Vincentian To Be US Ambassador

Betty E. King, Nominee for Representative of the United States to the Office of the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva, with the rank of Ambassador‚

Betty E. King served as the United States Representative to the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations under Presidents Bill Clinton and George W Bush. In that capacity, Ms. King worked on human rights, children, development, aging and population issues. She was the principal U.S. negotiator on the Millennium Development Goals.

Ms. King has an extensive background in philanthropy, having served as the Vice President of the Annie E. Casey Foundation in Baltimore, Maryland, the Senior Advisor to the CEO of the California Endowment in Los Angeles, CA and an advisor to the Atlantic Philanthropies in New York. She was the Deputy Commissioner of Mental Health in the District of Columbia, the Executive Director of the Southwest Society on Aging, the Director of the Arkansas Department on Aging and an Assistant Professor at the University of Arkansas. She currently serves on the boards of Refugees International, the United Nations Association of the United States, Phoenix House, and on the Advisory Board of the Annenberg School of Public Diplomacy. Ms. King earned a Bachelor of Arts degree at the University of Windsor, Ontario, Canada, a Masters degree at the State University of New York at Stony Brook and was a National Humanities Fellow at Harvard University.

UNA-USA Statement on the Nomination of Betty E. King as US Ambassador to the UN and International Organizations in Geneva

Oct. 23, 2009 -- Ambassador Thomas J. Miller, president of the United Nations Association of the USA, has issued the following statement on the nomination of Betty E. King as US representative to the United Nations and other international organizations located in Geneva, Switzerland.

The Board of Directors and members of the United Nations Association of the USA warmly congratulate Ambassador Betty E. King upon her nomination as United States Representative to the Office of the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva, Switzerland, with the rank of Ambassador.

UNA-USA president Thomas J. Miller commended President Barack Obama for his choice of Betty King in this important post, noting that Ambassador King has served with distinction as US Representative to the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations under both Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. “Betty King brings considerable experience and know-how to this job,” he said. “Betty’s life work has focused on addressing the kinds of issues that the United Nations and international organizations deal with everyday—advancing human rights, promoting development, and building sustainable communities--all with the goal of building a more peaceful world.”

Ambassador Miller added, “On behalf of the entire UNA-USA family, I want to express our sincere appreciation to Ambassador King for her service on the Board of Directors over these past several years. We are proud that a member of our Board has been nominated to represent the United States in Geneva where so many key United Nations offices and agencies are located. At the same time, of course, we will very much miss Betty’s active participation and wise counsel that has informed so much of our work. We join together today in wishing her success in this new endeavor, and look forward to working with her to strengthen United States participation in the work of the United Nations and its specialized agencies.”

Ambassador King is the sister of Vincentians Ken, Keith and Ann Boyea.