Richard Sandford Laurent, 59, of Alexandria, died peacefully on April 7 at the Halquist Memorial Inpatient Center after a brief illness.
Born in Charlottesville, Va., and reared in Alexandria, Richard was a 1971 graduate of T. C. Williams High School and spoke at his commencement ceremony. At the University of Virginia, he was an Echols Scholar, spent his junior year in Paris, was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and the Raven Society, and earned his B.A. and M.A. in French. He received a second M. A. in linguistics from Georgetown University. At the University of California at Berkeley, he completed his doctorate in philology. His doctoral dissertation, “Past Participles from Latin to Romance,” was published by the University of California Press in 1999.
Dr. Laurent worked as editor to the Executive Board at the International Monetary Fund for 10 years and later held many consulting and advisory positions.
He is survived by his father, Lawrence Laurent of Alexandria, a brother Arthur Laurent of Leesburg, Va., two sisters, Margaret Laurent Gordy (Joseph Gordy) of St. Augustine, Fla., and Elizabeth Laurent (Lawrence Dame) of Merion Station, Penn., two nieces and two nephews. His mother, Margaret Goodwillie Laurent, predeceased him by six years.
A service in celebration of his life will be held Friday, April 13, 2012 at 2 p.m. at St. Andrew and St. Margaret of Scotland Church, 402 East Monroe Ave., Alexandria.
In lieu of flowers, direct memorial contributions to St. Andrew and St. Margaret of Scotland Church in Alexandria.