Thank you for your kind words. It was a privilege to honor Ambassador Garvelink’s remarkable life and work. His dedication and humanity left a lasting mark on so many. Please accept my deepest condolences to you and your family.
Ambassador Garvelink was one of my first bosses at USAID. He was such a kind and smart leader - I learned so much and know that he will be truly missed. My deepest condolences to his family and all those whose lives he touched.
Bill was always a great mentor, more than that, he became a friend. I remember when I first joined OFDA in 1996, Bill, then OFDA Deputy Director, was encouraging and affirming, telling me that it was better to make a decision, even if wrong, then to not act. Bill told me not to be awed by position and rank in government, that in our work field experience was as important. I had the privilege of serving on DARTs in Rwanda and Iran in which Bill was the DART Leader. Subsequently, we worked together on response issues in Eritrea, Ethiopia, Sudan, Congo, Kosovo, Albania, Asian Tsunami, Turkey earthquakes 1 and 2, among others. Bill was always open to new ideas to improve emergency response and was interested in creative thinking to do our work better. He had worked with Fred Cuny, Kate Farnsworth, Bob Gersony and Tim Knight in what I would call the ‘heady days’ of OFDA Humanitarian Assistance. Bill had a great memory and could tell great stories – always personable. I will really miss him.
Bill was my first boss in OFDA and later my colleague next door at IMC. There are many stores and events but the one that convinced me that OFDA was worth working for under his direction was in Nyala Darfur in 1994.
I was a senior US Public Health Service officer assigned to OFDA as a technical expert on the DART.
Bill came to visit us in Nyala and found out one of the non-OFDA USAID DART staff was treating local staff as servants, demanding special privileges and spending most of his time working on making his life more comfortable.
Bill got on the satellite phone, called the individual’s boss and told him he wanted the employee sent home immediately. Bill added that the boss better not send another employee with similar characteristics or Bill would make sure no one from his program would ever be assigned to a DART.
I thought I can work for this man.
Ill be have a whiskey in your honor tonight, Bill.
While this post will try to honor Ambassador Bill Garvelink with words, he was at heart, a man of action. From my earliest memories of Bill in Mogadishu 1992, he was always on the ground, being presented with countless humanitarian crisis and constantly asking “well, what are you going to do about it?” Here’s one of my favorite lessons in Garvelink Grit…
Having literally run for my life to evacuate Belet Weyne Somalia in April 1995, I hit Nairobi a few days later and found a single directive via fax from International Medical Corps HQ in Los Angeles, “Glad you made it out safely. See what you can learn about Burundi.” Spring, 1995 - the Rwanda Genocide was in the not-too-distant rear-view mirror and Burundi, the neighbor to the south, was heating up with political unrest and mass displacements happening daily.
The Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance was ready to step things up and I learned that Bill Garvelink would be visiting very soon. No surprise there… When I reached him in Washington, DC and went through my list of current crisis situations, population movements, emergency statistics (and asked how the Tigers were doing), he asked, “so what is IMC going to do about it?” He was soon on his way, and arriving together with Lauren Landis in Bujumbura, I never left his side for about a week. Despite travel restrictions we ventured south and east and identified where IMC could make a difference. OFDA support was soon on the way and the old Garvelink Grit stemmed yet another emerging crisis by making sure humanitarian actors and resources were in place.
Rinse and repeat for every major humanitarian crisis in the 90s.
Bill was one of the first people I met when I started with OFDA as a Program Assistant working in Operation Support. As Pete Bradford would say to him, “Sir, you are scholar and a gentleman.” Bill was. He was always very kind and insightful, never spoke down to me as many did at that time. I remember years later when I was in grad school, he came to do a seminar for my class in humanitarian assistance and at a dinner we all had he told me to keep trying and to do my best. Which I did. RIP Bill!
Ambassador Garvelink was a wonderful man. My Chief of Mission in Kinshasa, he championed the causes that mattered to the people of the DR Congo, such as food security. He did US diplomacy correctly. One highlight was Linda and Bill’s hosting of Dikembe Mutombo, the Congolese-American NBA star, while he was in town to open the hospital he built in honor of his mother. Bill and Linda were ever gracious and cared for the Embassy employees. I attribute some of that to the fact that they came out of the USAID family.
Bill was proud of the US, local,& contract staff at Embassy Kinshasa. They always made him look good! For me, it was an amazing experience. I especially liked the section bbqs we hosted the first year we were there.
Bill was truly one of a kind. I’ve known him since 2003, leading up to the invasion of Iraq. Over the years we worked together and eventually ended up being colleagues at IMC, and traveled a lot together, I came to deeply admire not only the professional and the humanitarian, but also the remarkable person he was. His humanity, great sense of humor, and the rebel in him shone through wherever he went. He was unapologetically himself and that was special! He will be deeply missed. My sincere condolences to you, @Linda Garvelink and this entire community!
Thank you for this lovely tribute. He loved his work! I am so proud of Bill and all your work.
Linda Garvelink
Dear Linda,
Thank you for your kind words. It was a privilege to honor Ambassador Garvelink’s remarkable life and work. His dedication and humanity left a lasting mark on so many. Please accept my deepest condolences to you and your family.
With respect,
The Last Mile with USAID
Ambassador Garvelink was one of my first bosses at USAID. He was such a kind and smart leader - I learned so much and know that he will be truly missed. My deepest condolences to his family and all those whose lives he touched.
Bill was always a great mentor, more than that, he became a friend. I remember when I first joined OFDA in 1996, Bill, then OFDA Deputy Director, was encouraging and affirming, telling me that it was better to make a decision, even if wrong, then to not act. Bill told me not to be awed by position and rank in government, that in our work field experience was as important. I had the privilege of serving on DARTs in Rwanda and Iran in which Bill was the DART Leader. Subsequently, we worked together on response issues in Eritrea, Ethiopia, Sudan, Congo, Kosovo, Albania, Asian Tsunami, Turkey earthquakes 1 and 2, among others. Bill was always open to new ideas to improve emergency response and was interested in creative thinking to do our work better. He had worked with Fred Cuny, Kate Farnsworth, Bob Gersony and Tim Knight in what I would call the ‘heady days’ of OFDA Humanitarian Assistance. Bill had a great memory and could tell great stories – always personable. I will really miss him.
Bill was my first boss in OFDA and later my colleague next door at IMC. There are many stores and events but the one that convinced me that OFDA was worth working for under his direction was in Nyala Darfur in 1994.
I was a senior US Public Health Service officer assigned to OFDA as a technical expert on the DART.
Bill came to visit us in Nyala and found out one of the non-OFDA USAID DART staff was treating local staff as servants, demanding special privileges and spending most of his time working on making his life more comfortable.
Bill got on the satellite phone, called the individual’s boss and told him he wanted the employee sent home immediately. Bill added that the boss better not send another employee with similar characteristics or Bill would make sure no one from his program would ever be assigned to a DART.
I thought I can work for this man.
Ill be have a whiskey in your honor tonight, Bill.
Adios Compadre
While this post will try to honor Ambassador Bill Garvelink with words, he was at heart, a man of action. From my earliest memories of Bill in Mogadishu 1992, he was always on the ground, being presented with countless humanitarian crisis and constantly asking “well, what are you going to do about it?” Here’s one of my favorite lessons in Garvelink Grit…
Having literally run for my life to evacuate Belet Weyne Somalia in April 1995, I hit Nairobi a few days later and found a single directive via fax from International Medical Corps HQ in Los Angeles, “Glad you made it out safely. See what you can learn about Burundi.” Spring, 1995 - the Rwanda Genocide was in the not-too-distant rear-view mirror and Burundi, the neighbor to the south, was heating up with political unrest and mass displacements happening daily.
The Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance was ready to step things up and I learned that Bill Garvelink would be visiting very soon. No surprise there… When I reached him in Washington, DC and went through my list of current crisis situations, population movements, emergency statistics (and asked how the Tigers were doing), he asked, “so what is IMC going to do about it?” He was soon on his way, and arriving together with Lauren Landis in Bujumbura, I never left his side for about a week. Despite travel restrictions we ventured south and east and identified where IMC could make a difference. OFDA support was soon on the way and the old Garvelink Grit stemmed yet another emerging crisis by making sure humanitarian actors and resources were in place.
Rinse and repeat for every major humanitarian crisis in the 90s.
The world will miss you Ambassador Garvelink.
Bill was one of the first people I met when I started with OFDA as a Program Assistant working in Operation Support. As Pete Bradford would say to him, “Sir, you are scholar and a gentleman.” Bill was. He was always very kind and insightful, never spoke down to me as many did at that time. I remember years later when I was in grad school, he came to do a seminar for my class in humanitarian assistance and at a dinner we all had he told me to keep trying and to do my best. Which I did. RIP Bill!
Ambassador Garvelink was a wonderful man. My Chief of Mission in Kinshasa, he championed the causes that mattered to the people of the DR Congo, such as food security. He did US diplomacy correctly. One highlight was Linda and Bill’s hosting of Dikembe Mutombo, the Congolese-American NBA star, while he was in town to open the hospital he built in honor of his mother. Bill and Linda were ever gracious and cared for the Embassy employees. I attribute some of that to the fact that they came out of the USAID family.
Bill was proud of the US, local,& contract staff at Embassy Kinshasa. They always made him look good! For me, it was an amazing experience. I especially liked the section bbqs we hosted the first year we were there.
Bill sounds like a remarkable man whose life touched so many. May he rest in peace. 💗
Bill was truly one of a kind. I’ve known him since 2003, leading up to the invasion of Iraq. Over the years we worked together and eventually ended up being colleagues at IMC, and traveled a lot together, I came to deeply admire not only the professional and the humanitarian, but also the remarkable person he was. His humanity, great sense of humor, and the rebel in him shone through wherever he went. He was unapologetically himself and that was special! He will be deeply missed. My sincere condolences to you, @Linda Garvelink and this entire community!