On March 3rd Stephanie Carmon creator and editor of MID CityBeat and Adele Aguirre owner of SoHo Galleries invited members of the US American community living in Yucatan as well as local and state dignitaries to SoHo Galleries (Calle 60 x 43 y 41 Centro, Merida) for a welcome event for US Consul General of the United States Dorothy Ngutter. We were joined by Secretary of Culture of Sedeculta Loreto Villanueva Trujillo, representing Governor Mauricio Vila, La Lic. Ariadne Morales Director of International Affairs for the State, Alejandro Ruz Castro, Municipal Secretary in representation of the Mayor, Diana Canto Moreno, Municipal Magistrate and Mario Arturo Romero Escalante, Director of the Merida Police Department. We welcomed the consul with introductions of all invitees and an after cocktail party with appetizers, wine and Yucatecan trova.
Consul Dorothy Ngutter arrived in August of 2021; however, because of the pandemic she has not been able to meet many people from the community or integrate as is customary in the first months of the new position. We were happy that the pandemic has finally eased up a bit and many restrictions have been lifted and after 2 cancellations, we were able to host this event. The US has had a consulate in the Yucatan peninsula since the 1840’s and Consul Ngutter is continuing the tradition of diplomacy in the region. She is working with local government officials to facilitate ties between governments and last week she was present at a question and answer event for US citizens at the Merida English Library. She hopes to continue to facilitate information sharing for our community and be of service to the citizens of the United States living in Southern Mexico.
Who is our new Consul?
Ngutter is the US General Consul for Yucatan, Campeche and Quintana Roo and is based in Merida, Yucatan.
“A career Foreign Service Officer, she most recently served as the Director of the International Narcotics & Law Enforcement Section in the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan managing border security and justice sector programs. Dorothy has also served as Deputy Political Counselor at the U.S. Embassy in Turkey, Public Diplomacy Officer at the U.S. Mission to NATO in Belgium, and Consular and Political Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Mali.
In Washington, she worked as a special assistant to former Under Secretary for Political Affairs Ambassador William J. Burns, as the Peru Desk Officer in the Office of Andean Affairs, and as a Watch Officer in the State Department’s Operations Center responsible for briefing and alerting then Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and other senior officials on breaking foreign affairs matters. In other domestic assignments, Dorothy was a Diplomat-in-Residence responsible for outreach and recruitment of diverse candidates from the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Prior to that she represented the Department of State as a National Security Affairs Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University.” –https://mx.usembassy.gov/consul-general-dorothy-ngutter/
It was an honor to welcome Consul Ngutter and be joined by the local and state dignitaries and members of our community who have adopted Yucatan as their home. Almost every US citizen that comes to Yucatan, falls in love with the culture, the people and the quality of life that this state and city has to offer. There are so many US citizens who are doing wonderful things for the economy and the community in the state of Yucatan, and it was nice to be able to share our love and experience with the Consul and the attending dignitaries. Consul Dorothy Ngutter was very welcoming and we are looking forward to having her here in Yucatan for the next 2 ½ years.
