Dec. 25, 2025

#20 - Ambassador Lewis Lucke

Show Notes

As a young boy, dreaming of becoming an archeologist, Lewis Lucke wanted to visit the Holy Lands to see if the Bible stories he'd read were true. Indeed, his career did lead him overseas, though as a diplomat with USAID--from West Africa to Central America, finally the Middle East, and eventually as a US ambassador. Along the way, he confirmed many times over that there are many stories that you just can't make up.

Ambassador Lucke served in the US Foreign Service in Mali, Senegal, Costa Rica, Tunisia, Bolivia, Jordan, Haiti, Brazil, Iraq and Eswatini. He deployed for other substantial assignments in Saudi Arabia, the DRC, Mauritania, Djibouti, Timor Leste and Kuwait. He was USAID Mission Director in Bolivia, Jordan, Haiti and Iraq. As the first ever USAID Mission Director in Iraq, he directed a $4.0 billion reconstruction and economic development program, USAID’s largest program in history and the largest US-financed reconstruction program since the Marshall Plan. He also led the initial emergency response phase for the 2010 Haiti earthquake, a $1.0 billion effort. Ambassador Lucke received USAID’s two highest awards, the Administrator’s Distinguished Career Award and the Agency’s Award for Heroism. He also received the Secretary of Defense’s Award for Exceptional Public Service. Amb Lucke is from Texas with three grown children. He has a degree from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and an MBA from the Thunderbird School of Global Management. He is fluent in French and Spanish and has unhappily forgotten most of his Arabic. Ambassador Lucke and his spouse live in Costa Rica.