Friends, family and colleagues are mourning two longtime ad industry execs and their two young children who died following a traffic accident in San Francisco on March 16.
The victims were Diego Cardoso de Oliveira, 40, associate creative director at Apple, and Matilde Moncada Ramos Pinto, 38, executive producer at RSA Films, along with their toddler son Joaquim Ramos Pinto de Oliveira and 3-month-old baby Cauê Ramos Pinto de Oliveira.
The family was standing at a bus stop at Ulloa Street and Lenox Way in the West Portal neighborhood when a Mercedes SUV struck the bus shelter, authorities said.
Cardoso de Oliveira had been with Apple for more than five years, following a decade in the U.K. at agencies including AMV BBDO, Mother and BBH. He began his career as an art director at agencies in Brazil.
Cardoso de Oliveira worked on scores of lauded ads in his career. Among the most notable, he was the art director on AMV’s “Viva La Vula” spot for Libresse in 2018.
Moncada Ramos Pinto had been an EP at RSA for two years, following five years as a directors’ representative at the company. She previously worked at Crow’s Nest Productions in the U.K. and Ireland.
“Diego and Matilde were warm and loving parents who had a deep love for their beautiful children and enjoyed nothing more than spending time with their two little boys,” the couple’s family said in a statement. “They were also what one would call real ‘life enhancers’—the kind of people everyone loved to be around: happy, funny, kind and always eager to make the best of what life had to offer them. The outpouring of love and grief from all over the world, which has greatly moved us, is a testament to this.
“We loved Diego, Matilde, Joaquim and Cauê deeply and are sure the love they showed to their family and friends will serve as their legacy.”
The family thanked the San Francisco Police Department and the first responders to the accident, as well as Apple and RSA Films “for their immense help and support during this difficult time.”
“We also want to extend our sincere gratitude to all our family and friends, without whose help we could not have gotten through these difficult times,” the family added. “At this time of mourning, we have no further information to add and ask that you kindly respect our family’s privacy to grieve.”
The San Francisco Police Department said the driver involved in the accident, Mary Fong Lau, 78, was booked on counts of felony vehicular manslaughter, felony reckless driving causing bodily injury and additional traffic violations. An investigation into the accident is ongoing.
In a joint statement, Apple, AMV BBDO, BBH, Mother and RSA expressed sadness about the deaths of their “cherished friends” and their two young children.