The Foreign Service Journal, November 2022

78 NOVEMBER 2022 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL regional legal adviser to the USAID mis- sions in Colombia and Ecuador while stationed in Bogotá. He later became assistant director for operations at the USAID mission to Colombia until his return to Washington in 1970 to attend State’s senior seminar in foreign policy. On graduating the following year, he undertook a series of overseas assign- ments as director of the USAID missions to Paraguay (1971-1973), Bolivia (1973- 1976), and Honduras (1979-1981), and as deputy director of the USAID mission to Egypt (1976-1979). His time in Egypt spanned the sev- eral years leading to and just after the Camp David Accords, during which the U.S. assistance program to Egypt was increased enormously. The Olesons returned to the D.C. area early in 1982, residing in Chevy Chase, Md. After serving as director of the Office of Central American Affairs and the Office of Andean Affairs in USAID’s Bureau of Latin American and Caribbean Affairs, Mr. Oleson became that bureau’s deputy assistant administrator for programs. He retired from the Senior Foreign Service in 1985 with the rank of Minister Counselor. Remaining in the D.C. area, he under- took a career in consulting. He was par- ticularly active in efforts in Latin America to reform the justice sector. He retired from consulting work in 2000, and he and his wife moved to Baltimore. John and Mary Oleson loved to visit museums and attend theater, concerts, and opera in Baltimore, Washington, D.C., and New York City. They main- tained their lifelong love of travel both throughout the U.S. and abroad; and they delighted in attending and following the activities of their three grandsons. Mr. Oleson was predeceased by his parents and his sister, Monica Steger Rusk, as well as her husband, Daniel Rusk. He is survived by his wife of 64 years; daughter Lisa Meagher and her husband, Brendan; sons Neil and Eric Oleson; and grandsons Declan and Finnian Meagher and Jasper Davenport. n Rosemary Dorothy O’Neill, 79, a retired Foreign Service officer, died on July 20, 2022, surrounded by family. Born on March 20, 1943, in Cam- bridge, Mass., Ms. O’Neill was the daughter of the late Speaker of the House, Thomas P. “Tip” O’Neill and his wife, Millie. She grew up in North Cambridge and attended the Ellis School, St. John’s Elementary, and Matignon High School. Following her family’s legacy and commitment to public service, Ms. O’Neill enjoyed a distinguished career at the State Department. After graduating from Dunbarton College in Washington, D.C., she became the special assistant to George Feldman, U.S. ambassador to Malta and Luxembourg. Amb. Feldman was a wonderful mentor, and the two remained close friends until his death in 1994. Ms. O’Neill served at the department’s headquarters in Washington until she was posted to Morocco in 1980. Her Foreign Service career involved extensive human rights work, including traveling to the USSR and other coun- tries as a special assistant to the assistant secretary for human rights and humani- tarian affairs in an effort to promote and protect human rights for people with disabilities. As an adviser with the director of policy planning on Northern Ireland issues, she was instrumental in convinc- ing the State Department to assemble a prominent group of Irish American lead- ers for meetings with the president’s spe- cial envoy to Northern Ireland to update them after each visit to that country. In 1992, as elected chair of the Sec- retary’s Open Forum, an internal and confidential channel for Foreign Service officers established in 1967 by Secretary of State Dean Rusk for free flow discus- sion and debate on U.S. policy, Ms. O’Neill revitalized the Speaker’s Program as well as the Open ForumWorking Group on Conflict Resolution, Civil Soci- ety and Democracy. Her final assignment prior to retiring was establishment of the Afghan Wom- en’s Program, providing Afghan women and girls with educational opportunities. Remaining close to former colleagues, she joined them on Zoom each week during the pandemic closures to discuss issues around the world, particularly Ukraine and its fight for freedom. Her history of involvement and participation in global issues regarding women and the underserved will have continuing reper- cussions long after her death. Ms. O’Neill’s great loves in life were, first and foremost, her family and friends, followed by Democrats, Ireland, and Cape Cod. She retired to Harwich Port along the Nantucket Sound in 2004, serv- ing on the Harwich Democratic Com- mittee and as chair of the board of the Family Pantry of Cape Cod. She frequently traveled to Ireland to maintain relationships with the North- ern Ireland Women’s Coalition and to Mallow, County Cork, which was the ancestral home of her father’s family. In 2017 she served as the Grand Marshall of the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Mallow. Ms. O’Neill is survived by her siblings, former Lt. Gov. Thomas P. O’Neill III and his wife, Shelly, of Boston; Susan O’Neill of Washington, D.C.; and Christopher (Kip) O’Neill and his wife, Stephanie, of Washington, D.C. She also leaves behind