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Oral history interview with Robert P. DeVecchi, 2006.

Creator: DeVecchi, Robert P., 1930-
Project: Individual interviews oral history collection.
(see all project interviews)
Phys. Desc. :transcript 448 pages sound recordings 4 audiocassettes. sound recordings 5 DAT tapes sound recordings: 11 sound recordings (digital 4 3/4 in.)
Location: Columbia Center for Oral History
Full CLIO record >>

Biographical Note

President Emeritus, International Rescue Committee.

Scope and Contents

Born October 6, 1930, New York City; family background; childhood in New York City, 1940 move to Bucks County, Pennsylvania, exposure to artistic, diplomatic and expatriate circles, development of leadership skills, formative trips abroad to Europe in immediate post-World War II years; education: High School Diploma, Collegiate School, 1948, B.A. Cultural History of Western Understanding, Yale University, 1952, M.B.A. Harvard University, 1956; military service: Diploma and Supply Officer Commission, Air Force Reserve Officers Training Corps, Washington D.C. and France, 1952-1954; career: Foreign Service Officer, United States Department of State, Office of United Nations Political Affairs, Washington D.C., 1957-8, NATO Headquarters, Paris, 1958-1962, American Embassy, Warsaw, Poland, 1962-5, Rome, Italy, 1965-7; Founding Partner, Taylor Travel Service, Paris, 1967-9; European Director, National Industrial Conference Board, 1969-2; Director of Inner Cities Program and New York Representative, Save the Children Federation, 1972-5; Coordinator of Indochinese Refugee Resettlement Program, International Rescue Committee (IRC), New York, NY, 1975-1980, Program Director, IRC, 1980-1985, Executive Director, IRC, 1985-1993, President and Chief Executive Officer, IRC, 1993-1997, President Emeritus, IRC, 1997-present; IRC Relief Operations and Programs: Thailand, Cambodia, Burma, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Somalia, Sudan, Rwanda, Congo, Iraq, El Salvador, Bosnia, and Kosovo; professional reflections: IRC origins and mission, legacy of Varian M. Fry, strong relationships with IRC founding members, IRC structural reorganization, relations with Board of Directors and Overseers, changing position of non-profit agencies, redefinition of word "refugee," post-conflict development work, Freedom Award dinners; retirement: Adjunct Senior Fellow for Refugees and the Displaced, Council on Foreign Relations, New York, NY, 1997-present, writing, publishing and speaking on refugee issues; awards: Peacemeakers Award, Episcopal Diocese of Washington D.C.; Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize, 1997; Freedom Award, IRC, 1997; Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters, Yale University, 2005; personal reflections: relationships with family and friends, impressions of New York City society, major public figures and cultural icons, World War II and European reconstruction, Cold-War and post-Cold War worlds, life in communist Poland and relations with Polish dissident movement, 1972-3 Israeli kibbutz experience, Soviet and American military operations of Afghanistan, generational dedication to public service work, impact of geopolitics and government on civilians, devotion to humanitarian ventures and values.

Subjects

Access Conditions

Copyright by The Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York, 2007.

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