Ambassador Perry's Speech

Welcome Dinner for Embassy Newcomers

Ladies and gentlemen, good evening.

I’d like to thank you for joining us tonight to welcome the new members of our Embassy team.  On this important and solemn day commemorating those who lost their lives on September 11, 2001, and who represented 80 countries, we are reminded of the deep responsibility willingly taken on by those who volunteer their talents in the arena of public service no matter the challenges they face.

Thus, as I approach the end of my first year here, I have been so pleased to see what a close-knit group of officers and national staff we have.  Cooperation among sections and agencies has increased the scope and impact of all our efforts, and you should all take pride in that.

Sierra Leone is a country with tremendous opportunity for progress and growth.  Its natural resources and, most importantly, its people have shown amazing resilience in their struggle to move from conflict to post-conflict and, now toward reconstruction.  Likewise, I think we as an Embassy have great opportunities for professional and personal growth.  Though our team is small in number, our programs and projects have the potential to improve the lives of the people of Sierra Leone.  Working as a team and working with our local partners, I am confident we can reach our goals.

Now, I’d like to take a moment to recognize individually our new team members.  I would ask each of them to join me at the podium as I call their names.

Becky Cheney, the Deputy Chief of Mission’s Office Management Specialist, joined us from a career in Texas as a real estate agent, and has joined our front office with a positive and professional attitude.

Jeff Brock, who joins us for only a short period of time as Facilities Manager, is based in Washington and uses his invaluable expertise to help Posts like ours through what would otherwise be terrible staffing gaps.

Joachim Van Brandt, Embassy Freetown’s first Vice-Consul in many years, seems like a returning veteran because of the months he spent as Freetown’s Special Projects Coordinator, but is in fact a first tour officer who comes from a career as a music teacher. 
Daren James, our Defense Attaché Operations Coordinator, has vast overseas experience, but joins us most recently from Shaw Air Force Base in South Carolina.

Trevon Beale, who has been helping us out in the Management Section, joins us for his first overseas experience and his first professional experience.  We are so happy to have such an eager young man here.

Bill Douglass joins us for his first overseas assignment as the Consular Chief, but brings a wealth of experience from years of government service as a media specialist as well as a career as an educator in the United States, Mexico and Taiwan.

Marvin Green, who is new to the Foreign Service and new to our Information Resource Management Section, comes from the educational field as well; he worked in Department of Defense schools in several countries.

Laura Kustaborder, our Foreign Service Health Practitioner who arrived only last week, joins us from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow.  She and I share fond memories of Micronesia, where she worked for several years before joining the Foreign Service.

 Finally, I’d like to introduce Glenn Fedzer, our Deputy Chief of Mission, who joins us most recently from Mali, but has a distinguished history of service around the African continent, the Middle East and Central America.  Having jumped right into a month as Chargé d’Affaires, he has already shown us his leadership capabilities and I look forward to working with him for the next two years.

Please, join me in welcoming these fine ladies and gentlemen to Freetown, and let’s all help to integrate them into our team.
Thank you all very much and please enjoy the evening.