My pal Sue Fortescue, who has died of pancreatic most cancers aged 75, was a trailblazer throughout the various worlds of language studying, schooling, computing and worldwide banking. She was additionally an lively volunteer for various causes.
Sue was born in Teddington, south-west London. Her father, Dennis Fortescue, was an RAF officer, and Sue and her mom, Ann (nee Angell), led a peripatetic life all through her schooldays, lastly ending up in Leeds. At Studying College she studied French and Italian, spending time in Aix-en-Provence and Naples. She returned to Naples after her 1969 commencement, working as an English instructor for the British Council. The Ministry of Abroad Growth then recruited her in 1976 to create a grasp’s course in schooling at a Nepalese college.
A grasp’s diploma in linguistics on the College of Leeds in 1975-76 sparked her curiosity in the usage of IT in language studying, and later in translation. These have been early days for such makes use of of computer systems, and in 1987 she co-authored the e book Utilizing Computer systems within the Language Classroom. By then she was taking a second grasp’s diploma at Heriot-Watt College, on knowledge-based methods. Her expertise in languages, schooling and IT got here collectively in a submit at Barclays Company Banking, designing multimedia coaching programmes, forward of their time.
The remaining 23 years of Sue’s profession have been spent at Swift, the worldwide banking telecommunications organisation, principally at their headquarters in Belgium but additionally with a two-year posting to the US. She rose to the position of IT supervisor, and her crew was chargeable for guaranteeing the resilience of worldwide banking methods to forestall their doable collapse on 1 January 2000. The multilingual and multicultural atmosphere at Swift enormously suited her outgoing character.
On retirement in 2011, Sue moved to Poole in Dorset, and enthusiastically embraced volunteering roles, the place she used her IT expertise serving to numerous charities and area people our bodies, together with 10 years with Samaritans Bournemouth. Retaining her curiosity in languages, she turned an envoy for Translators With out Borders, offering translation providers for humanitarian functions, and she or he took a 3rd grasp’s diploma, in machine translation. Sue gave her coronary heart and soul to the whole lot she did.
Sue will likely be remembered for her kindness, enthusiasm humour and knowledge. She impressed many along with her constructive and adventurous lifestyle, and inspired all to observe their desires.
She is survived by her cousins Lisa, Lynn, Susan and John.
