The Secretary of State Award for Outstanding Volunteerism Abroad
The SOSA Legacy Report:A Living Tradition
Extraordinary Impact Across Cultures and Countries
For more than 35 years, Foreign Service family members and employees have created lasting change in communities around the world through education, humanitarian service, environmental stewardship, and civic leadership.
Since 1990
Award established
6
Regional Bureaus
2022–2025
Report period
4,000+
Volunteer hours (single post)
Impact 2022–2025
SOSA Volunteers at Work:
Expanding Opportunity, Strengthening Communities, Inspiring Change
Behind every diplomatic posting is an individual, partner, spouse or family member that chooses to give more — building communities, opening doors, protecting the planet, and deepening the ties that make diplomacy real. For the Foreign Service families honored here, service doesn't end at the embassy gate. That's where it truly begins.
Sustainable Community Development
Mentorship, refugee support, and grassroots programs that build lasting community capacity. When Foreign Service families invest in the places they serve, the impact outlasts their posting by years — sometimes generations.
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Expanding Access and Opportunity
Education, the arts, and skill-building that open doors for the next generation. From literacy programs and classroom teaching to creative expression and vocational training, Foreign Service volunteers expand what is possible for young people in the communities they serve. From ASL classrooms in Tajikistan to Technovation Girls in Turkmenistan, our community believes every child deserves a chance to thrive.
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Promotes Environmental Responsibility
Animal welfare, sustainable agriculture, and waste-to-housing innovation across continents. SOSA awardees prove that even a single tour of duty can leave a community — and its environment — measurably better.
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Strengthens Embassy–Host Country Collaboration
Service that deepens diplomatic ties and supports communities through crisis and renewal. When a Foreign Service family shows up — not in an official capacity, but simply as a neighbor — they put a human face on America.
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Global Footprint of Service
Explore the communities, countries, and causes transformed through Foreign Service volunteerism, 2022–2025. From refugee centers and classrooms to forests, shelters, and villages, each marker represents a story of service, partnership, and lasting impact.
35 Countries · 6 Regional Bureaus · 2022–2025
SOSA 2022–2025
A Tradition of Service
In Their Own Words
Snapshots of Service
First-person reflections from two 2025 SOSA Awardees on what service abroad meant to them.
Through the AWC Stolpersteine Project, our members gather each season to clean memorial stones honoring Holocaust victims — reading aloud each person's story so it is never forgotten. What began as a small local effort has since inspired similar projects across FAWCO clubs worldwide. Serving abroad taught me that even small acts of service create lasting ripples of hope, belonging, and connection that endure far beyond a single posting.
Jennifer Sturgeon
2025 SOSA Awardee · The Hague, Netherlands
During the January 2025 evacuation from Kinshasa, my prior experience with AAFSW's Evacuee Support Network let me help coordinate aid for families arriving in winter with only carry-ons. Locally, I taught art therapy at the Telema Mental Health Center, supporting at-risk patients in finding dignity and a safe space. That work — making a difference for people in such precarious circumstances — was the most meaningful part of my service.
Julie Fischer
2025 SOSA Awardee · Kinshasa, DRC
“Watching refugee children enjoy their childhood again... after a few visits, children are dancing, creating beautiful art, making friends. Ukrainian mothers thank us every day.”
“It allows me to transcend languages and cultures and feel unified.”
“It is communicating with the language of love. They have shown me that the impossible is possible.”
“By volunteering, we exemplify the best of the American tradition of helping and raising our communities — whether in small town USA or at some distant outpost abroad.”
“Serving as a volunteer is a means of giving back to a community that takes care of you.”
“Witnessing the project grow beyond my initial idea into something that the people of Madagascar have embraced is a priceless gift.”
“Even small acts of service can create lasting ripples of hope, belonging, and connection.”
“Every year, I'm blown away by what people are doing overseas.”
“Volunteerism by members of our Foreign Service community is not just a kindness. It is an essential and underappreciated dimension of American foreign policy.”
“Watching refugee children enjoy their childhood again... after a few visits, children are dancing, creating beautiful art, making friends. Ukrainian mothers thank us every day.”
“It allows me to transcend languages and cultures and feel unified.”
“It is communicating with the language of love. They have shown me that the impossible is possible.”
“By volunteering, we exemplify the best of the American tradition of helping and raising our communities — whether in small town USA or at some distant outpost abroad.”
“Serving as a volunteer is a means of giving back to a community that takes care of you.”
“Witnessing the project grow beyond my initial idea into something that the people of Madagascar have embraced is a priceless gift.”
“Even small acts of service can create lasting ripples of hope, belonging, and connection.”
“Every year, I'm blown away by what people are doing overseas.”
“Volunteerism by members of our Foreign Service community is not just a kindness. It is an essential and underappreciated dimension of American foreign policy.”
When honorable mentions are included
$442,000+
Combined fundraising, 2022–2025 class
58,000
Afghan refugees arrived · Debra Stock, 2022 SOSA Awardee · Qatar
38,000
Refugees served · Meredith Wiedemer, 2022 SOSA Awardee · Moldova
Behind every number, every honoree, every volunteer, is a community that was changed.
Our Partners
Sustaining the SOSA program
Three organizations whose long-standing partnership makes this recognition of Foreign Service volunteerism possible.
UCCF
Una Chapman Cox Foundation
The Una Chapman Cox Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to strengthening the effectiveness, professionalism, and long-term capacity of the U.S. Foreign Service.
ADST
Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training
The Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training (ADST) maintains the world's largest collection of U.S. diplomatic oral histories and produces podcasts, videos, books, publications, and the “Moments in U.S. Diplomatic History” online series.
GCLO
Global Community Liaison Office
The Global Community Liaison Office (GCLO) supports U.S. Foreign Service employees and families by providing resources, programs, and advocacy to improve quality of life, mobility, and community support during overseas service.
Stand with the Foreign Service community
AAFSW advocates for, supports, and celebrates the people behind American diplomacy worldwide.