Fernando Antonio van Reigersberg

Dearest Friends, I write today to tell you that the family (Alexia, Dito, and I) have come to the sad but inescapable conclusion that given the situation with the omicron variant and its contagiousness, we have no choice but to postpone the Memorial and Celebration of Fernando's life until it is safe for us all to gather. We hesitated for some days, but when Dito himself came down with an ugly case of the virus the decision was truly made for us. (He is improving thanks to a proactive oncologist who saw to it that he had the antibody treatment which seems to be working.) We are hoping that we will be able to gather in better weather too, and do feel very certain that Fernando would be opposed categorically to any risk-taking on his behalf. We pray for your understanding--the invitation will remain open with a view to posting a new date as soon as circumstances warrant. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your friendship and desire to help celebrate the wonderful man I married almost 54 years ago. May we wish you all a blessed holiday season and most especially a New Year of good health and happy days. With love, Stephie Fernando Antonio van Reigersberg, age 84, of McLean, Virginia passed away on Wednesday, August 4, 2021. Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.NationalFH-MP.com for the Van Reigersberg family. Fernando Antonio van Reigersberg was born in New York City in 1937 to Frans van Reigersberg and Julia Peña y Camus. He spent his childhood in Holland, France, Portugal, Spain, and Morocco before returning to the States for his undergraduate studies at Georgetown University. One day he stumbled into the Career Planning office at Georgetown looking for summer employment and someone suggested he look into working as an interpreter. The rest is history. He started out working during the summers as an escort interpreter for visiting groups and dignitaries; he was then hired as a full time interpreter by the State Department in 1958, same year as he graduated from Georgetown University. He worked with many statesmen and preeminent personalities, from Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy and Lyndon. B. Johnson to astronaut Neil Armstrong, from many of the world's top Olympic athletes to His Holiness Pope Francis. After more than a decade at the Department of State, he joined INTELSAT (the international satellite telecommunications corporation) as the founder and head of their Language Services Division. He led there until his retirement. He continued to work actively after his retirement in the service of many conferences and organizations including the United Nations, the IMF, the World Bank, ICSID, and the OAS. Of particular importance to him in his retirement was his volunteer work as an interpreter for patients at the Arlington Free Clinic. He was also a passionate opera lover, an avid reader, and a constant learner with an undying curiosity for all things. His fascination with the languages of the world and his eagerness to help people communicate propelled him onto the path of a most distinguished linguistic career. Husband of Stephanie Ross van Reigersberg Father of Alexia Simone and Fernando Steven (Dito) Grandfather to Luke Fernando and Eli John Bastiaansen Donations in his honor may be made to GALA Hispanic Theatre (https://ci.ovationtix.com/35923/store/donations/39658) or the Arlington Free Clinic (https://www.arlingtonfreeclinic.org/get-involved/donate/).