Software engineer, avid canoeist and backpacker, jazz musician
Ted Reifenstein. (Courtesy photo)
Edward Conrad Reifenstein III, “Ted,” 85, died June 22, 2023, at his apartment in Acton after a year of declining health. Ted was born in Syracuse, New York, to Dr. Edward Conrad Reifenstein Jr. and Esther Tilden Reifenstein (later Bush). He spent his childhood in Newton, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and New Rochelle, New York. As an undergraduate at Williams College, he worked on the humor magazine, the Purple Cow, contributing cartoons and cover art. During summer jobs, he had the opportunity to use early computer equipment, which set him on a path in science and technology.
After graduating, Ted proceeded to MIT, where he joined the new field of radio astronomy. After receiving his Ph.D, he did postdoctoral research at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory in Greenbank, West Virginia, where he was instrumental in the discovery of the pulsar in the Crab Nebula.
After his postdoc, Ted joined Environmental Research and Technology, a scientific consulting firm established by colleagues from MIT. Later his interest in technology led him to the growing computer industry and he worked for several small software companies, ultimately landing with Agfa Compugraphic. Here he worked as a software engineer in the digital photography group and in the patent office, retiring in 1999.
Ted met his wife, Nancy, in San Francisco, a place that was always special to him. After they were married, they settled in Harvard. Later Ted lived in Cambridge, renovating a Victorian home near Harvard Square. His last years were spent at Nagog Woods and Robbins Brook, both in Acton.
Ted was a lifelong musician, playing and performing Dixieland jazz on both piano and cornet. Many impromptu evenings were spent with his grandchildren, playing old standards. Ted was an avid canoeist and backpacker, leading and participating in trips throughout the country. These trips were opportunities for him to indulge in his passion for photography.
Ted is survived by his ex-wife, Nancy Willmonton Reifenstein of Harvard; his son Ned Reifenstein of Berkeley, California; and his three grandsons: Sam, Nicholas, and Peter Reifenstein, also of Berkeley. His sister, Susan Beyers, lives in Simi Valley, California.
