Dear AAFSW Community,

October started with a great feat: AAFSW’s largest fundraiser, the Art & BookFair (ABF), was a smashing success! Benefiting from a large venue, the George C. Marshall Center, our many volunteers – thank you to all of you! – were able to stage the ABF books, stamps, coins, and treasures with the care and display of a museum. As a result, we considerably increased our gross sales compared to last year. 

Alas, the end of October arrived with cloudier skies. Following our assistance with the March evacuations from the Middle East, the AAFSW Evacuation Support Network (ESN) geared up once again to assist evacuees arriving from the Middle East in the final days of month. Working both online and on the ground, more than 20 volunteers greeted nearly 200 individuals across eight flights, offering comfort, snacks, coloring books, and pet treats. Because recently relocated families had not yet received their household goods (HHE), AAFSW also organized a drive for winter clothes and other needed items such as cribs, playpens, and toys. We have organized a special community coffee on November 4 to distribute these items to our colleagues and friends. We hold these families close in our hearts, recognizing the extraordinary strength it takes to face such overwhelming uncertainty.

Between these emotional events, we invited Body Harmony to provide chair massages during our Community Coffee; and I was delighted to see such a high turnout at our Happy Hour at Santé, where I even reconnected with a friend I met during a medevac in London during my very first tour overseas 18 years ago!

I would be remiss not to mention our long-awaited award ceremony. Due to the government shutdown in 2025, the original ceremony was canceled. By mutual agreement, AAFSW and DACOR organized their joint 2025–2026 Award Ceremony on October 27 to recognize community members for exceptional volunteer service that strengthens our communities. We are deeply grateful to DACOR for hosting the event in the magnificent and historic Bacon House, and to DACOR President Ambassador Tom Shannon for opening the ceremony with a warm speech. Among the Secretary of State Award for Outstanding Volunteerism Abroad (SOSA) winners announced in 2025, three were able to attend: Jennifer Sturgeon, Sam Bunch, and Wiley Skaret. We thank their respective Bureaus EUR, AF, and WHA for their generous participation.

Kat Ravetz, the 2026 winner of the AAFSW Champions of Career Enhancement for Eligible Family Members Award (CCE-EFM), was joined by 2025 co-winner David Willey and a representative for co-winner Esperanza Jones-Salazar. The presentation of the 2025 Lesley Dorman Award to Edward Pierce was followed by the 2026 Dorman Award, presented posthumously to Moises Mendoza. His husband, mother, father, and sister were present to honor his memory in this moving tribute.

The Eleanor Dodson Tragen Award, sponsored and administered by DACOR, recognized Catherine Pierce (2025) and Lara Center (2026). Both were invited to chat with Irv Tragen, who established and endows the award in memory of his late wife, a tradition he has maintained since 2006. At 104 years old, Irv captivated them with his remarkable energy and forward-looking vision, revealing that he is currently working on no fewer than three books.

Kind regards,

Catherine Pierce

President, Associates of the American Foreign Service Worldwide (AAFSW)

catherine.pierce@aafsw.org