April 26

John Sanbrailo, 1943-2019

We mourn the loss of John Sanbrailo, former Executive Director of the Pan-American Development Foundation (PADF), who passed away peacefully in his home in Vienna, VA on Saturday, April 20. John dedicated 18 years of his long career in international development leading the efforts of PADF in Latin America and the Caribbean. His appointment in 1999 as PADF Chief Executive Officer coincided with the establishment of the Inter-American Committee on Natural Disaster Reduction (IACNDR) by the OAS General Assembly, as the principal forum at the OAS for matters relating to natural disasters and for the purpose of providing the Permanent Council with strategic thinking, paying special attention to policies and programs designed to reduce the vulnerability of Member States. John never missed a meeting of the Inter-American Committee and never stopped advocating for the role of the General Secretariat of the OAS in facilitating the international response that Member States provide in solidarity to one another. He will be missed.

The Disasters This Week Editor

Remembering John

Throughout his astounding career, John inspired his friends and colleagues, and he will be remembered affectionately. “We are mourning the loss of such a steadfast supporter of Latin America and the Caribbean,” said Kristan Beck, Chief Operating Officer at PADF, “but we are celebrating John’s incredible life. His dedication to improving lives was evident not only in his extensive career accomplishments but in his daily interactions with those around him.”... Read more

His life and collaborations until becoming the Executive Director of the Development Foundation (PADF) - John Sanbrailo. For his work in the U.S. foreign aid program, John received Presidential Awards for supporting the El Salvador Peace Accords in 1993 and restructuring the Honduran economy to make it more export oriented, creating thousands of new jobs in the 1980s and 1990s. He directed a large USAID program to reconstruct the north coast of Peru after devastating El Nino floods during the 1980s... Read more

The definition of democracy of John Sanbrailo in April of 2015. The dream of the Foundation is to see an active participation of society, which is, in their opinion, the definition of democracy. "Democracy is not expressed, only, through voting every few years. He expresses himself daily with people participating in their society, "said Sanbrailo... Read more

"John, you will remain in our memory"