Marilyn Priscilla Johnson (June 19, 1922 – September 19, 2022) was an American diplomat who served as United States Ambassador to Togo.[1] She was appointed to that position on September 23, 1978, and left her post on July 29, 1981.

Marilyn P. Johnson
8th United States Ambassador to Togo
In office
September 23, 1978 – July 29, 1981
PresidentJimmy Carter
Ronald Reagan
Preceded byRonald D. Palmer
Succeeded byHoward Kent Walker
Personal details
Born
Marilyn Priscilla Johnson

(1922-06-19)June 19, 1922
Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
DiedSeptember 19, 2022(2022-09-19) (aged 100)
Bethlehem, New Hampshire, U.S.
ProfessionDiplomat
Military service
Branch/serviceUnited States Navy
Years of service1944–1946

She graduated from Radcliffe College with a B.A. in 1944 and from Middlebury College in 1952 with an M.A. She enlisted in the U.S. Navy and served as a lieutenant from 1944 to 1946.[2]

From 1952 and 1959, Johnson taught French at high schools. She was a Fulbright scholar in France from 1957 to 1959, and a Smith-Mundt grantee in Guinea from 1960 to 1961.[2] Between 1962 and 1964, she taught English as a foreign language in various schools inside Cameroon and Mali. She joined the Foreign Service in 1964, and was a cultural affairs officer in Bamako, Mali, and Tunis, Tunisia, as well as public affairs officer in Niamey, Niger.

From 1971 to 1974, Johnson was the Deputy Assistant Director of the Information Centers Program.[3] The following year, she attended the Senior Seminar in Foreign Policy, and from 1975 to 1976 she learned Russian through training. In 1976 she was cultural affairs officer in Moscow, Soviet Union. In September 1978 she was assigned as United States Ambassador to the Republic of Togo until July 1981.[4]

Johnson died at her home in Bethlehem, New Hampshire, on September 19, 2022, at the age of 100.[5][6]

References

edit
  1. ^ Department Of State. The Office of Electronic Information, Bureau of Public Affairs. "J". 2001-2009.state.gov.
  2. ^ a b "Marilyn Johnson is headed for Togo post". State Department Newsletter: 20. September 1978 – via Hathitrust.
  3. ^ "The Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training Foreign Affairs Oral History Project Women Ambassadors Series AMBASSADOR MARILYN JOHNSON" (PDF). Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training. 4 August 1986. Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 July 2024. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
  4. ^ "United States Ambassador to Togo Nomination of Marilyn P. Johnson. | The American Presidency Project". www.presidency.ucsb.edu.
  5. ^ "Marilyn Priscilla Johnson Obituary". Caledonian Record. September 20, 2022.
  6. ^ "Marilyn P. Johnson". Legacy. Retrieved 30 September 2022.
Diplomatic posts
Preceded by United States Ambassador to Togo
1978–1981
Succeeded by