I am a retired State Department officer and a 30-plus year member of the U.S. Foreign Service, including overseas as a state annuitant and an officer with the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

I am often surprised by how little is known about the work of American diplomats. We serve at 270 posts around the world, often in hard and sometimes dangerous places, and, at times separated from our families, to protect America’s people, interests and values.

In 1996, the U.S. Senate designated the first Friday in May as “American Foreign Service Day.” This year, on May 4, active and retired members of the Foreign Service, from around the world, will pause to recognize and celebrate the thousands of people who commit their lives to serving the U.S. abroad and the impact their work has on us all. It will be an ideal day to reflect on and learn more about our 16,000-member strong Foreign Service diplomats.

My own service included three tours in Africa, two years at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow during the Cold War and a tour in Canberra, Australia, where our two older daughters graduated from high school before attending Bates College. My final time in the Foreign Service was five years in the mid-Pacific: two years on Saipan and then three on Pohnpei, where I was appointed by President Reagan to be the first U.S. ambassador to the newly independent Federated States of Micronesia.

Now, I reflect on the hard work of my colleagues around the world, who tirelessly seek to promote U.S. policies, level the playing field for U.S. businesses, open markets for U.S. agriculture and achieve wins for America.

With all the threats to U.S. security and prosperity in the world, I hope my fellow citizens appreciate the U.S. Foreign Service and agree that, in order to maintain American global leadership, we must continue to field a top-notch diplomatic team, or risk forfeiting the game to our adversaries.

Michael Wygant

Scarborough