Former Air America Radio staffer killed in Iraq

An American woman working for a U.S. nonprofit organization in Iraq to help strengthen the fledgling government was among four people killed Wednesday in a roadside ambush in Baghdad.

Andrea "Andi" Parhamovich, 28, of Perry, Ohio, and the other individuals worked for the National Democratic Institute, a Washington organization that advises political parties around the world.

Parhamovich, a graduate of Marietta College in central Ohio, had been working with NDI in Iraq since late 2006 as a communications specialist advising Iraqi political parties on how to reach out to voters and constituents. She was helping "build the kind of national level political institutions that can help bridge the sectarian divide and improve Iraqi lives," NDI said.

"There is no more sacred roll of honor than those who have given their last full measure in support of freedom," said NDI Chairman Madeleine K. Albright. "Yesterday, in Iraq, Andrea Parhamovich and our security personnel were enshrined on that list. They did not see themselves as heroes, only people doing a job on behalf of a cause they believed in. They were not the enemies of anyone in Iraq; they were there to help. Now, the prayers of all of us at NDI are with them and with their families. We pledge to do everything that is within our power to see that they did not die in vain. We will honor their example, keep alive their memory, and carry on their work."

A graduate of Marietta College, Parhamovich developed her career in political communication with the Massachusetts Governor's office and Department of Economic Development. Up until a few months ago, she was a member of the public relations department at Air America Radio, and also worked for the International Republican Institute in Iraq before joining NDI's Baghdad staff in late 2006.

An al-Qaida-linked coalition of Iraqi Sunni insurgents claimed responsibility Thursday for the attack on the three-vehicle convoy. Two other people were wounded.

This was yet another sad loss to the war in Iraq. And the more people that are lost, the more it really hits home for many Americans. LTR extends its warmest regards to the friends, family and co-workers of Andi Parhamovich.

See also:

Trish Talk - a rememberance from a friend.