Anne Patricia Convery

November 2, 1947 — May 21, 2024

Kingston, Pennsylvania

Anne Patricia Convery, 76, of Kingston, PA passed away on May 21, 2024. Her loss is profoundly mourned by family and friends, both here in the U.S. and overseas.

Anne was born on November 2, 1947, to John and Helena Convery of Sugar Notch, PA. She was the eldest of four children and graduated from St. Ann's Academy and subsequently, Marywood University in 1969 with a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education/Social Sciences. She received a Master's in International Public Policy-Conflict Management from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in 2003. She was awarded Marywood University's Humanitarian Award in 1995 and the University's Presidential Medal in 2004.

After graduating from Marywood, Anne taught kindergarten and first grade in Montgomery County Public Schools in Maryland, and later joined the Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL) in Washington, D.C., to develop educational resource materials for Vietnamese asylum seekers after the fall of Saigon in 1975, as well as other Indochinese and Southeast Asian refugees arriving in the U.S. Still with CAL, Anne moved to Manila, Philippines and facilitated hundreds of instructors working at transition camps to better prepare thousands of refugees for smoother migration and assimilation.

In the mid 80s, Anne moved to Bangkok, Thailand to join the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) managing the rapidly expanding U.S. government Orderly Departure Program (ODP) processing office. Anne supervised hundreds of specialists in Thailand and Vietnam, coordinating closely with U.S., Thai, and Vietnam officials in challenging conditions.

Post-Asia, Anne accepted an appointment with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) as the Chief of Mission in Zagreb, Croatia. She was on the front lines helping refugees escape from violence and her actions saved countless lives.

Anne returned to the United States and joined the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) in 1995 where she worked for over 20 years with the Bureau for Europe and Eurasia as Croatia Desk Officer; the Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance as Disaster Response Team Leader; and the Bureau for Asia from which she retired in 2017 as the India Desk Officer. She was an instrumental voice in the formation of U.S. development and humanitarian policy working closely with colleagues from the Departments of State, Treasury, Defense as well as the National Security Council.

Anne is survived by her sister Suzie (Kevin Lapp), her nephew, Aidan, niece Helene, as well as many extended family members, friends and colleagues from around the world. She was predeceased by her parents, her brother Patrick, and her sister Mary.

Anne's warmth, generosity, laughter, and humanitarianism are irreplaceable, and she will be greatly missed by all who loved her. A memorial mass will be celebrated at Marian Chapel at Marywood University on June 5, 2024, 11:00AM. Interment will be private. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to either the Marywood University Scholarship Fund or the International Catholic Migration Commission.

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Memorial Service

Wednesday, June 5, 2024

11:00am - 12:00 pm (Eastern time)

Marian Chapel

O'Neill Circle, Dunmore, PA 18509

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