It’s a long way from Clay Township to Cyprus, but that won’t stop Randy Cole Jr. He’s got the travel bug and doesn’t expect to recover from it.

“I’m going to a job in Nicosia, Cyprus, which is the capital,” said Cole, a new Foreign Service officer for the U.S. Department of State.

“Being a diplomat had been a long-term goal of mine,” Cole said.

The Moniteau High School graduate has visited 20 countries and five of the world’s seven continents for fun or work.

“Once your mind has been expanded it cannot shrink again,” Cole said.

He graduated from Grove City College in 2004 and went on to receive master’s and doctoral degrees from Duquesne University.

“My career before coming to the State Department was a combination of intercultural communications and foreign policy,” Cole said.

He directed marketing and communications at Grove City College and taught at Grove City College and DeSales University.

“Being a professor was plan B,” Cole said, “It was the sure thing that I could do if the diplomat life didn’t happen.”

According to the Department of State website, a Foreign Service officer works to benefit the United States and the host country.

The job might seem glamorous with the travel, pay and exciting environments. However, diplomats have to be willing to live in remote places without many of the conveniences and services available in the United States. Some locations have political unrest. It can be dangerous.

In June, Cole will leave for the island country of Cyprus, south of Turkey in the Mediterranean Sea. He said Cyprus is where the cultures of the Middle East, North Africa and Europe collide.

Cole has completed seven months of preparation that includes an extensive orientation to the Department of State, diplomatic protocol, language training and country training.

“Cyprus was my number one choice and Turkey was a very close second,” Cole said.

Although Greek and English are widely spoken in Cyprus, Cole is studying Turkish five days a week, eight hours a day, plus homework.

He enjoys the colloquialisms that don’t translate easily into English.

“It’s learning how the Turkish mind works,” he said.

“For the first year I’ll be working with the Turkish language media in the north which is why I’m learning Turkish. The second year of the job I’ll be working in the political and economic part of the embassy,” Cole said.

The United States and the United Nations recognize Cyprus as one country, but Cole said there is a Turkish administered area in the north. A United Nations peacekeeping force maintains a green zone between Greek and Turkish communities in Cyprus.

Cole is not concerned about moving there.

“Cyprus is a very safe place for Americans. The reason I left academia for the State Department was because I wanted some more adventure and some more excitement in my life,” Cole said. “The things that would make some people hesitant don’t make me hesitant at all. I like the adventure and the slight sense of danger.”

His parents’ attitude is a bit different.

“I’m very proud of him of course, but also very worried. Just being a United States diplomat automatically puts you at a high risk,” said his mother, Lorrie Cole of Clay Township.

“I think any parent would be concerned,” said his father, Randy Cole Sr. “It’s right off the coast of Turkey. We all know what’s going on at the border of Turkey and Syria.”

Lorrie Cole wasn’t surprised when her son became a diplomat.

“He’s always had an interest in history and government,” she said. “Before he was even in grade school he wanted maps and globes.”

She and her husband tried to broaden their children’s horizons.

“We always told our kids that there was nothing they couldn’t do,” Randy Cole Sr. said. “Ever since he was little, anything he wanted to achieve he was always determined to do it.”

“We’re both very curious about the world,” said Randy Cole Jr.’s younger sister, Sarah Rumbaugh of Zelienople.

“I don’t want my kids growing up thinking that Zelie and Cranberry are the only places on earth,” she said.

She looks forward to her family visiting Cole during his career.

“With what he does, it’s very beneficial for my children,” she said. “He’s opened up a lot of doors for them.”

Cole expects being away from family and friends will be difficult for him, but his parents plan to visit in him in Cyprus.

“He’s brought travel into our world,” Lorrie Cole said.

“He fits in anywhere,” said Randy Cole Sr. “He’s not a very materialistic person. He says his treasures are traveling in different countries and meeting friends and their cultures.”

With his job, Randy Cole Jr. knows he will have a new and very different lifestyle.

Cole said, “It’s never going to be boring.”