Page 55 - IFAFA ebook v4

20.

Marijona McDevitt

I became a member of the Association over 20 years ago.

My membership made for a name change from Irish Foreign Affairs

Spouses Association (IFASA) to Irish Foreign Affairs Family

Association (IFAFA). The change was announced at a cocktail in the

Secretary General’s anteroom by the then Chairperson, Eriol

Townsend. I was the first openly gay member.

I served as a Committee member in various positions and was

EUFASA representative in Paris (2008) and Prague (2009).

I edited the Newsletter for several years, taking it from hard copy

to e-format.

My wife Patricia served in Protocol and Political Divisions before

her first posting in Washington, after which we lived in Vienna,

Copenhagen, Paris, New York and Geneva.

Thankfully, all of these postings were gay-friendly and offered

tremendous respite. However, in the main, I was not invited to

embassy events and Irish colleagues rarely accepted our invitations.

For our first 35 years our relationship was not recognized, so our

conditions, allowances and benefits were that of a single officer.

Thankfully, legislation and, in some respects, the work of IFAFA,

have contributed to better conditions on postings.

46