Life Out Loud -- A Memoir of Countless Adventures and No Regrets

Written by Ed Nef

Narrated by David Angelo

Born and raised in New York to a Swiss father and Polish mother, Ed Nef seemed destined for an international life. After serving in Germany with the US Army, Ed began his career with the Foreign Service in Dakar, Senegal, in 1960. Tours in Guatemala and Colombia followed, broken up by assignments to the Peace Corps. While on assignment in Canada, Ed accepted a Congressional Fellowship on Capitol Hill that turned into a job as legislative director for Senator Max Baucus. 

 

Six years later, Ed left government and politics behind, buying a small language school and turning it into the foremost private language-training facility in the DC area. Ed eventually operated language schools in Tokyo, Vietnam, and Mongolia. Inspired by the people he met, Ed began producing documentary films on topics including Vietnam-American relations, Mongolian mining, Senegalese women, and Thai elephant polo, among others.  

 

Today, Ed runs his family foundation to support worthy projects around the world. Its current focus is providing disabled Mongolians with high-quality prosthetics.   

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ed Nef
• Release date: Aug 1, 2020
• ISBN: 9781734171648

Ed Nef

About Ed Nef Born in New York City to a Swiss father and a Polish mother, Ed Nef grew up immersed in multiple languages and cultures. After a two-year detour to Stuttgart, Germany, with the US Army, Ed entered the US Foreign Service in 1959. Starting in Dakar, Senegal, as an economic officer, his assignments took him to Guatemala, Colombia, and Canada. Breaking up his State Department tours were two stints with the new US Peace Corps. In 1976, Ed won a State Department Congressional Fellowship to work on Capitol Hill, which led to a permanent position as legislative director for Senator Max Baucus of Montana. A career in the rigid and bureaucratic State Department and years in the hectic world of politics left Ed wanting to create something of his own. He found a promising opportunity in the "businesses for sale" section of The Washington Post: a foreign language school. Ed bought the school and turned it into the largest independent language school in the Washington, DC area. Eventually, Ed opened English language schools in Japan, Mongolia, and Vietnam. His fascination with the countries he visited-and a knack for the visual arts-led him into the world of documentary film production. He produced films on topics ranging from the post-war relationship between the US and Vietnam to the rights of women in Senegal and the mining industry in Mongolia. In one last great adventure, Ed began a family foundation, The Ed Nef Foundation, to support worthy projects around the world. His latest effort is providing prosthetics to seriously disabled Mongolian individuals. In the midst of his eclectic professional life, Ed managed to squeeze in another half a career as a flight instructor. Today, he lives with his wife, Elizabeth, in Northern Virginia. They have three daughters and four grandchildren.