Sarah York (born 1978) is an American woman who, at age 10, became the

pen pal Pen pals (or penfriends, penpals, pen-pals) are people who regularly write to each other, particularly via postal mail. Pen pals are usually strangers whose relationship is based primarily, or even solely, on their exchange of letters. Occasion ...

Manuel Noriega Manuel Antonio Noriega Moreno ( , ; February 11, 1934 – May 29, 2017) was a Panamanian dictator and military officer who was the ''de facto'' List of heads of state of Panama, ruler of Panama from 1983 to 1989. He never officially serv ...

, the then-''de facto'' ruler of

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

. York began correspondence with Noriega after her father suggested on a whim that she should write to him because she liked the general's hat. This correspondence developed to the point where Noriega invited her family to visit him in Panama. Her family agreed to the visit, seeing it as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Overview

York (then 10 years old) and her mother toured Panama from October 5 through October 11, 1988, and they were escorted by a military guard on a tour of the country. She was interviewed constantly during her visit, becoming the main item on the Panamanian news, and the mayor of

Panama City Panama City, also known as Panama, is the capital and largest city of Panama. It has a total population of 1,086,990, with over 2,100,000 in its metropolitan area. The city is located at the Pacific Ocean, Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, i ...

awarded her an honorary key to the city. Upon her return to her home in

Negaunee, Michigan Negaunee ( or ) is a city in Marquette County, Michigan, Marquette County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 4,627 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The city is located at the southwest corner of Negaunee Township, M ...

, she was praised at first, particularly by her school and community, but soon the story was covered in the national media, where she was derided and ridiculed for befriending an enemy of the United States. Nevertheless, York would visit Panama and Noriega again the following year in October 1989 – just two months before the

United States invasion of Panama The United States invaded Panama in mid-December 1989 during the presidency of George H. W. Bush. The purpose of the invasion was to depose the '' de facto'' ruler of Panama, General Manuel Noriega, who was wanted by U.S. authorities for rack ...

. Unlike the previous trip, her second visit was planned as a family vacation and was not at the invitation of Noriega. Accompanied by her father, York visited the country October 8 through October 17, meeting Noriega while there. Her parents were criticized for allowing her to visit Panama, and for encouraging her friendship with Noriega, then a highly controversial figure. After her second trip, an editorial in the local newspaper, ''

The Mining Journal ''The Mining Journal'' is the predominant daily newspaper of Marquette, Michigan, and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Like most market-dominant daily papers, the ''Journal'' is a six-day paper. ''The Mining Journal'' is distributed over a wide ...

'', criticized their return trip in the wake of the coup, in contrast to the previous reception a year earlier. She has since lived on a self-sufficient farm in remote rural

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

, and was interviewed by the radio show ''

This American Life ''This American Life'' is a weekly hour-long American radio program produced in collaboration with Chicago Public Media and hosted by Ira Glass. It is broadcast on numerous public radio stations in the United States and internationally, and is ...

'' in 2003. Her story was used as the basis for a song, "Pineapple Girl" by the indie rock group, Mister Heavenly, on their 2011 album, '' Out of Love''. She has a B.A. in Latin American and Iberian Studies and Creative Writing from Bard College in New York and a Masters of Education from St. Mary's University of Minnesota. She has taught Spanish at Perpich Arts High School in Golden Valley, Minnesota, since 2020.

References

* * *

Overview

See also

References

Further reading