Gary Strieker, who passed away in July 2022, helped establish CNN's presence in Africa. He covered some of the most pivotal moments across the continent in the 1980s and '90s.
Courtesy Strieker family
Born in the tiny Illinois farm town of Breese in 1944, Gary Gerard Strieker moved to San Diego, California at a young age. He later earned a law degree from the University of California Hastings.
Courtesy Strieker family
Strieker is remembered by his family and colleagues as a quiet, humble man who never lost his optimistic spirit or tireless energy for making the world a better place.
Courtesy "This American Land"
Strieker and his first wife Phyllis volunteered with the Peace Corps during its 1968 mission to Swaziland, currently Eswatini. Strieker later worked for the Swazi government and the United Nations, authoring a bill to protect Swazi land rights.
Courtesy Strieker family
to Nairobi, where his twin daughters Alison and Rachel were born. Strieker began his career in television journalism here, helping CNN establish its bureau in the Kenyan capital in 1985.
Courtesy Strieker family
Strieker was the network's only correspondent on the African continent for some time, covering the AIDs epidemic in the 1980s and other major moments in history, including the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.
CNN
Strieker interviewed South African President Nelson Mandela shortly after his 1994 election, a momentous occasion for the country and a career highlight for Strieker.
Courtesy Strieker family
After leaving CNN in 2004, Strieker focused his journalism on underreported global health and environmental issues, most recently for "This American Land," a series on public television stations across the US. "His journalism sought to put a spotlight on populations in need," said colleague Dave Timko, pictured here with Strieker in India.
Courtesy Global Health Frontiers
Strieker, pictured with his youngest two children, Reid, left, and Nandi, right.
