Faith Whittlesey

Faith Whittlesey
United States Ambassador to Switzerland
In office
May 31, 1985 – June 14, 1988
PresidentRonald Reagan
Preceded byJohn Davis Lodge
Succeeded byPhilip D. Winn
In office
October 23, 1981 – February 28, 1983
PresidentRonald Reagan
Preceded byRichard D. Vine
Succeeded byJohn Davis Lodge
Director of the Office of Public Liaison
In office
March 3, 1983 – March 19, 1985
PresidentRonald Reagan
Preceded byLiddy Dole
Succeeded byLinda Chavez
Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
from the 166th district
In office
1973–1976
Preceded byGeorge Johnson
Succeeded byStephen Freind
Personal details
Born
Faith Amy Ryan

(1939-02-21)February 21, 1939
Jersey City, New Jersey, U.S.
DiedMay 21, 2018(2018-05-21) (aged 79)
Washington, D.C., U.S.
Political partyDemocratic (before 1964)
Republican (from 1964)
SpouseRoger Whittlesey (1967–1974)
Children3
EducationWells College (BA)
University of Pennsylvania (LLB)

Faith Amy Whittlesey (née Ryan; February 21, 1939 – May 21, 2018) was an American Republican politician, White House Senior Staff member, and author. She was noted for her efforts to communicate Ronald Reagan's entire policy agenda to U.S. opinion leaders and for bringing together for the first time in the Reagan White House evangelical, Catholic, and other conservative religious groups who opposed legalized abortion and were concerned about moral and cultural decline and the break-up of the family. These groups became a significant component of the Reagan coalition as they grew more politically self-conscious in the 1980s.[1]

She organized the White House Central American Outreach Group at the direction of Chief of Staff James Baker to provide information about Reagan's anti-communist policies in the region and was an active supporter of Reagan's defense buildup and the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI).

Whittlesey served twice for a total of nearly 5 years as U.S. Ambassador to Switzerland and also served for 2 years on the Reagan White House Senior Staff as Assistant to the President for Public Liaison.

  1. ^ FoxNews, "Interview with Faith Whittlesey," June 11, 2004.