Archive | 2014

Carol Nancy (Armitage) Pierstorff, age 65, passed away suddenly on January 5, 2014 of a heart attack. Carol was born July 21, 1948 in Providence, RI to John B. and Franya (Grzych) Armitage. Carol graduated from Cranston East High School in 1966. She married her college sweetheart, Bruce W. Pierstorff, in Providence, RI in 1969, one year prior to graduating from Brown University with a degree in Music. Since her early teenage years, Carol worked as a full or part-time church organist and was involved with other musical and theatrical groups since her college days. Following receipt of her MBA (UNH, 1979), Carol worked as a consultant prior to taking a position with IHRDC where she became Vice President, Marketing and Sales. It was at IHRDC where she developed her love for international business and travel. Following the death of her parents, she worked in the international training field with her own company, Terra Training and Consulting Associates. In 1992, she took a position with the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and moved from Dover, NH to the Washington, DC area. She directed various USAID programs throughout the world and ultimately took an assignment with USAID in Moscow, Russia in 2000. While in Moscow, she directed two major projects (the ROLL and the Forest projects) as well as numerous small projects that dealt with rural development, energy efficiency and environmental assessment until her retirement in July 2005. Upon retirement, Carol returned to her musical roots and served as a substitute organist for numerous churches in the Northern Virginia and DC area. She also sang with the Piedmont Singers as well as the New Dominion Chorale. In addition to her husband of 45 years, survivors include her son Erik D. Pierstorff (Trish Kaiser) of Sierra Madre, CA and daughter Leah C. Marshall of North Yarmouth, ME, brother John Armitage, and four grandchildren (Eden, Simone, Gabriel and Desmond) whom she adored and who also display Carol’s love of music. Carol made deep and lasting friendships wherever she went, and the impact of her death has been felt throughout the country and as far away as Australia and Russia. She had an uncanny ability to recognize hidden gifts and encouraged many people to achieve things they might never have attempted without her influence and support. Carol had a deep love and appreciation for music and for all of the cultural opportunities that the greater DC area had to offer. She was a world traveler, a lifelong learner, and brought great joy to others through her music and knowledge. Carol was a member of the Rotary Club of Falls Church, VA and served as the International Service Director and Sergeant-at-Arms, and she generously gave of her time and financial resources to many organizations and people in need. She will be missed by many. Memorial services will be held at 2:00 PM Sunday, February 9 at Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Middleburg, VA. A second celebration of Carol’s life will be held at 2:00 PM Saturday, February 15 at the Garrison Players Arts Center in Rollinsford, NH.

ALBERT SAMUEL “BERT” FRALEIGH, a retired USAID field officer, died January 10, 2014. He was 93.

Fraleigh was born in Toronto, Ontario in 1920. After graduating in sciences and civil engineering from the University of Alaska, he served as a civilian with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, became a U.S. citizen in 1943 and joined the U.S. Navy in World War II. After the war, he served the United Nations relief program in China, where he organized the evacuation of critical materiel from Shanghai to Taiwan, an act for which he received the Economic Cooperation Administration’s highest award. After the communist takeover he was detained in China and harshly interrogated for several months. He was released through the personal intercession of the Chinese foreign minister, Cho En-lai.

A fluent writer and speaker of Chinese, Bert worked for the Asia Foundation for a year before joining the foreign assistance mission in Taiwan in 1952, where he helped resettle thousands of mustered-out Chinese soldiers, and eventually served as the personal advisor to Taiwan’s future president. In 1957 he was named one of the ten outstanding young men in federal service.

Fraleigh subsequently rose to senior field positions in Amer­ican assistance programs in Laos and South Vietnam, where he became legendary for helping local farmers earn more money by raising pigs, corn and soybeans than they could raining traditional rice. If some farmers were skeptical of the new practices, Bert introduced them to a USAID-backed “miracle rice”, which grew faster and increased yields. Rufus Phillips, head of USAID’s Office of Rural Affairs in Vietnam, later wrote that, as his deputy, “Bert had a ‘can-do’ attitude without a bureaucratic mindset. He was direct, full of enthusiasm, down-to-earth and obviously knew how to work with Asians.”

Fraleigh recalled that when he first arrived in Vietnam AID’s staff numbered 103, with all but three of them living in the capital city. Fraleigh used insights into foreign aid practices to shape an unconventional program.  In 1962 Rural Affairs turned the traditional headquarters-oriented AID effort on its head, sending teams of young civilians, many volunteers on contract, to live and work in the provinces under sparse and sometimes dangerous circumstances. Two years later a new AID administrator in Saigon suddenly killed the program and fired many of its staff.

Following his service in Vietnam, Bert served as an original faculty member at the Vietnam Training Center in Arlington, Virginia, an interagency facility which prepared civilian and military officers to serve with America’s pacification program. The revolutionary agricultural techniques he taught them helped quell the appeal of the South Vietnamese communists in rural areas. Often a thorn in the side of desk-bound Saigon bureaucrats, Fraleigh later wrote: “We would have prevailed in Vietnam if the bureaucracy would have allowed it.” He later had special assignments in the Philippines, Korea, Indonesia, and Okinawa.

After leaving federal ser­vice in 1976, Fraleigh ran companies in Singapore, Taiwan, Hawaii and Seattle. He also taught international business as a visiting professor at the Milwaukee School of Engineering, earning his doctorate there, finally retiring to Sequim, Washington, where he competed in many senior track and tennis competitions. He is survived by his wife of many years, the former Jean Liu, a noted Chinese artist and art collector.

FLEMING HAROLD S. FLEMING Diplomat, Author, Humanitarian – Hal Fleming died suddenly of heart failure on February 4, 2014 at home in Great Falls, Virginia, with his devoted wife Arlene by his side. He was born on April 21, 1931 in New Haven, Connecticut, the son of Harold S. and Edith Wormley Fleming. Hal was a loving husband, father and grandfather, a loyal friend, and a man of many interests and talents which he pursued enthusiastically throughout his life. From his West Indian heritage and grandfather, Dr. Richard S. Fleming, he developed a passion for all things British: literature, history, culture and sport, tennis being his favorite. His household was not complete without an English Springer Spaniel. As a young boy, Hal was fascinated by the tented railroad circus of the 1940s which inspired him over the years to build an elaborate, intricate model circus and to become an expert on the history of the circus in America. He also undertook construction on a larger scale, renovating houses on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, and elsewhere. Hal was an excellent cook and enjoyed entertaining at his homes in Great Falls, Virginia and on Longboat Key, Florida, especially at his Thanksgiving table. His beautiful garden was the setting for celebrations and parties. Hal was a prolific writer with published works including several short stories and poems and two novels: The Brides’ Fair, a story of intrigue and action set in Morocco; and Once Upon A Storm, a Civil Rights era mystery. A 1949 graduate of Mount Hermon School, Hal received his B.A. from Brown University with distinction in 1953, and an M.A. in English Literature from Columbia University in 1955. At Mount Hermon and Brown, he participated in sports and choral groups. From 1958 – 65, while employed by the research division of Forbes Magazine, he was a lecturer in English Literature at City College of New York. He was a founding member of Ten, an informal fund-raising group supporting various civil rights organizations. Hal had a distinguished career as a diplomat, international development manager, and humanitarian. In 1966, he joined the U.S. Peace Corps staff where he directed public affairs and recruiting at a time of Civil Rights and Anti-Vietnam War turbulence, and then served as country director in Cote D’Ivoire, West Africa. During two years as Executive Director of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in the mid-1970s, he accomplished major management reforms. Upon returning to the Foreign Service, Hal joined the U.S. Agency for International Development from 1978 – 83 as Mission Director in Morocco where he introduced programs for family planning and women in development. He assisted the Moroccan government in establishing one of the first institutes for renewable energy in the region, an activity that continues. As counselor for development at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations from 1983 – 86, Hal negotiated U.S. positions on a wide range of issues including economic development and environmental protection. At UNICEF from 1986 – 92, he oversaw new child survival initiatives and helped launch major humanitarian assistance programs including Operation Life-line Sudan. From 1994 – 97, at the U.S. Department of State, as Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Organizations, Hal was in charge of policy and management for U.S. support of 80 U.N. and other international agencies. He created and supervised development of Relief Web, an Internet-based information management system for disaster response. Hal’s work involved extensive travel and garnered numerous awards, including the USAID Administrator’s Meritorious Achievement Award in 1985, and the U.S. Committee for UNICEF President’s Award in 1989. Throughout his career, he was appreciated as a kind and generous mentor. In addition to Arlene, his wife of 38 years, Hal is survived by their daughter Laura, by three sons, Douglass, Craig and Harold Gordon, from a prior marriage to Patricia S. Fleming, a grandson, Max, a sister, Norene Fleming, and a nephew, Toure Lee. A son, David, died at the age of three in 1981. A memorial gathering for family, friends and colleagues is scheduled for April 27 from 4 to 6 p.m., at DACOR Bacon House, 1801 F Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20006. Contributions in Hal’s memory may be made to the DACOR Bacon House Foundation or to the U.S. Committee for UNICEF.A memorial gathering for family, friends and colleagues is scheduled for April 27 from 4 to 6 p.m., at DACOR Bacon House, 1801 F Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20006. Contributions in Hal’s memory may be made to the DACOR Bacon House Foundation or to the U.S. Committee for UNICEF

Allen Randlov of Tuftonboro, NH, died Saturday, August 31 at Huggins Hospital, Wolfeboro, NH.  Allen graduated from Northeastern University with a BS in Anthropology and received a Master of Science degree in Public Health from the University of Massachusetts. He also attended a Doctoral Program at John’s Hopkins.

Allen and his wife Nancy were Peace Corps volunteers in Sierra Leone in the early 1970s. Allen subsequently worked for the U.S. State Department Agency for International Development, overseeing a program that provided prosthetic devices to civilian victims of war. Allen received the USAID Superior Honor Award for this work in 1994 “in recognition of his sensitivity, dedication, and professional creativity in understanding and responding to the prosthetic and rehabilitative needs of civilian victims of war, resulting in returning thousands of these victims to productive roles in their societies.” He and Nancy lived in Nepal, Barbados, and Washington, DC before retiring to Wolfeboro in 1994 and then moving to Tuftonboro in 2005.

Allen had many interests and enjoyed reading, working on vintage cars, and observing his parakeets and peacocks. Recently he built and sailed a radio-controlled miniature sailboat. Allen lost the use of his legs in a traffic accident while stationed in Barbados. Over 30 years of dealing with this disability, he approached life with great enthusiasm and courage with the help of his loving wife and family. Allen was much loved by all who knew him, and by his service dogs, Havana, Barnum, and Bonnie. He will be greatly missed. He is survived by his wife, Nancy, three children, Asa, Amy, and Nathan, three grandchildren, his sister, Nancy, and his nieces and nephew.

A private memorial service will be held in Massachusetts. In lieu of flowers, donations in his memory may be made to the Lakes Region Humane Society, PO Box 655, Ossipee, NH 03864.

Dennis Panther, husband of Kathryn Panther (also a Foreign Service Officer, passed away in Sykesville, Maryland on March 20, 2014 at the age of 64.

A native of Spokane, Washington, Dennis attended Washington State University, where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Forestry and spent summers working for the National Forest Service in Oregon.  He joined the Peace Corps in 1973 and served two years as a forestry volunteer in Niger, West Africa, advising the government on village wood production and green belt management.  It was in Niger that Dennis met his wife, Kathryn, a fellow volunteer.  They were married in Ziguinchor, Senegal, in 1979.  Dennis began his USAID career as a USPSC in 1976, providing technical assistance on U.S. Government forestry projects first in Niger and then in the Casamance Region of southern Senegal.  He was sworn in as a Foreign Service Officer in 1984, and subsequently served at USAID Missions in Niger, Togo, Mali, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Egypt, and Uganda, as well as the Africa Bureau in USAID/Washington.  He provided technical assistance and oversight to USAID programs in agriculture, environment, and economic growth.  Prior to his retirement in 2008, Dennis served as the Office Director, Economic Growth, Environment and Agriculture at USAID/Uganda.

Dennis loved the game of golf, spending time with family and friends, traveling, talking to people around the world on his ham radio, reading science fiction novels, and doing crossword puzzles.  He leaves behind his wife Kathryn Panther, son Christopher, and daughter Nicole, all of northern Virginia.

Christopher M. Brown, lifelong international development specialist, fighter for human rights and dedicated family man and friend, died peacefully at his home with family and friends in Lake Placid, New York on March 23, 2014. He was 57 years old.

Shortly after graduating from the Tufts University Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Chris began, with his wife, Betsy, a remarkable more-than-20-year joint career with the United States Agency in Development (USAID). Together, they worked in more than 50 countries across Asia, Africa, the Caribbean and the former Soviet Union on issues of democracy, economic growth, health, food and hunger, and strategic planning. They were a team.

The son of Vince Brown, a senior USAID Mission Director (one of the first development officials appointed during the Marshall Plan), and Francoise Brown, from France, Chris was in many ways born into international development. Raised in Islamabad and Kabul, he learned Urdu and Dari as well as French and English. It was wonderful preparation for one of the greatest contributions of his career, putting schoolbooks in the hands of millions of children across Afghanistan immediately after the fall of the Taliban in Fall 2001. Chris was devoted to educational opportunities in Afghanistan, including the reconstruction of the American University of Afghanistan—which was built on the rubble of his former high school. His dazzling command of languages—he mastered at least seven— allowed him to communicate with so many around the world, to share directly his interest, enthusiasm and energy—and his love of dogs. He received his B. A. from Occidental College, his Masters and Ph. D. in agricultural economics (based on extensive field work in Liberia) from the Fletcher School.

Most importantly, Chris had an infectious zest for life and demonstrated how it is possible to thrive while living with cancer for twenty-three years. He embraced the world with a joy and energy that captured all around him. Kind and generous, he cared deeply for family, friends, and colleagues, and worked throughout his life to build a sense of community, bringing people together in celebration with food, music, and poetry. He loved the outdoors and had a passion for new adventures. An accomplished skier, snowboarder, water skier, wake-boarder, rock climber and kayaker, he surprised us all with his perpetual willingness to try new things—even extending to taking up ballet and giving his first (and only) recital at the age of 50.

A man of great courage and much joy, his faith gave him strength. A devout Christian Scientist, he embraced Judaism as part of his family faith.

Chis is survived by his wife of 34 years, Betsy Hulnick Brown, the CEO and President of Planned Parenthood of the North Country New York; his son Michael Lawrence Brown an attorney in New Orleans, his daughter, Danielle Raymonde Brown, a candidate for a Nurse Practitioner degree from Yale University School of Nursing; his mother, Francoise Brown; brother, Gregory Brown; sister, Valerie Brown Ewins; father and mother-in-law Don and Barbara Hulnick of Tupper Lake, NY and extensive family in the United States and France.

In lieu of flowers the Browns welcome donations to the Rotary Club of Lake Placid, the American University of Afghanistan Scholars Fund (www.AUAF.edu.af/giving/) or Planned Parenthood of the North Country NY (www.ppncny.org). Please note Chris Brown in the byline for any donations. The University is built on the site of the high school in Kabul that Chris attended.

A public memorial service will be held Sunday, March 30th at 11:00 am at M.B. Clark Funeral Home in Lake Placid, NY. Chris’s colleagues at Internews will be hosting a memorial service in his honor to raise funds for a scholarship program at the American University of Afghanistan.  The event will be in the Washington, D.C. area and the date and details will be announced later.

Bill Schoux, beloved husband and father, died peacefully on Friday, March 28, 2014 in Washington D.C. of complications from Alzheimer’s disease. Born in 1940 in Burlingame, California, Bill graduated from Occidental College and embarked on an adventurous life. Bill was a USAID Foreign Service Officer, beginning his career in 1966 in Vietnam working in the provinces and Saigon, and later serving in Latin America and South Asia. After retiring from USAID in 1993, he and his wife founded a consulting firm to work on democratic governance and civil-military cooperation. Driven by his deep-seated belief in the dignity of every person, and their right to freedom and self-determination, he spent his second career working to weaken corruption and strengthen democratic practices, working on projects in Cambodia, Nepal, East Timor, Bosnia, Kosovo, and South Africa, among other places. Bill was diagnosed with dementia in 2009. With the grace and dignity characteristic of him, he responded by becoming an advocate for those with the disease. Working with the Sibley Senior Association, in September 2011, he established Club Memory. Now celebrating two and a half years, the Club offers a social model for people to meet in a safe and welcoming space. He is survived by his loving wife of 21 years, Elise Paylan Schoux, his brother Gilbert and family; his former wife Christina Hussey Schoux; his daughter Christina Schoux Casey, her husband Patrick Casey and granddaughters Genevieve and Clea. Bill was never happier than when sitting down to a good meal and glass of wine with loved ones; we will honor his joie de vivre with a party in celebration of Bill’s life on Saturday, May 17. Please write to xschoux@gmail.com for details. Memorial contributions may be made to the Friends Club at Bradley Presbyterian Church, Bethesda, Maryland, or Club Memory, in care of the Sibley Senior Association at Sibley Hospital, Washington, DC.

Hugh Dwelly died on April 10, 2014 at Fairfax Hospital of a heart attack. He was a retired USAID Foreign Service Officer whose career included tours in Turkey, India, Sri Lanka and Italy. He graduated from Kents Hill School in Readfield, ME in 1950 and went on and graduated from Boston University. Upon retirement, he received the USAID Outstanding Career Achievement Award. Mr. Dwelley maintained close ties to his home village of Islesford on Little Cranberry Island, ME. He and friends founded the Islesford Historical Society to preserve island history. In 2000 he published “A History of Little Cranberry Island Maine”. In 1995 he became an active member of the advisory council of the island institute devoted to the viability of 14 offshore Maine island communities. The James R. Dwelley Scholarship Fund was founded in memory of his grandfather and set up to help graduates of the Cranberry Isles schools get a good high school education. As president of the Maine State Society of Washington, DC Scholarship Foundation, he helped youths throughout Maine with the costs of high education. Survivors include his beloved wife Shirley of 58 years; two sons, James and John (wife, Angie) and grandson, Raymond. He will be buried on Little Cranberry Island.

Mabel W. Clark, 92, who worked for 25 years as a program officer at the U.S. Agency for International Development and a predecessor agency before retiring in 1975, died March 25 at her home in Alexandria, Va. The cause was congestive heart failure, said a stepson-in-law, John Cordyack.

Mrs. Clark, an Alexandria resident, was born Mabel Wernicke in Centralia, Ill. She served in the Navy Waves during World War II and retired from the Navy Reserve in 1981 with the rank of lieutenant commander. During her USAID career, she worked in Washington, Southeast Asia and East Africa. She sat on the Central Union Mission’s board of directors and was a trustee and deacon at Western Presbyterian Church in Washington.