ELLENVILLE, N.Y. — Darryl Nirenberg grew up in Ellenville in the 1970s, biking around town to deliver newspapers. Last week, he was sworn in as the next United States ambassador to Romania.
A longtime attorney and graduate of Colgate University, Nirenberg spent time as a Senate staffer and was a counsel for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He was nominated to the ambassador position by President Donald Trump last year. He was confirmed by the Senate in December. He was sworn in Wednesday, Jan. 28.
“I’m grateful to President Trump and Secretary (Marco) Rubio for placing their confidence in me and providing me the honor of representing our country in Romania,” Nirenberg said in an interview with the Freeman on Thursday.
Nirenberg said he has fond memories of his childhood in Ulster County.
“Growing up in Ellenville was just great,” Nirenberg said. “My first job was delivering the Daily Freeman.”
Nirenberg said one of his core memories is delivering the newspaper during Hurricane Agnes, which hit the region in 1972.
“It had a big impact on Upstate New York, and I recall that vividly, because it dumped like 20 inches of rain over the course of a couple of days,” Nirenberg said. “I remember having to go out and deliver the papers. I had to very intricately wrap each paper in plastic to keep it dry. My route was a long route, and I was on a bike, so I remember I came home like every day for that week just totally drenched.”
Nirenberg credits a lot of the life skills he learned as a child to his first job.
“It was a job that gave me some great foundation in certain skills,” Nirenberg said. “First, marketing, because I had to go out and find customers. Second was being reliable, because there was no break. You had to deliver the paper every day.”
“Third is understanding customer service, because we’d live off tips.”
Nirenberg remarked that on Thursdays, which were his collection days, he would often treat himself to a black-and-white cookie from Cohen’s Bakery and a Coca-Cola from Center Street Market.
After his time at Colgate University, Nirenberg made his way to Washington, D.C., first working for former Republican U.S. Senator from California S. I. Hayakawa before joining the staff of the Senate Agriculture Committee. At night, Nireneberg took classes at George Washington University to earn his law degree.
Nirenberg later moved to the Foreign Relations Committee and then served as chief of staff and legislative director to former Republican U.S. Senator from North Carolina Jesse Helms. It was during this time, Nirenberg said, that he gained a wealth of experience in foreign relations.
“It was an incredible experience,” Nirenberg said.
After his time in Washington, Nirenberg went into private practice focusing on international business issues and international law.
In terms of Romania specifically, Nirenberg said Trump made the decision to nominate him to the position. He added that he has experience in Eastern European foreign relations from his time in Washington.
“I was thrilled with (Trump’s decision), because first, my grandparents are from Eastern Europe,” Nirenberg said. “While I was on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee staff was when the Romanian Revolution occurred, and it was a big issue for our committee.”
Nirenberg said Romania is an important country for U.S. foreign relations, both geographically and economically.
“Romania is a key NATO ally,” he said. “It is fast-growing, so there are great opportunities for American businesses, and it has the potential to be a game-changer when it comes to energy, resources, and critical minerals.”
Nirenberg said his goals are to focus on both embassy operations and to strengthen ties between Romania and the United States.
“First and foremost is to focus on embassy operations and to watch out for the Americans who work (in Romania), serve there, and visit there,” Nirenberg said. “Second is going to be working on building our ties between our countries, especially in the area of military and defense cooperation.”
Nirenberg said he is also seeking to promote American businesses and exports in the country.
Nirenberg credited much of his success to his Ulster County roots.
“As one of the senators for whom I worked was very fond of saying, ‘If you see a turtle on a fence post, you know it didn’t get there by itself,’” Nirenberg said. “I’ve always been forever grateful to have the benefit of growing up in a small town, and one like Ellenville, where it’s a real community, and you get support from your neighbors and the community.”