstructiveDissentAwards are CONSTRUCTIVE DISSENT AND OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE HONORED AFSA Award Winners Announced BY ASGEIR SIGFUSSON, DIRECTOR OF MARKETING AND OUTREACH Continued on page 73 Continued on page 73 American Foreign Service Association • July-August 2010 AFSA NEWS MICHAEL LAIACONA AFSA MEMORIAL PLAQUE CEREMONY HELD ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS DAY Sec. Clinton Pays Tribute to Those Fallen in the Line of Duty BY FRANCESCA KELLY AFSA President Susan Johnson speaks while Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton looks on, AFSA Memorial Plaque Ceremony, State Department, May 7.