William B. Hussey, 97, a retired U.S. Foreign Service Officer, passed on May 25, 2013, after a short bout of pneumonia at Saddleback Memorial Medical Center in Laguna Hills, California.



He was born in Bellingham, Washington, where his maternal grandparents were pioneers in the then Pacific Northwest Territories. He graduated from Boston University followed by further study at UCLA and the Naval War College. In the U.S. Navy he served to the rank of Captain. During World War II, he participated in numerous battles in the Pacific theater and was present on board the battleship USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945, when General Douglas A. MacArthur accepted the surrender of Japan from Prime Minister Shigemitsu. After the war he served on both the staff of the Commander, Gulf Sea Frontier, and the Commander of the Panama Sea Frontier.

Mr. Hussey entered the Foreign Service in 1949 and after specialized training in the U.S. and Germany was posted to the American Embassy in London as Regional Security Supervisor, Region I Europe and North Africa. Soon after reporting for duty, he was given additional duty as Chairman of the newly created London Liaison Group. Due to the blockade of Berlin and increasing tension with the Russians, the Group was authorized to meet with U.S. and foreign government authorities throughout Western Europe and North Africa to develop a coordinated plan for the evacuation of all Americans from the region to the United States. Mr. Hussey wrote the final plan entitled Operation "Whiz Bang."

Later, he served in Bonn, Munich, and Frankfurt, followed by assignments to Burma and Thailand. He was Deputy Chief of Mission at Embassies in Togo, Malawi, and Madagascar. He also served as Charge d'Affaires, (a.i.) in Lesotho and Mauritius. In between his assignments to Thailand and Lesotho, he served in the Department of State in Washington, D.C. as Deputy Chief in the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, and subsequently as Deputy Chief of Cultural Presentations in the same Bureau.

After retirement from the Foreign Service in 1969, he was appointed U.N. Development Program Regional Representative for the Western Pacific. Headquartered in Apia, Western Samoa, the staff included members from 30 countries working on economic and social development projects throughout the island nations. In 1975 Mr. Hussey became a foreign affairs consultant to several Fortune 500 companies which gave him the opportunity for wide travel through Asia and Africa and Latin America. This work required cooperation with various regional groups including NATO, the European Economic Union, and the U.N. family of organizations.

In 1981 he was appointed Associate Vice President for International Relations for the Los Angeles Organizing Committee for the 1984 Olympic Games. This was followed in 1986 by appointment as Chief of Government Relations on the staff organizing the three-day celebration of the 100th Anniversary of the Statue of Liberty in New York. Throughout the period 1975-1988 he served on the Board of Directors of the Foundation of the Peoples of the South Pacific, the Los Angeles Sister City Commission, the Mayor's African Task Force, and was Vice President of Worldview International Foundation.

Mr. Hussey enjoyed a lifelong devotion to tennis and he and his wife were nationally ranked in their age groups well into their 80's. He passionately promoted the game throughout the world, helping to establish tennis programs for young players in Africa, Asia, and the South Pacific. In his 90's Mr. Hussey served as co-captain of the Lurie World Cup and in 2012 was named Super Senior Tennis International Sportsman of the Year.

His first marriage to Fredricka Boone lasted 18 years. His second marriage, of 54 years, was to Piyachart Bunnag. He is survived by his collective family of eight children, six grandchildren, and two great grandchildren. His children include Christina Hussey Schoux of Chevy Chase, MD; Pamela B. Hussey of Santa Barbara, CA; Eva Boone Hussey of Los Angeles, CA; William B. Hussey, Jr, of Boulder, CO; Peter B. Hussey of Weybridge, England; Elizabeth Brinkley of Las Vegas, NV; Ruth Clark of Redwood City, CA; and Phil C. Hussey of Los Angeles, CA.

Inurnment will take place at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery, San Diego, California.