From Dinwiddie to ambassador in Djibouti

McKenney native says role in African nation not 'sleepy assignment'

BY JUAN ANTONIO LIZAMA
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER

DINWIDDIE When Marguerita Ragsdale was named U.S. ambassador to the African nation of Djibouti, she knew she'd be responsible for conveying the tiny country's interests to Washington.

But the new job offered a few surprises.

"I thought it was going to be a sleepy assignment," Ragsdale said. "Djibouti is small, I was thinking."

As it turned out, she said, "it wasn't a sleepy assignment, primarily because of our military presence."

A McKenney native and 1966 graduate of the old Southside High School, Ragsdale now lives in Djibouti, a country in northeastern Africa about the size of Massachusetts. The nation is home to a U.S. military base with 800 to 1,200 troops.

She spoke about her role during a recent visit to her hometown of McKenney in Dinwiddie County.

Ragsdale, 56, oversees operation of the U.S. embassy and security of its staff, which consists of 18 Americans, 150 locals and others from neighboring countries.

That means daily meetings with employees, industrial leaders and government officials.

Travels in armored vehicle

Ragsdale said she travels in an armored vehicle to ceremonial events such as private business openings or the launching of a small public library, projects that are typically $2,000 to $3,000 and financed through her office.

She sips tea and dines with local or foreign dignitaries while listening to their concerns and advancing U.S. government policies. She dismisses rumors and clarifies information to the government in Washington about developments in Djibouti.

Ragsdale has worked most of her life in foreign service but maintains close ties to McKenney. Her father, Vernon Ragsdale, owns a 90-acre farm in the rural town with a stated population of 472. Her mother is deceased.

Coming home is like vacation, Ragsdale said.

She grew up on her father's farm in a family of five girls. There she learned the value of hard work and education from her parents, she said.

"I learned to drive a tractor at 8 years old," Ragsdale said. "That's because we didn't have any brothers."

Vernon Ragsdale, who celebrates his 90th birthday this month, doesn't seem to mind that he had no boys to help him in the farm.

"You can't miss something you never had," he said. "I am proud of my girls."

Although the children learned to work hard, life was more than chores. Learning was a high priority.

"They were not educated themselves," she said of her parents.

Ragsdale graduated from American University in 1970 with a degree in journalism. She interned at United Press International but decided reporting wasn't her passion, she said.

"I wanted to learn more about the world," she said.

She went back to school and received a master's degree and doctorate in foreign affairs, with a concentration on the Middle East, from the University of Virginia. At the insistence of friends and family, she worked toward a law degree from Columbia University in New York.

Ragsdale has worked in various jobs for the U.S. government: as consul in Kuwait City, deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in Doha, Qatar, and deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in Khartoum, Sudan.

January swearing-in

She received news of her nomination as ambassador to Djibouti while working in Khartoum, she said.

Ragsdale was sworn in as ambassador for a two-year term in January. She oversees $27 million in U.S. aid, given three years starting in 2003. The money is being used for improving education and health care, she said.

In health care, there is a need to increase awareness about HIV and encourage the use of condoms, she said. HIV testing is limited in Djibouti. The country has about 37,000 people infected with HIV, according to the World Fact Book.

The United States also provides military training and helps Djibouti improve its defense against terrorism, Ragsdale said. As ambassador, she does not dictate what Djibouti's government does. She and her staff offer assistance, she said.

Djiboutians are warm, open-minded, proud and enterprising people who learn French in school, Arabic through religious education - Ragsdale is fluent in both - and Somali and Afar dialects at home, Ragsdale said.

"They do not strike me as people who would easily succumb to extreme ideas," she said. "They're far beyond that."

But Djibouti's borders make the country vulnerable to terrorists, especially from neighboring Somalia, Ragsdale said.

The economic and military-training aid from the United States is crucial in fighting terrorism, Ragsdale said.

A celebrity

"We have a view that if the people have a stake in their own government and in their own way of life, they're not going to support radical ideas and extremists," she said.

Her mission will be complete in 2006.

Ragsdale said whenever she retires, she will return to McKenney, where she is a celebrity. The McKenney Town Council recently renamed part of Bolling Road in honor of Ragsdale's accomplishments, said McKenney Vice Mayor Melvin B. Alsbrooks.

"She has distinguished herself," he said.

The Dinwiddie Board of Supervisors issued a resolution in April recognizing Ragsdale's success.

Ragsdale said that no matter how far diplomatic work takes her, she'll always be rooted in McKenney.

"This is home for me."

Contact Juan Antonio Lizama at (804) 524-9724 or jlizama@timesdispatch.com