The Foreign Service Journal, September 2015

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2015 85 n David Lee Bleyle , 66, a retired For- eign Service officer, died on July 2 in Port- land, Ore., of complications from Crohn’s disease and acute myeloid leukemia. Mr. Bleyle was born and raised in Tonawanda, N.Y., a suburb of Buffalo, by his grandparents Willard and Eva Bleyle. He graduated from the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry with a bachelor’s degree in polymer chemistry and an ROTC commitment to the U.S. Army starting in 1970. While in the Army, he completed an MPA through Brigham Young Univer- sity and finished his career in 1976 as a captain. Mr. Bleyle’s career continued in the Foreign Service, where he served in Len- ingrad (1977-1979), Sydney (1979-1981), Beijing (1982-1984 and 1988-1991), Stockholm (1984-1987) and Taipei (1987- 1988 and 1996-1997). In Washington, D.C., he had assignments at the Foreign Service Institute (1981-1982 and 1991- 1994) and the Office of Oceans, Environ- ment and Science (1994-1996). From 1997 to 2000, Mr. Bleyle served as science counselor in Beijing. That was followed by a stint in Portland, Ore., at the U.S. Center for Sustainable Develop- ment and service as consul general in Chengdu from 2001 to 2003. Mr. Bleyle retired to Beaverton, Ore., in 2003. He served on the boards of trust- ees for three nonprofits: the Oregon Col- lege of Oriental Medicine, the Northwest China Council and Kham Aid. His love of travel and new experiences continued in retirement with motorcy- cling. He rode his neon-yellow Can-Am Spider throughout the Northwest and Western states and Canada. Mr. Bleyle is survived by his wife, Kathy Hobson Bleyle; two daughters, Dawn and Lisa; two grandchildren, Holden IN MEMORY and Madeline; dogs Murphy, Daisy and Ripley; and cats Ginger and MeiMei, who all live together in Beaverton. Memorial contributions may be made in Mr. Bleyle’s name to Mercy Corps International ( www.mercycorps.org ) or the food bank in your area. n James Davis Burns Jr. , 72, a retired FSO, died in May at his home in San Anto- nio, Texas, of complications from diabetes. Mr. Burns was born on Aug. 15, 1942, to Katheryn Amanda (Flynt) Burns and James Davis Burns Sr. He graduated from Gardiner High School in Laurel, Miss., and went to Jones County Junior College, Mississippi State and then the University of Missouri, where he graduated with degrees in history and journalism. He married Jeanne Ellen Michael on Sept. 3, 1966, and they had two children, Erin Renee and Shaun Michael. Mr. Burns joined the Foreign Service in 1967 and served for 27 years at posts in Thailand (two tours), Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Guyana and Pakistan. He felt at home in all cultures and loved learning everything about them, including their languages. While he enjoyed all his posts, Mr. Burns’ favorite assignment was Bangkok, where he was director of the American University Alumni Language Center during the 1980s. He retired in 1995 and settled in San Antonio, Texas. Mr. Burns loved baseball, reading, fishing, music, all animals, politics, an energetic debate and a good cigar. His friends and family remember him for his great stories, his love of the written word, his sense of humor, his strong convictions about right and wrong and his special spaghetti sauce. They recall his practical jokes and teasing, and the laughter these episodes elicited from him. He was a friend to strangers, and made a significant differ- ence in the lives of those he touched. Mr. Burns is survived by his mother, Katheryn Burns; his sister, Sue Burns; his children, Erin and Shaun Burns; his grandchildren, Cass Ardell, Madeleine Burns and Cassidy Burns; and his former wife and friend, Jeanne Michael Burns. Memorial donations may be made in Mr. Burns’ name to the Diabetes and Wellness Foundation. n Oliver Sexsmith Crosby , 94, a retired FSO and former ambassador to the People’s Revolutionary Republic of Guinea, died of heart failure on Oct. 25, 2014, surrounded by his family. Mr. Crosby was born on April 27, 1920, in Philadelphia, Pa., to Henry Lamar Crosby and Olive Williams Crosby. After attending Penn Charter School, he gradu- ated from the University of Pennsylvania and received a master’s degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced Inter- national Studies. Mr. Crosby served as an officer in the U.S. Navy during World War II, with 19 months of duty on a destroyer escort in the North Atlantic before being trans- ferred to a cruiser in the Pacific in 1945. He ended his tour as a lieutenant. In 1947 Mr. Crosby joined the Foreign Service. His first overseas post was Athens, where he married his first wife, Eleanor S. Crosby. Subsequent postings included Tel Aviv and the American con- sulate in Tabriz, Iran, where he climbed Mt. Ararat. After a four-year assignment in Berlin, he became a U.S. government observer with the Belgian Antarctic Expedition from 1958 to 1959. Following an assign- ment in Washington, D.C., he served in Nicosia, Bamako and Lagos. In 1977 President Jimmy Carter appointed Mr. Crosby U.S. ambassador to the People’s Revolutionary Republic of