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AAFSW Board Members
President - Celine Ford
Celine Ford took on the role of President of the Associates of the American Foreign Service Worldwide (AAFSW) in September 2022. She pioneered the Spouses in Transition Chair in 2018, a role she continues to lead with dedication. As Members of Household (MoHs), Celine and her two daughters have lived in diverse locations including Algeria, the Republic of Seychelles, Panama, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Belgium, Colombia, and Mexico.
Celine provides reports and research services for practitioners in international development, humanitarian assistance, and a leading health institute. Her passion for supporting the American foreign affairs community is evident in her commitment to providing resources and support to help them navigate their careers and personal lives. She is dedicated to fostering inclusiveness and collaboration within the organization.
Celine holds a Master's of Arts in Law, Business Management, and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) from The Gustave Eiffel School of Management (UPEC) in Paris, France. Her enduring interest in humanitarian diplomacy and business and human rights led her to complete a Certificate of Advanced Studies (CAS), from the Faculty of Economic and Social Science (HEC) in Geneva, Switzerland.
First Vice President - Catherine Pierce
Catherine has served as the AAFSW’s EFM Employment Committee Chair since 2016 and as first vice-president since 2023. In 2018, she received AAFSW’s Lesley Dorman Award for “outstanding service in all aspects of the organization”. She oversees the Champions of Career Enhancement for EFMs (CCE-EFM) Award with committee members and advocates for EFM employment matters.
Catherine joined U.S. Embassy Montevideo, Uruguay, in the Economic section in November 2023 – a seventh overseas tour. Previously, she served as the first Community Liaison Office (CLO) Coordinator in three years at U.S. Embassy Baghdad, Iraq, from July 2022, taking care of the well-being and morale of a mission of about 2,600 people from 40 nationalities.
Prior to her tour in Baghdad, she was an Economic Professional Associate at U.S. Embassy Beijing, China for four years. She has also served in Washington, D.C.; Budapest, Islamabad, Mexico City, and Dakar. Before the Foreign Service, Catherine was the Director of Marketing and Communication for Europe, Middle East and Africa for international Information Technology companies based in Paris, France, her native city. Catherine speaks French and Spanish. She holds a post-master’s degree in management of international Projects, a Master in economics and a Master in English from La Sorbonne University, Paris, France.
Second Vice President
Board Secretary - We are currently recruiting a board secretary! Please send your motivation letter via our contact form.
Treasurer - Pat Kennedy
Ambassador Patrick F. Kennedy became AAFSW’s treasurer in 2020. He served as Under Secretary for Management (M) 2007- 2017. Prior to assuming that position, he was Director of the State Department’s Office of Management Policy, Rightsizing, and Innovation. He had previously served as the Deputy Director of National Intelligence for Management for two years. Prior to that position, he was the U.S. Representative to the United Nations for Management and Reform with the Rank of Ambassador. During that time, he also served as the U.S. Representative to the United Nations for Management and Reform, and then the Chief of Staff of the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq.
Pat is a Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration, a member of the American Academy of Diplomacy, and a Sage at the Partnership for Public Service.
Assistant Treasurer - Carol Sparhawk
Washington is my home now and I’m very fortunate to have completed an assignment here at FSI, in the School of Applied Information Technology. I’ve specialized in MS Sharepoint, web conferencing and Microsoft Office. Before that, I lived overseas as a child in Istanbul, Turkey; as an adult in Moscow and Tel Aviv; and with the Foreign Service in Seoul, Korea and in Washington, D.C. My degrees are in French and theoretical linguistics. I enjoy entertaining, music in many forms, the arts, walking and adventure: hence the years overseas! I’m looking forward to learning about the role of AAFSW Assistant Treasurer and sharing experiences with all of you.
Information Management Resources - Thorne "Edward" Pierce
Edward has been a member of AAFSW since he joined State in 2006, and became the Information Management Resources (IRM) committee chair in 2023. He is directing the migration of communications to the powerful Google Workspace collaborative platform and establishing an Association Management Systems (AMS) to streamline membership, content, and event management.
Edward is a Diplomatic Security Engineering Officer currently serving in Montevideo as the Chief of the Engineering Security Center (ESC) responsible for technical security across South America. Since joining State in 2006, he has served in Dakar, Mexico City, Islamabad, Budapest, Beijing, Baghdad, and as a Career Development Officer (CDO). Formerly in the private sector, he lived 15 years in France developing management strategies for U.S. companies expanding into European markets. A native of Arizona, he holds an MBA in International Business from Thunderbird, a BS in Mechanical Engineering, and a BA in Spanish from the University of Arizona.
EFM Employment - Jenny Kocher, Catherine Pierce
Professionally, Jenny has experience working as a Consular Associate in Beijing, Lima, and Guangzhou. In 2019, while her family was posted in Washington, D.C., she earned her real estate license and worked as a property manager, overseeing FSOs' homes while they were overseas. This experience paved the way for her current role as an Expanded Professional Associate with the GSO office in Kuwait.
Originally from Bogotá, Colombia, Jenny holds a bachelor’s degree in Management with a minor in Hospitality. She speaks Spanish, Chinese, and Hindi, and is currently learning Arabic. In her spare time, Jenny loves volunteering and has served on multiple NGO boards. In Kuwait, she is active in the Employees Association board and various networking groups.
Embracing Foreign Service life has made her flexible, adaptable, and creative, allowing her to fully enjoy each new location and immerse herself in its diverse cultures.
Programs - Sheila Switzer
Sheila Switzer has been the Program Chair of the Associates of the American Foreign Service Worldwide (AAFSW) since 1998. She is also AAFSW’s Foreign-Born Spouses State Liaison (Spouses of American Foreign Service Officers, State Department) and Founder and Chair of the AAFSW Family Crisis Fund. Sheila also was chair of the Foreign Born Spouses Group for several years as well as Chair of the Women in Transition.
Ms. Switzer was a diplomatic spouse for 28+ years, during which time she and her family served in posts throughout Europe and Latin America. She is an international leader and diplomatic liaison who has dedicated her life to promoting cross-cultural understanding, appreciation, and respect between people around the world.
Throughout her career, she has been a liaison between various embassies and has organized impactful programs that are of international, political, cultural, and local interest most notably the Ambassador Speaker Series and cultural events at the U.S. Department of State, embassies, Library of Congress, museums, and other special venues. She has also taught Etiquette and Protocol courses at FSI for several years as well as Georgetown University, and other Institutions in Europe and Latin America.
Sheila is also AAFSW's AAFSW Foreign Born Spouses State Liaison and the founder and Chair of the AAFSW Family Crisis Fund.
Spouses in Transition - Celine Ford
Art & BookFair - Anne Kauzlarich
During 32 years as an EFM in the Foreign Service, Anne served as a CLO Coordinator, newsletter editor, post Commercial Officer, in numerous International Women’s Clubs, created two NGOs, and received the Avis Bohlen Award.
Anne was an Executive Assistant at DACOR Bacon House dealing with maintenance, a major renovation project, guest rooms, and special events. Later, she was elected to the Board of Governors/Trustees where she served two terms. She served on the Executive Committee and continues on the House and Garden Committee. Anne is a longtime AAFSW member having served as President, Art& BookFair Treasurer, and Art & BookFair Chair. During her presidency, Anne testified before Congress on the future of the Foreign Service, served on the committee that transformed Around the World in a Lifetime (AWAL) into the Foreign Service Youth Foundation (FSYF). She was principal drafter for the AAFSW Secretary of State’s Award (SOSA) for outstanding service abroad and helped draft the Leslie Dorman Award, given to individuals for sustained outstanding service to the AAFSW. Anne presented Leslie with the first award.
Foreign Born Spouses Group - Jenny Kocher, Victoria Olsa
Victoria Olsa is an experienced EFM with over 20 years of service across six international posts, including Nairobi, Kenya; Podgorica, Montenegro; Brasilia, Brazil; Riga, Latvia; Tashkent, Uzbekistan; and Sao Paulo, Brazil.
During her time at these posts, she held various roles, including Community Liaison Officer, Administrative Assistant, and Consular Associate/Assistant. She is deeply committed to supporting fellow EFMs/MOHs through employment, education, cultural engagement, and social advocacy.
Victoria’s dedication to making a difference is reflected in her accomplishments, including receiving an award for founding the first International School in Montenegro in January 2005. In 2015, she was honored with the J. Kirby Simon Foreign Service Trust award while volunteering at a local soup kitchen. She used the funds to launch an initiative to purchase a new commercial stove, enhancing the kitchen's daily operations.
For the past two years, Victoria has supported Foreign Born EFMs and MOHs by networking and organizing monthly Happy Hours for AAFSW, held every fourth week at various venues in the DMV area.
Originally from Russia, Victoria speaks Russian, Serbian, and Portuguese. She holds degrees in IT and Digital Marketing.
Forum - Ann la Porta
Ann has been a member of AAFSW since 1978. She is the co-liaison to the American Foreign Service Association (AFSA) and closely follows the issues that involve families. Over the years she has worked with the Forum Committee on projects such as mental health benefits for family members, especially those impacted by crisis situations. More recently, she worked on EFM employment issues, and was a part of the committee for the Special Needs Education Allowance (SNEA) reform. She is a regular contributor to AAFSW’s Livelines.
Ann co-founded the Evacuee Support Network in 1984, and remains the lead contact person for departures and evacuations. She is a lawyer by trade, who focused on child welfare issues while posted to DC. She worked with Maori land rights issues in New Zealand, and a Rule of Law project in Mongolia. With her husband and her two children, she has been posted to Indonesia, Sumatra, Malaysia, Turkey, New Zealand, Mongolia, and Italy.
She holds a BA in French from Denison University and a law degree from George Washington University. She also has completed courses at the law faculty in Kuala Lumpur and is admitted to the Bar in Wellington. When in Washington, she has worked for the Counsel of Child Abuse and Neglect, DC Superior Court, AARP Legal Counsel for the Elderly, and the Volunteer Law Project. She enjoys spending time with her four grandchildren.
SOSA - Moises Mendoza, Jose Dorce
Moises joined the AAFSW Board in 2022 and is responsible for all aspects of the SOSA. This prestigious award recognizes outstanding volunteer service by those under Chief of Mission authority at U.S. diplomatic and consular installations overseas.
A career Foreign Service Officer, Moises is a past SOSA winner himself, having received the award in 2020 for his work in Matamoros, Mexico. He was also the 2019 winner of the W. Averell Harriman Award for constructive dissent by an entry-level Foreign Service Officer. In addition to Matamoros, Moises has served in Port-au-Prince, Haiti as a political officer, in Washington, D.C. as a country desk officer and as watch officer in the State Department’s Operations Center. He is currently a special assistant in the Executive Office of the U.S. Mission to the United Nations, in New York.
Moises holds master’s degrees from Columbia University and the Hertie School of Governance and a bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University.
Jose Dorce is an outreach and public relations expert in Washington, D.C. He specializes in navigating the complex business, government, think tank, media and public sectors. He integrates public relations, diplomacy, and policy planning that creates impactful cross-sectoral results.
To support the Biden-Harris Executive Order 13985, Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government, Dorce represented a global network of 25 + civil society organizations working for a more just racial world, at the margins of the 2022 IX Summit of the America in Los Angeles, CA.
In 2015 he received the prestigious U.S. Secretary of State for Outstanding Volunteering Abroad (SOSA) Award. He now serves as a Co-Chair of the SOSA Award Committee and as Corporate Relations VP for Prospanica, Washington, DC, chapter.
Evacuee Support Network
Housing - Martine Aya Nakpil
Membership - Valentyna Ryan
Valentyna Ryan is an EFM and a foreign born spouse. Originally from Ukraine, she became a part of the Foreign Service community in 2012. Throughout this time she accompanied her husband on several overseas and domestic assignments, and "stayed behind" for one unaccompanied tour. She loves creating meaningful connections with people through her work, and is a big proponent of building communities and support networks. This love brought her to AAFSW where she worked as an office manager and was elected as a Membership chair in 2024. Additionally, Valentyna worked for the U.S. Government, nonprofits, businesses, and was a self-employed entrepreneur. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Relationships and a Master’s in Country Studies.
Public Relations - Dr. Joanna Athanasopoulos Owen
Dr. Joanna Athanasopoulos Owen has been an FS EFM since 2001, and served as AAFSW President 2016- 2020. She is currently the AAFSW Fun for Funds Fundraising Events Chair, as well as the AAFSW Public Relations and Publicity Chair.
During her postings abroad as an EFM, Dr. Owen volunteered her expertise as a trained geophysicist and environmental management consultant and provided unique hands-on experiences and education to many of the U.S. missions’ international students and their families in Argentina, Sri Lanka, and Venezuela. While serving as AAFSW President, Joanna advocated tirelessly for family member rights, benefits, and services. Additionally, inspired by her multi-year academic career, in January 2018, Joanna conceived and implemented AAFSW’s “Twice Exceptional” Merit Scholarship, designed to reward academic excellence annually to two students who have overcome adversity due to special needs. Joanna was the recipient of the Eleanor Dodson Tragen Award in 2020 for her numerous efforts to champion the needs of EFMs.