Heather Mary Hodges | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2008 | |
| United States Ambassador to Ecuador | |
| In office October 2, 2008 – April 5, 2011 | |
| President | George W. Bush Barack Obama |
| Preceded by | Linda Jewell |
| Succeeded by | Adam Namm |
| United States Ambassador to Moldova | |
| In office October 3, 2003 – April 9, 2006 | |
| President | George W. Bush |
| Preceded by | Pamela Hyde Smith |
| Succeeded by | Michael D. Kirby |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1946 (age 78–79) Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. |
| Alma mater | College of St. Catherine |
| Profession | Diplomat |
Heather Mary Hodges (born 1946) is a career United Statesforeign service officer.[1] She has been theUnited States Ambassador to Moldova and theUnited States Ambassador to Ecuador.[2]
Hodges is a native ofCleveland, Ohio, United States. She has a B.A. in Spanish from theCollege of St. Catherine, St. Paul, Minnesota, and an M.A. fromNew York University. She lived and worked inMadrid, Spain, throughout the 1970s.
Hodges joined the Foreign Service in 1980 and was assigned toCaracas,Venezuela. Following Caracas, she served inGuatemala and later in Washington as Peru Desk Officer. In 1987, Ms. Hodges received a Pearson Fellowship to work in theU.S. Congress, where she was counsel to the Senate Subcommittee on Immigration and Refugee Affairs. In January 1989, she became Consul General at the U.S. Consulate inBilbao, Spain. In 1991, she returned to the U.S. to serve as Deputy Director of the Office of Cuban Affairs.
In 1993, Hodges was assigned toManagua,Nicaragua, as Deputy Chief of Mission. From August 1996 to June 1997, Hodges participated in the Department of State's Senior Seminar, a leadership program for select members of the Foreign Service. She served as the Deputy Chief of Mission inLima, Peru, from July 1997 to May 2000 and was also Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Madrid, Spain, from June 2000 to July 2003.
She served as U.S. Ambassador toMoldova from September 2003 to May 2006. She was then appointed Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Office of the Director General.
She was sworn in as the U.S. Ambassador toEcuador on July 15, 2008, arrived in Ecuador in early August, and presented her credentials to PresidentRafael Correa on October 2, 2008.
On April 4, 2011, the Spanish newspaperEl País reported that Ms. Hodges had expressed concern over Ecuador's National Police being corrupt via a cable dated July 10, 2009.[3] She warned that their National Police Commander, Jaime Aquilino Hurtado, might be involved in illegal activity. According toThe New York Times, this involved "his possible involvement in schemes to extort bribes from a taxi union, steal public funds and ease trafficking of undocumented Chinese immigrants." She also recommended the United States revoke Hurtado's visa. It was also noted that President Correa may have known about Hurtado.[4] On April 5, 2011, Ecuadorexpelled Hodges from the country after she failed to give the Ecuadorian government a satisfactory explanation of accusations made public in theWikiLeaks diplomatic cables.[5]
| Diplomatic posts | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | United States Ambassador to Moldova 2003–2006 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | United States Ambassador to Ecuador 2008–2011 | Succeeded by |
| Chargé d'affaires |
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| Minister Resident | ||
| Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary | ||
| Ambassador Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary | ||
| International | |
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| National | |
