Fabrizio Barbosa Delgado

Fabrizio Barbosa Delgado was born on September 10, 1992 in Wenatchee, Washington to his loving parents, Ronaldo and Eliane Delgado. He passed away peacefully on September 26, 2021. It is impossible to summarize the past, present, and potential future of this young man, but this is one person's feeble attempt to do so.

Fabrizio was the youngest of two, and proved to be a dynamic, active, and bright boy from an early age. Even as a child, he never shied away from conversations with strangers. This ultimately proved to be one of his greatest strengths, which showed through his remarkable ability to befriend people from all walks of life through even just a few minutes of interaction. He was immensely proud of his Brazilian and Peruvian heritage, and some of his favorite childhood moments took place visiting his cousins, aunts, and uncles in South America.

Though he was born in Wenatchee, Fabrizio grew up with his older sister, Zabrina, in Moses Lake, Washington. He attended elementary school at North Elementary, where he quickly cultivated an inseparable bond with lifelong friends. Unquestionably, and without fail, Fabrizio and his friends spent every weekend with each other, alternating homes. Unsurprisingly, they often got into (harmless, boyish) mischief (often at the urging/leadership of Fabrizio). If ever you could not find Fabrizio at home, you could rest assured he was four-wheeling, go-carting, shooting fireworks, jumping on trampolines, or playing video games (likely Super Smash Brothers, Metroid Prime, or the myriad other video games in which he excelled) at one of his friends' homes. But his friends' parents didn't mind - he of course had charmed their hearts as well. Yes - he played hard. But he did so all the while developing into an engaged, intelligent young student, whose teachers invariably loved him.

As a well-rounded young boy, Fabrizio also managed to find time for one of his many passions: music. He played piano, where he found that he had a natural ear for music. As he grew up, he realized he wanted to dive into the wilder side of music theory, and quickly taught himself how to play the drums.

Fabrizio continued his social and academic successes through middle school, at Chief Moses Middle School, and high school at Moses Lake High School. While at MLHS, Fabrizio thrust himself into extracurriculars, never failing to miss a game cheering on the Chiefs in ridiculous costumes and paint with the Moses Lake Tribe (there may have been a banana suit involved...), and developing his athletic abilities as a member of the MLHS Tennis team. Most importantly, however, it was at this young age when Fabrizio first dove into his greatest passions: volunteerism, and serving others. As a student, Fabrizio was an active member of the Key Club, and it's where he first saw the value of serving his community with many hours of volunteer work.

Fabrizio graduated from MLHS in 2011. After graduating, Fabrizio moved to his favorite city - Seattle. It was here that Fabrizio blossomed. He thoroughly enjoyed his time at North Seattle Community College, where he studied as he figured out his chosen career path. Fabrizio loved learning new things, diving as deep as possible into any number of academic topics. He loved talking to his professors about class or just life. He particularly thrived in the sciences. It was also during this time that he lived with a number of roommates, including his brother-in-law, many of whom unsurprisingly became his chosen family. He continued to work hard and play hard - somehow finding a seemingly impossible balance between his hard science focused studies and time spent with his loved ones, and having fun. Again - his work paid off - he was accepted into the University of Washington. He was finally a Husky!

At the University of Washington he had narrowed down his interests even further and pursued a degree in microbiology with the goal of honing his experience and education into a career in healthcare. To make sure it was indeed his chosen path, Fabrizio worked at nursing homes, doing the most thankless work. But he loved it - every bit. That's because his passion was more than just medicine. Above all, for Fabrizio it was the people - the patients - that fueled him. These people were otherwise strangers, but not to him - the best part was talking the ear off of his patients. Especially at the nursing homes, these patients were often starving for human connection, and Fabrizio was more than willing to give it. He then moved on to Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, working to care for those enduring the most physically and emotionally challenging moments of their lives. He not only made strides as a professional, but he also made some lasting connections with patients and co-workers who became friends.

Most of us would think that balancing school work, a social life, and demanding jobs in medicine would be enough. But not Fabrizio. On top of his already full plate, he also made time to volunteer with numerous organizations in Seattle, working primarily with people experiencing homelessness, at Mary's Place, and with AIDS patients. In sum, the people that are systematically, and individually ignored - those were the people Fabrizio cared about.

Ultimately, Fabrizio decided to pursue a nursing degree - he had thought about medical school, and certainly could have been accepted to medical school and done well, but he realized that what he really cared about were the patients. As always, the University of Washington was his dream school. He had doubts that he could be accepted but he moved forward undeterred, always keeping his eyes on the prize, seeking out advice and help where he could get it. And once again - his hard work paid off and he was accepted into the very competitive UW Accelerated Bachelors of Science in Nursing program.

Fabrizio's greatest pride was being accepted into this program, and he milked it for every bit of experience he could. Again, he threw himself into his studies and extracurriculars. Seeing the experience of Seattle's homeless, he helped to found the UW School of Nursing Foot Care clinics for Seattle's Tent Cities. He witnessed first hand the indignity with which individuals experiencing homelessness were treated, and endeavored to give them the care they needed. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, he jumped at the opportunity to become a part of history and help administer the life-saving vaccines. And when he noticed that he was one of the few Latino students in the program, he knew he had to help remedy this. As such, he became involved with the School of Nursing's diversity in admissions initiative, where he made connections with the school's admissions staff, and passionately pled for the cause of diversity in medicine. Despite everything he had on his plate, Fabrizio had straight A's.

And it is here that we talk about the future. Fabrizio had plans - big plans. He was on the cusp of finishing up nursing school - with honors that he worked incredibly hard to achieve. He had one more quarter left, but having worked so hard without any breaks, he decided to take a couple of quarters off to reconnect with himself and his loved ones. He had the opportunity to continue volunteering, and importantly, spent a lot of time with his parents back in his hometown, and got to know his new baby nephew. He was slated to return to finish his degree, with honors. Despite his life being cut far too short, our world can rest assured that he made more of an impact on the lives of others, than most of us do in 100 years. Yes, he was an exceptional student and hard worker, but above all, Fabrizio was a good, kind human. Needless to say, his family was immensely proud of him.

In the end, Fabrizio never did anything in half measures - he lived his life to the fullest, without any regrets, and on his own terms. We can all learn from him.

Fabrizio is survived by his mother, Eliane, his father, Ronaldo, his sister, Zabrina, his brother-in-law, Benjamin, his nephew, Theodore, and countless family, friends, loved ones, and other individuals who he selflessly served. His loss is immeasurable and he will be greatly missed. He was, without a doubt, the best of us.

In lieu of flowers, in honor of Fabrizio's spirit of service, his family asks that you donate to the following organizations in his name:

Mary's Place: Fabrizio was a regular volunteer at this organization which helps mothers and their children experiencing homelessness.

Seattle Cancer Care Alliance: He worked here prior to starting nursing school.

Seattle Children's Hospital: Where Fabrizio was treated for a childhood illness, which ultimately inspired his career in medicine.

Additionally, in conjunction with the UW School of Nursing, we are in the process of establishing the Fabrizio Barbosa Delgado Memorial Scholarship for Underrepresented Nursing Students. Among the many social justice causes Fabrizio worked on, he was extremely passionate about ensuring that more BIPOC students, and especially Latino students, were given the opportunity to become nurses. He had aspirations of working in rural Eastern Washington to serve Latino patients, and we hope to carry on this legacy the best we can.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, October October 2, 2021 from 1:00pm - 5:00pm at Cady Cremation Services and Funeral Home located at 8418 S 222nd St. in Kent, Washington. Alternatively, if you are unable to attend in person (though that would certainly be Fabrizio's preference), the service will be streamed over the Zoom platform at:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/7439267656?pwd=OGlZUHNCWmhLZmpNNXlYSTc1NURjUT09

For more information about the good works Fabrizio committed to through the University of Washington School of Nursing, please click on this article about the Foot Care clinic he helped found: https://nursing.uw.edu/article/tent-city-3/

Please share memories, condolences and photos on the Tribute Wall, located above.

Arrangements Entrusted to Emmick Family Funeral Home - West Seattle

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