Imants ‘Ed’ Klingbergs passes away at 79

Klingbergs

Imants Klingbergs, more popularly known in the CNMI community as “Ed,” passed away on Oct. 29 on Saipan. He was 79.

Klingbergs’ close friend of 53 years, Ivan Propst, said that Klingbergs’ contributions to shaping the education system of the Northern Marianas will never be forgotten.

He said that Klingbergs lived a full life and worked hard everyday of it and was happiest when he was hard at work.

According to Propst, his friendship with Klingbergs started back in the late 1960s when they were both deployed in Palau under the U.S. Peace Corps. Propst said it was Klingbergs who recruited him into working for the then-Department of Education back in 1975.

Klingbergs first set foot in the Marianas in 1971, when the islands were still a part of the six district trust territories of the United States, to teach English as a second language. He was hired as the District English Language supervisor and oversaw the instruction of the language on Tinian and Rota where he also trained people to teach English as a secondary language. He did this until 1983.

He taught at Hopwood Junior High School for three years, and then he moved to the Northern Marianas College.

Klingbergs worked at NMC for about two years and he established the first Community Education Program, which helped individuals get short-term basic training on skills. Today, the program has blossomed and is still offered at NMC.

After his two years at NMC, Klingbergs retired from government service for a couple of years before returning for two years as the dean of Special Programs at NMC and then fully retiring to manage his business.

The Saipan Auto Supply Company was Klingbergs’ first business. He also managed an apartment building that he built. After 25 years, that building still stands strong in Susupe.

According to Propst, Klingbergs will always be remembered as a hardworking individual, honest, and a person who committed to excellence. “Dishonesty was simply a concept he was unfamiliar with in terms of his own character,” said Propst.

Klingbergs’ youngest daughter, Cynthia Guillermo, told Saipan Tribune that she would always remember her father as an amazing man who worked hard, was generous, and cared deeply for his loved ones.

“I never knew him to be anything but happy and satisfied with his life and his family, who he was deeply devoted to,” Propst said.

His passing came as a shock to the people who loved him most. Klingbergs’ loved ones said that even he was energetic.

He is survived by his wife, Marietta, their three children: Neolani Paet, Mila Mattivi, and Cynthia Guillermo, and their three grandchildren: C.J. Paet, Daeson Guillermo, and Kayla Guillermo Klingbergs.

The family will host a celebration of life service at the Saipan Community Church in Susupe tomorrow, Nov. 4, at 10am. The community is invited.