They worked to bring food to the hungry, medicine to the sick and clean water to people living in areas without it.

Among the 157 people who died in the crash of an Ethiopian Airlines jetliner Sunday were dozens of international aid workers hailing from several countries in Africa and around the globe.

Described as dedicated and impassioned employees of nonprofit environmental, immigration and refugee organizations, they lost their lives alongside pastors, professors, ambassadors, police chiefs and respected writers and sports leaders. All were on board the Boeing 737 Max 8 jetliner when it crashed shortly after takeoff from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, en route to Nairobi, Kenya.

At least five Ethiopian nationals who worked for aid agencies died in the crash. Save the Children mourned the loss of Tamirat Mulu Demessie, a technical adviser on child protection in emergencies who “worked tirelessly to ensure that vulnerable children are safe during humanitarian crises,” the group said in a statement.

Catholic Relief Services lost four Ethiopian staff members who had worked with the organization for as long as a decade. The four were traveling to Nairobi for training, the group said.

Immaculate Odero of Kenya, who served as CARE’s regional security officer for the Horn of Africa, was “dedicated to keeping her colleagues in the region safe,” and took on her role “with great enthusiasm,” the agency said.

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The Red Cross; The United Nations’ World Food Program; the International Committee for the Development of Peoples; the World Council of Churches; and Civil Rights Defenders, an international human rights group based in Stockholm, were among other humanitarian and cultural groups reporting losses. A family of six from Canada, African expatriates visiting families back home and tourists were also among the victims, who hailed from 35 countries.

Kenya lost 32 people, more than any country. Relatives of 25 of the victims had been contacted, Transport Minister James Macharia said. “They are in shock like we are,” he said. “They are grieving.”

Both Addis Ababa and Nairobi are major hubs for humanitarian workers, and some had been on their way to a large U.N. environmental conference due to begin Monday in Nairobi. At least 21 staff members from the United Nations were killed in the crash, said U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who led a moment of silence at a meeting. “A global tragedy has hit close to home,” Guterres said.

Irishman Michael Ryan was among the seven dead from the World Food Program. The Rome-based aid worker and engineer known as Mick was formerly from Lahinch, County Clare, in Ireland’s west. His projects included creating safe conditions for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh and assessing the damage to rural roads in Nepal that were blocked by landslides.

“Michael was doing life-changing work in Africa,” said Irish premier Leo Varadkar.

Mombasa, Kenya, native Cedric Asiavugwa worked with groups helping refugees in Zimbabwe, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania before he enrolled in law school at Georgetown university, the university said. Also a student of international business and economic law at Georgetown, Asiavugwa was remembered by family and friends as a “kind, compassionate and gentle soul.”


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