Refugee children from Bangladesh, Kosovo, and Afghanistan tumble around the grass after a round of face-and-finger painting at Budapest's Debrecen camp. Craig Coulter says participating in camp activities sponsored by the Refugee Assistance Project, started by his wife Laura, is the most satisfying part of living in Budapest.
Craig Coulter, Laura Biesecker, and their son Liam live in the Buda hills in Budapest, an area known for food, wine, and the natural spring health spas.
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Craig Coulter '91: Our Man in Hungary
By Anne Christensen
Name, age, rank, and Social Security ... no, some other significant number: Eight, the number of years I've lived in Hungary. Definitely not one - that's how many years I expected to be here. I'm happy that I got to stay to witness firsthand a transition that the world will (hopefully) never see again.
Vocation, avocation,
vacation: I'm the managing director of iDEVCO/Hungary,
which custom-designs software. Our U.S. parent company services some big
government clients, like the U.S. Navy, while our Hungarian client list
is pretty eclectic.
As for hobbies, I used to say they were music, reading, and sports, but
they have taken a back seat since my son Liam's birth. I'm so out of touch
with current music, I'm still stuck on Hootie and the Blowfish. I read
the Economist and some history, and lately some David Sedaris - hilarious!
I got into Fantasy Football to keep up with American sports (my team is
Liam's Lions), and we love to travel. My wife Laura and I have been all
over Europe, Egypt, and the Balkans. My favorite place is Santorini, where
we honeymooned.
Variation: Here in Budapest, Laura and I volunteer with a refugee organization. I have met people from Bangladesh, Nigeria, Iraq, Kosovo, Chechnya, and Afghanistan - wherever there is trouble. Hungary is the last transit point before people get over the border into the EU, where they can move about more freely. It's really satisfying to work in the camps. When I was a program officer for USAID, I was two layers back, but here I work directly with the refugees.
Provocation, revocation: I'm irritated by the graffiti all over Budapest - it takes away from the beauty of the city. It's not even good graffiti, just a bunch of garbage someone sprays on every wall. As for revocation, my biggest regret is that I didn't take more foreign language classes at CC! As much as it would have pained me, I should have signed up for one of those boot camps.
What I'd like to say now to one of my professors: To David Hendrickson: "Kennan is still right. The development of multi-polar centers of economic and military force is the best way to ensure stability in the world. But the projection of U.S. military force, without giving the Europeans a way to step up and contribute, is going to permanently fragment any chance of Kennan's dream ... In other words, David, the hammer is scaring the bejesus out of the Europeans. If the U.S. doesn't give the Europeans a chance to save face, U.S. foreign policy is going to hell in a hand-basket for the next 20 years."
I knew I'd found my destiny when: I woke up this morning, and it was different from yesterday morning. And I am sure that tomorrow morning will be different, too.