RICHARD HOLDEN CURTISS
Retired Foreign Service officer and executive editor of the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs died on January 31, 2013 in Kensington, MD. Richard Curtiss was born in 1927 and earned a degree in journalism at the University of Southern California. After Army service in Berlin he worked with United Press International (UPI). He joined the U.S. Foreign Service in 1951, and served in Indonesia, Germany, Turkey, Lebanon, (on three separate assignments), Iraq, Syria, and Greece. He was deeply proud of his work with Voice of America's Arabic Service from 1970-1973. He retired in 1980 as the Chief Inspector of the United States Information Agency (USIA). During his U.S. government career he received the USIA's Superior Honor award for his service as the U.S. Embassy's Public Affairs Officer (PAO) in Lebanon during that nation's civil war and the Edward R. Murrow Award for Excellence in Public Diplomacy, USIA's highest professional recognition, in 1974. In 1982, Ambassador Andrew Killgore, Ambassador Edward Henderson and Curtiss co-founded the American Educational Trust, a non-partisan, non-profit foundation, which publishes the award-winning Washington Report on Middle East Affairs magazine.
He is survived by his beloved wife of 62 years Donna B. Curtiss; daughter Darcy Sreebny and husband Dan; son Andrew Curtiss and wife Krista; daughter Delinda Hanley; and six grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his son Denny. A memorial service will be held at a later date.
Published in The Washington Post on February 3, 2013
