Born and raised in New York to a Swiss father and Polish mother, Ed Nef seemed destined for an interntional life. After serving in Germany with the US Army, Ed began his career with the Foreign Service in Dakar, Senegal, in 1960. An onward assginment in Guatemala found Ed building relationships with communist revolutionaries.
A dreary tour at a stuffy embassy in Colomia followed, broken up by more exciting assignments to the Peace Corps. In 1976 Ed accepted a Congressional Fellowship on Capitol Hill that turned into a job as legislative director for Senator Max Baucus.
Six years later, Ed left government and politics behind. Looking for a new career, Ed found it in the form of a ‘business for sale’ ad in the Washington Post. Undeterred by a lack of business experience, he bought a small language school and turned it into the foremost private language-training facility in the DC area. Ed eventually opearted language schools in Tokyo, Vietnam, and Mongolia.
Inspired by the people he met, Ed began producing documentary films on topics including Vietnamese-American relations, Mongolian mining, Senegalese women, and Thai elephant polo, among others.
In a far-flung life of service, entrepreneurship, and adventure, Ed’s compassion and curiosity guided his pursuits. Along the way, he averted disaster with a Mongolia professional wrestler and a Thai drug lord. He met Maureen O’Hara and the Dalai Lama. He became a flight instructor on the side.
Today, Ed runs his family foundation to support worthy projects around the world. Its latest focus was providing disabled Mongolians with high-quality prosthetics.
Table of Content
Chapter One: I Quit the Government and Began the Happiest Years of My Life
Chapter Two: From Mongolia to Vietnam
Chapter Three: Family History
Chapter Four: Childhood Memories, Age 4–84 (Okay, 4–18)
Chapter Five: Defending My Country
Chapter Six: The Foreign Service
Chapter Seven: Entering the Film Industry
Chapter Eight: My Passions
Chapter Nine: Starting a Foundation
Chapter Ten: A Letter to My Grandkids
Acknowledgements
Films Produced
About the Author
About the author
Born in New York City to a Swiss father and a Polish mother, Ed Nef grew up immersed in multiple languages and cultures. After a two-year detour to Stuttgart, Germany, with the US Army, Ed entered the US Foreign Service in 1959.
Starting in Dakar, Senegal, as an economic officer, his assignments took him to Guatemala, Colombia, and Canada. Breaking up his State Department tours were two stints with the new US Peace Corps. In 1976, Ed won a State Department Congressional Fellowship to work on Capitol Hill, which led to a permanent position as legislative director for Senator Max Baucus of Montana.
A career in the rigid and bureaucratic State Department and years in the hectic world of politics left Ed wanting to create something of his own. He found a promising opportunity in the ‘businesses for sale’ section of The Washington Post: a foreign language school. Ed bought the school and turned it into the largest independent language school in the Washington, DC area. Eventually, Ed opened English language schools in Japan, Mongolia, and Vietnam.
His fascination with the countries he visited-and a knack for the visual arts-led him into the world of documentary film production. He produced films on topics ranging from the post-war relationship between the US and Vietnam to the rights of women in Senegal and the mining industry in Mongolia.
In one last great adventure, Ed began a family foundation, The Ed Nef Foundation, to support worthy projects around the world. His latest effort is providing prosthetics to seriously disabled Mongolian individuals.
In the midst of his eclectic professional life, Ed managed to squeeze in another half a career as a flight instructor. Today, he lives with his wife, Elizabeth, in Northern Virginia. They have three daughters and four grandchildren.
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