The purported beheading of American photojournalist James Foley by Islamic State militants has sent shockwaves around the world.
Many of Foley鈥檚 friends and colleagues are remembering the 40-year-old as a kind and dedicated journalist who didn鈥檛 let fear stand in the way of his reporting from conflict zones.
Foley was on a freelance assignment for GlobalPost, a Boston-based online publication, when he was kidnapped in Syria on Nov. 22, 2012. He had also freelanced for Agence France-Presse.
A Rochester, New Hampshire native, Foley started pursuing a journalism career later in life. He worked as a teacher for years before attending Northwestern University鈥檚 Medill School of Journalism in 2008.
A few years later, he told journalism students at his alma matter that his brother, a soldier, inspired him to report from war zones.
Before he vanished in Syria, Foley survived a kidnapping in Libya in 2011. He was released after 44 days in captivity and spoke at length about his experience upon his return to the U.S.
In a letter to Marquette University, where he obtained an arts degree in the 1990s, .
鈥淚f nothing else, prayer was the glue that enabled my freedom, an inner freedom first and later the miracle of being released during a war in which the regime had no real incentive to free us,鈥� he wrote.
Another American journalist who was detained in Libya along with Foley wrote about their ordeal and recalled how Foley kept everyone鈥檚 spirits up.
鈥淲e shared a cell for two and a half weeks, and every day he came up with lists for us to talk through,鈥� . 鈥淭op 10 movies. Favourite books鈥hich famous person would you most like to meet? What鈥檚 your life story?鈥�
She said everyone who met Foley immediately liked him because he had a good sense of humour and was 鈥渇amously even-tempered鈥� in tough situations.
鈥淛im sees the good in nearly everything and everyone,鈥� she wrote. 鈥淗e is a master motivator.鈥�
