Thomas van der Voort ’57

Tom died of a heart attack Feb. 3, 2016, at his home in Alexandria, Va.

He prepared at the Lawrenceville School and majored in English at Princeton. Tom took his meals at Cloister, was a member of Whig-Clio and Theatre Intime, and roomed with Harry Lacey during his senior year.

After graduation, Tom earned a law degree at Harvard in 1960 and then moved to Washington, D.C., and began a career in public service. From 1960 to 1963 he worked at the Public Health Service, and from 1964 to 1974 he served as a legislative assistant to Sen. William Proxmire of Wisconsin. He joined the staff of the Senate Appropriations Committee in 1975, playing a variety of roles.

He left the government in 1989 and became president of van der Voort Associates until his retirement in 1996, after which Tom focused his substantial energies on collecting old-time radio programs and stamps. He also loved movies.

Tom had special times with his wife of 55 years, Elizabeth; his brother A.B. van der Voort ’47; children Tom van der Voort Jr. ’87, Leah van der Voort MacFarlane ’88, and Rachel van der Voort ’93; and nine grandchildren, including Carolyn MacFarlane ’19.