The Honorable Bruce S. Gelb (1927 - 2025)

Ambassador Bruce S. Gelb

The Board of Directors and staff of the Diplomacy Center Foundation (DCF) are saddened to announce the passing of Ambassador Bruce S. Gelb on November 17th, 2025. He was an accomplished business leader, diplomat, and philanthropist. He served as chairman of the Council of American Ambassadors and on the Board of Trustees for the Diplomacy Center Foundation.

“Ambassador Gelb’s leadership was instrumental in the success of the Diplomacy Center Foundation.” said Ambassador Roman Popadiuk (ret.) President of DCF, “His dedication to public diplomacy helped spread the understanding and importance of diplomacy and helped strengthen U.S. relations throughout the world.”

Bruce Gelb served in the George H. W. Bush administration as the director of the United States Information Agency from 1989 to 1991 and as the US ambassador to the Kingdom of Belgium from 1991 to 1993. Before his government service, he was vice chairman of the Board of Bristol-Myers Company—now Bristol-Myers Squibb—with worldwide responsibility for the Company’s consumer products and health care businesses.