Edmund Tompkins DeJarnette, Jr. (January 15, 1938 – April 6, 2015) was an American diplomat. A career Foreign Service Officer, he held a variety of ambassadorships. He was the American Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the

Central African Republic The Central African Republic (CAR; ; , RCA; , or , ) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to the north, Sudan to the northeast, South Sudan to the southeast, the DR Congo to the south, the Republic of th ...

(1983-1986),

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...

(1990-1992) and was Director in

Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

from 1992 until he was promoted to Ambassador in 1994. He was the first U.S. Ambassador to Angola and served until 1995. DeJarnette was born on January 15, 1938. A native of

Richmond, Virginia (Thus do we reach the stars) , image_map = , mapsize = 250 px , map_caption = Location within Virginia , pushpin_map = Virginia#USA , pushpin_label = Richmond , pushpin_m ...

, he graduated from the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...

Law School in 1963. (He also has a bachelor's degree in English from U.Va. and a master's degree in public administration from

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , preside ...

. He entered the Foreign Services the following year based on a recommendation from the school's placement office. For a few years, he worked for the Peace Corps - from 1970 to 1975 he was the director in

Quito, Ecuador Quito (; qu, Kitu), formally San Francisco de Quito, is the capital and largest city of Ecuador, with an estimated population of 2.8 million in its urban area. It is also the capital of the province of Pichincha. Quito is located in a valley on ...

, and deputy director for Latin America. Both Tanzania and Angola were fighting civil wars during his time there. The U.S. did not recognize the Marxist government that emerged in Angola and he was there for two years before he was sworn in as Ambassador after the US recognized the government in 1993. There was concern about kidnapping of the staff as well as the constant shelling in the area of the embassy until the Angolan government rescued DeJarnette and the rest of his staff with armored vehicles and tanks. DeJarnette was the head of the U.S. delegation in the talks that led to the 1994 peace agreement. When he retired from the Foreign Service, he moved to

Ashland, Virginia Ashland is a town in Hanover County, Virginia, United States, located north of Richmond along Interstate 95 and U.S. Route 1. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 7,225, up from 6,619 at the 2000 census. Ashland is named after the Lexi ...

and began practicing law in Richmond. DeJarnette founded the U.S.-Africa Energy Association which ultimately led to his founding SonAir USA in 2009. He served as its CEO and President until 2012. DeJarnette died on April 6, 2015, at the age of 77.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:DeJarnette, Edmund 1938 births 2015 deaths People from Richmond, Virginia University of Virginia School of Law alumni George Washington University alumni American chief executives United States Foreign Service personnel American company founders People from Ashland, Virginia Ambassadors of the United States to the Central African Republic Ambassadors of the United States to Angola Ambassadors of the United States to Tanzania 20th-century American diplomats