The Foreign Service Journal, December 2013

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | DECEMBER 2013 49 AFSA NEWS L I FE I N THE FORE I GN SERV I CE Bonnie Brown Retires We have been very fortunate to call Bonnie Brown a col- league and friend for many years. Bonnie first joined AFSA in the summer of 2003, and so she recently cel- ebrated her 10th anniversary with AFSA. Bonnie made the decision to retire from AFSA effective Nov. 8. We will greatly miss her. In her time at AFSA, Bon- nie’s contributions have been significant. The newsletter that she has skillfully edited since her arrival has always been well received. She transformed it from what it was many years ago. Additionally, Bonnie has provided counseling and assistance to countless AFSA members, and provided critical intervention on their behalf with the department and other agencies. The counseling work Bonnie has rendered to individuals has been exemplary—easing the burdens of people under stress or who are vulnerable. She has been an excellent advocate for retiree benefits, and contributed to forging partnerships with a variety of outside groups.  Her ability to monitor legislative, regulatory and department actions that affect federal retirement and health benefits, and then advise AFSA leadership and membership about these issues, has been first rate. Bonnie has also provided contributions to various pub- lic events here at AFSA on a host of subjects including: federal health benefits, the Federal Employees Health Benefit plan, Medicare ben- efits, the future of Medicare, senior care, Thrift Savings Plan, among other topics. AFSA will sorely miss Bon- nie’s professional skills, tact, writing, analytical ability and talent. Matt Sumrak, assistant coordinator for retiree counseling and legislation is available to assist retir- ees and can be reached at sumrak@afsa.org.  I will personally miss Bonnie’s warmth, kindness and friendship. Warm wishes to Bonnie as she begins this new chapter of her life with her wonderful husband Ken, her family and friends. n BY IAN HOUSTON, AFSA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR DONNAAYERST AFSA Welcomes New Staff Member In October, AFSA welcomed Jeff Lau to the AFSA staff. Jeff fills our new online communications specialist postion, working mostly on AFSA’s website and graphics. We are excited to add this important capacity to our expanding communications team. Jeff has been an auxiliary member of the AFSA team, having worked on a part-time contract for more than three years. Jeff originally hails from Pennsylvania but most recently lived in Mississippi, where his wife completed her Ph.D. in American History. Jeff completed his undergraduate studies at Vanderbilt University, and also studied at the Pennsylvania State University, the Catholic University of America and Boston University, where he received a graphic and Web design certifica- tion from their Center for Digital Imaging Arts. We are happy to welcome Jeff to the (full-time) AFSA team! NEWS BRIEF