The Foreign Service Journal, January 2010

D uring two terms as AFSA presi- dent, John Naland presided at four annual ceremonies inscrib- ing the names of fallen career Foreign Service members on the AFSA Memo- rial Plaques in the C Street Lobby of the Harry S Truman Building. Now serving as the Provincial Recon- structionTeam leader in Basra, Iraq,Na- land organized a ceremony this past October to honor sevenU.S.-citizen con- tract employees who died in heroic or other inspirational circumstances while working for the Department of State in Basra. Six of those named on the plaque were former members of the military or police who were working as contractors for either Triple Canopy or Dynecorp: Ronald Hyatt, Robert McCoy, Robert Pole, Ryan Brandt Young, Roland C. Barvels and Richard T. Hickman. These menwere killed in two separate roadside bomb attacks in 2005 and 2006. The seventh name is that of an Information Management Officer, Julio Garcia, who was killed in a rocket attack in 2006. The highlight of the ceremonywas the unveiling of a privately-funded bronze memorial plaque to commemorate their service and sacrifice. The plaque bears an inscription quoting Abraham Lincoln: “I do the very best that I knowhow,the very best I can, and I mean to keep on doing so until the end.” ❏ J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 0 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 41 A F S A N E W S V.P. VOICE: FCS ■ BY KEITH CURTIS Resources, Resources, Resources HONORING FALLEN COLLEAGUES Former AFSA President Organizes Plaque Ceremony in Basra O n Sat., Nov. 7, your AFSA Governing Board put in a full day of pro bono work at a special strategy meeting. I was impressed by both the wide range of issues that the board deals with and the deep experience, knowledge and passion that board members brought to the discussion. In fact, passions ran so high that the best we could manage after a day of work was to narrow down our list of priorities to just short of a dozen — and even that included an inter- nal management category with another five priorities. The good news is that the board cares about your issues and did not want to dismiss any that are im- portant to the membership. The bad news is that, despite a real desire to identify concrete “deliverables” for each priority, we may have spread ourselves too thin. The priorities that FCS identified were no surprise: 1) resources, 2) re- sources and 3) resources. Other im- portant issues are full implementation of locality pay, senior pay, the seven- year rule and the creation of a WAE program at Commerce. But the sine qua non remains the fiscal health of the Foreign Commercial Service. At the board retreat, we stressed the need for AFSA to focus its legislative and public affairs capabilities on strengthening FCS (as well as the Foreign Agricul- tural Service and the International Broadcasting Bureau). We had a very positive reception to his position. A number of our State colleagues voiced the importance of supporting us in this time of need. This was all very heartening, as it coin- cided with a strong effort that our District Export Council friends had put in ear- lier that same week on the Hill, when some 100 members in town for the DEC’s annual conference pressed legislators for more FCS resources. Everyone seems to be doing his or her part to help. How about you? Sup- porting these multiple priorities does not come without cost. At the last board meeting we voted down an attempt to raise the annual membership dues. Yet I sin- cerely believe that with the substantial value AFSA has returned to its membership, the time is right to ask more from you. The locality pay increase alone will put an additional $999, on average, into the typical member’s pocket annually. Now is the time to consider giving more to AFSA. The CFC account for the Fund for American Diplomacy is 10646; to donate to that fund, please visit us on theWeb at www.afsa.org/CFCFAD.cfm. Or you can make a donation to the Leg- islative Action Fund at www.afsa.org/lafform.cfm. When you do give a little extra, I would appreciate it if you would let me know with a follow-up e-mail to Keith. Curtis@mail.doc.gov, so that I can make a point of it as we continue to push for resources. Thanks for your support. ❏ Left: PRT Leader John Naland speaks at Basra plaque dedication ceremony, October 2009. Basra Memorial Plaque, right. Everyone seems to be doing his or her part to help. How about you? Supporting these multiple priorities does not come without cost.