Ambassador Larry L. Palmer

Passed 04/22/2021

Obituary For Ambassador Larry L. Palmer

The Honorable Ambassador Larry L. Palmer A native of Augusta, Georgia, Ambassador Larry L. Palmer was born on July 13, 1949 to the late Rev. R.V. Palmer, Sr. and the late Gladys Y. Palmer. Ambassador Larry L. Palmer entered into rest on Thursday, April 22, 2021. He received his early education in the public school system of Richmond County and was a member of the first graduating class of Thomas Walter Josey Comprehensive High School, the Class of 1966. After graduating from T.W. Josey, he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Emory University, a Masters in Education in African Studies from Texas Southern University (with studies at the University of Liberia), and a Doctorate in Higher Education Administration and African Studies from Indiana University in Bloomington. Ambassador Palmer served as U.S. Ambassador to Tegucigalpa, Honduras during the presidency of George W. Bush and U.S. Ambassador to Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean during the presidency of Barack H. Obama. He also served as Ambassador in Residence to the Office of the Provost at Howard University. An accomplished diplomat, academic and development professional, Ambassador Palmer served as president and CEO of the Inter-American Foundation (IAF), an independent U.S. government agency that provides grants to poor and marginalized communities in Latin America and the Caribbean. As president of the IAF, he supervised a team of development professionals and traveled over 100,000 miles annually funding projects in education, health, alternative energy, agriculture, ecology and economic development, ensuring that the foundation’s assistance funds reached the neediest recipients. In previous roles, he also served as a senior adviser to the president of the University of Texas at El Paso and director of the Office of Minority Affairs at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. A memorial service will be held on Thursday, May 13, 2021 at 1:00 P.M. at the Cramton Auditorium on the campus of Howard University in Washington, D.C. An additional memorial service will be held on Saturday, May 22, 2021 at 12 Noon at Friendship Missionary Baptist Church 2543 Deans Bridge Road, Augusta, GA. Masks will be required and social distancing will be practiced.