The Foreign Service Journal - November 2017

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | NOVEMBER 2017 73 cultures, historical sites, and arts and crafts throughout Latin America. Among the many places she visited were Tikal, Antigua, Quirigua, Uxmal, Mer- ida, Machu Picchu, several volcanos, the Argentine Lake District and the Panama Canal. She made several Mayan stone rub- bings that decorate their home. Friends and family members remem- ber her sense of humor and love of wordplay. She enjoyed contributing to her husband’s “Clive” theater reviews. She also enjoyed crossword puzzles, and would often laugh at people’s malapropisms, get- ting “mords wixed,” as she put it. In her later years Mrs. Hechtman fought tomaintain her beautiful disposition. Her strength of will was evident in her efforts to stay active and her continued travels. In her final years, she was supported by loyal aides AlemAbeje andMehert Tekle. She is survived by her adoring husband, Robert, of McLean, Va.; her beloved son, Douglas; and countless friends. Memorial contributions in her name may be made to the National MS Society. Q Robert Hennemeyer, 91, a retired Foreign Service officer, died on Aug. 21 at Sibley Hospital inWashington, D.C. “Bob” Hennemeyer was born in Chicago, Ill., on Dec., 1, 1925, the son of a German immigrant medical doctor and a nurse—or, as he put it, “an Iowa farm girl of Danish parentage and a worldly Berlin sophisticate.” In 1944 he was drafted into the U.S. Army. Making his way across the Atlantic to England, he marched through France and Belgium, finally arriving in Germany. Though he never rose above the rank of corporal and often told self-deprecating stories about the absurdity of military life, he received the French Legion d’Honneur many years later in recognition of his service. After the war, he earned his bachelor’s andmaster’s degrees at the University of Chicago during the final years of the ten- ure of legendary educator Robert Maynard Hutchins. He applied to the Department of State in 1952 and embarked on a 35-year career as a Foreign Service officer. He mar- ried the former Joan Renaud in 1954. Mr. Hennemeyer served in Germany (twice), England, Norway, Tanzania and, finally, The Gambia, where he was U.S. ambassador. He also studied at Oxford University and taught at the U.S. Naval Academy. Among many adventures, he was once taken hostage during an army mutiny in then-Tanganyika and narrowly escaped being executed by firing squad. His diplo- matic service was recognized by a variety of awards, including the National Order of the Republic of The Gambia, the Ger- man Bundesverdienstkreuz and the State Department’s Meritorious Honor Award. After retiring from the Foreign Service, Mr. Hennemeyer worked for many years promoting social justice, both internation- ally and domestically, at the U.S. Confer- ence of Catholic Bishops, the Woodstock Theological Center and the Catholic Diocese of Venice, Fla. As part of this work he co-authored a book, Forgiveness in International Politics: An Alternative Road to Peace (2004). Mr. Hennemeyer was an avid outdoors- man; he loved boating and fishing, and treasured weekend getaways to his cabin in the remote mountains of West Virginia. For many years he also retained an affec- tion for his ChicagoWhite Sox, until finally Washington once again got its own base- ball team and he became a rather serious Nationals fan. Friends and family members remem- ber Mr. Hennemeyer as a learned, kind and humorous man. He is survived by his wife of 63 years,