Ambassador Nancy Ostrander

Ambassador Nancy Ostrander, Passed away February 8, 2024 at her home in Indianapolis at the age of 98. Immediately after graduating from Butler University in 1947, Ambassador Ostrander traveled to Cuba to visit her uncle who managed a coffee plantation on the eastern end of the island. She applied for and was quickly hired at the Consulate as a General Clerk. Ambassador Ostrander continued in clerical positions in Havana and The Hague until she was appointed Vice Consul under the Wriston Program in 1958. Assignments to Antwerp, Mexico City, and Kingston with intermittent assignments in Washington D.C. followed. She held various positions in the Bureau of Personnel, the Visa Office, and the Inspection Corps before being appointed Chief of Mission in Suriname in 1978. Ambassador Ostrander was a member of the 1974 class of the National War College and attended the State Department’s Senior Seminar in National and International Affairs from 1980-1981. Upon her return from Suriname, she became Diplomat in Residence at Indiana University/Purdue University in Indianapolis. Ambassador Ostrander then returned to Washington and served for five years as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Populations Affairs until her retirement in 1989. Ambassador Ostrander received various honor awards over the years. These included three Superior Honor Awards from the Department of State which were for excellence in management of consular and immigration programs in Jamaica, outstanding contribution to the Department’s task force on the TWA Flight 847 hijacking, and for extraordinary leadership in pursuing the goals of the U.S. Government in population related programs. U.S. AID also honored her with an award for distinguished leadership in U.S. International population policy and programs. Other honors and decorations included Butler University’s Alumni Achievement Award and the Order of the Palm from the Government of Suriname for outstanding service as Ambassador. In 1980 She received the Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority Woman of the Year Award. After retirement, Ambassador Ostrander served on the Board of Directors of Family Health International, Raleigh, NC, was active in the Women’s Rotary Club of Indianapolis, and served on the Vestry of Indianapolis’ Christ Church Cathedral. She was an avid gardener and bird watcher. A Memorial Service will be held Saturday, May 11, 2024 at 11:00 a.m. at Christ Church Cathedral, 125 Monument Circle, Indianapolis, IN 46204. Ambassador Ostrander is survived by numerous loving cousins. In lieu of flowers memorial contributions are suggested to Heifer International online at https://www.heifer.org, or Best Friends online at https://support.bestfriends.org or Community Home Health and Hospice, 9894 E. 121st St., Fishers, IN 46037. Final arrangements and care are entrusted to Shirley Brothers Washington Memorial Chapel.

Tributes

Ambassador Nancy Ostrander

October 25, 1925 - February 8, 2024