Stephen Brinson Aldridge's Obituary
Stephen Brinson Aldridge
1948 – 2018
Stephen Brinson Aldridge had a charismatic character, impressive wit, a love of adventure, travel, and frogs. He was born in Brattleboro Vermont March 18, 1948 and died March 1, 2018 in Oakland, California. He taught himself to read and speak Tibetan as a young man, and throughout the rest of his life was a scholar of Tibetan Buddhism and culture. He traveled to England, Nepal, India and Sikkim collecting, translating, and studying Tibetan texts; and took pilgrimages to mountain temples, caves and monasteries in China. He was known to suddenly break into an accent or dialect from one of the many places he’d visited in ‘Pythonesque’ fashion, delighting those around him. With great determination, he was able to publish his translation of The Incarnation From White Glacier Mountain, by Minyag Gonpo (translated by S. Brinson Aldridge) in 2008.
Stephen worked as a network specialist for The Permanente Medical Group while residing in Oakland, California. He was dedicated, eager to learn, and especially helpful to anyone needing technical assistance. Among his many achievements was the successful installation of Active Directory.
Stephen enjoyed throwing a quip from Monty Python, Bullwinkle, or Star Trek into conversations, and, as time permitted, built a makeshift device from spare parts that he dubbed Frankenserver, or simply Frankie. He loved to share a hearty dim sum lunch with friends and for many years steered the company dragon boat in competitions.
Brilliantly, Stephen and his wife Sosan stood up to the challenges of his diagnosis of Parkinson’s Disease nine years ago, by continuing to travel the world and explore various cultures on board cruise ships. Together they visited Great Britain, France, Norway, Germany, Greece, Portugal, Holland, Russia, Turkey, Dubai, Italy, Hawaii, South Pacific, Canada, Alaska, South America, Mexico, China, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, New Zealand, and Australia during Stephen’s final years.
He is survived by his loving wife Sosan and her sons Christen and Shelten, his brothers Leslie and Jeremy and their families, and his half-brothers Henry and Geoffrey. He was predeceased by his brother John D. Aldridge, his mother Lanice, and his father John W. Aldridge.
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