Paula Gene Loyd was truly a wonderful human being who epitomized the core values of MSFS. After growing up in San Antonio and attending high school in the Virgin Islands and Connecticut, Ms. Loyd earned a Bachelor of Arts in Cultural Anthropology and Spanish from Wellesley College. She then received a Master of Science in Foreign Service (MSFS) degree in Foreign Policy and International Security from Georgetown University, as well as a Certificate in Refugee and Humanitarian Studies.

Following her MSFS education and humanitarian studies, Ms. Loyd served a four-year term in the US Army and a four-year term in the US Army Reserve Program. While serving in the Reserve Program she became involved with humanitarian work programs in Afghanistan, and for several years after with the United States Agency for International Development, the International Organization for Migration and the United Nations.

As a Field Program Officer for USAID in Zabul Province, she worked closely with the United Nations, U.S. military, local Government officials and tribal elders on a number of humanitarian and development projects.

Ms. Loyd’s life was tragically cut short as result of the injuries she sustained while serving humanitarian causes in Afghanistan. Paula Loyd’s foreign service brought a cultural anthropologist’s eye - and heart - to bear on her humanitarian work. Her legacy with USAID and the US Army in Afghanistan, her selfless dedication to foreign service, and her compassion, will not be forgotten.