Bob Silverman, born and raised in Des Moines, Iowa, is a former Senior Foreign Service Officer with 27 years of experience working in and on the Middle East. He and his wife raised three children in the Foreign Service. During his diplomatic career, he served as political counselor in Israel, economic counselor in Saudi Arabia, deputy chief of mission in Sweden and civilian coordinator for Salah al-Din Province of Iraq, among nine overseas assignments. In Washington, he was elected to serve as president of the American Foreign Service Association by its 17,000 members. He achieved professional level fluency in three languages (Arabic, Turkish and Hebrew), and was recognized with four Superior Honor Awards and three commendations as a mentor and supervisor.