David Reimer ’84

Major: History, with a minor in economics

Now: U.S. Foreign Service Officer and Economic Counselor at the U.S. Embassy, Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

What are the most challenging and enjoyable aspects of your job?

Working and living overseas is both the most enjoyable and the most challenging aspect of my job. So far I have been posted to Belize, Germany, Washington, D.C., Italy and Haiti.

How has your Goshen College experience shaped and prepared you for what you are doing now?

The SST experience was one of the most positive aspects of my time at Goshen College. In fact, the State Department sent me to Belize as my first overseas post based on my previous SST experience there. I had a number of outstanding professors who shaped my academic experience at Goshen College and inspired and encouraged me to further my international studies.

What are your vocation and life goals?

I enjoy my work and hope to continue on my current career path with the State Department.

How has Goshen’s motto, “Culture for Service,” impacted the way you choose to live and pursue your vocational calling?

Although being a Foreign Service officer is perhaps not what the motto, “Culture for Service” had in mind, we are trying to make the world a better place. In my job I am working to promote economic development, poverty alleviation and mutually beneficial economic ties between foreign countries and the United States. My experiences at Goshen College – on SST and in the classroom – went a long way toward shaping who I am today and putting me on this career path.

After Goshen College, I went to the University of Pittsburgh for a master’s degree in public and international affairs. Upon graduation I got a job in international affairs for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. I enjoyed the international work and traveling overseas, but I thought that I would like to live overseas for longer periods of time. So, I took and passed the foreign service exam and joined the State Department, and here I am.