Ben East Books

Profile: Parker Borg

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Ben East
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Distinguished Careers in U.S. Diplomacy

Over the next several months I’ll share sketches of those American diplomats to be featured in Profiles in Service: Peace Corps Roots in American Diplomacy (Arlington Hall Press, 2026).

Every Tuesday will feature a new sketch; later in the week I’ll share a related moment linking Peace Corps service to later diplomatic efforts, some simple, some strange, some profound.

When he arrived in Camarines Norte as part of Philippines I, Parker Borg knew nothing about soccer. Asked to coach the local boys team, Borg found the instruction he needed in a book at the library and led the team to the local championship.

Borg wields carving knife at the end of Peace Corps training in 1961; to his right is Brenda Brown, future US Ambassador Brenda Brown Schoonover; at center directly behind them is a third eventual State Department hand, Richard Dertadian.

Less than two decades later he would become the first Returned Peace Corps Volunteer to be named U.S. Ambassador. He presented his credentials to Malian president Moussa Traoré in 1981 and served as chief of mission until 1984.

More photos and history here.

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Comments

4 responses to “Profile: Parker Borg”

  1. pilchbo Avatar
    pilchbo

    I love the redesign of your blog. Interesting to get the profile. I would have liked just a *tiny* bit more about him.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    1. Ben East Avatar
      Ben East

      Alright, good to know, thanks! I’ll give more in the next one. Appreciate your design comments! -ben

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  2. Parker W Borg Avatar
    Parker W Borg

    Ben,

    Thanks for including me on this message. Good luck with the final product. I look forward to its publication.

    Parker

    Like

    Reply
    1. Ben East Avatar
      Ben East

      Thank you, Parker! Appreciate all your support and thoughtful contributions to the project. Hard to believe its three years to this point. Happy to finally bring it before a wider audience. -ben

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