Dear Jude,

Maddy and I were sad to hear that Richard passed away recently after his long struggle with cancer.

Richard was such an easy going, friendly and funny person to work with and always an off beat comment or unusual take on whatever was going on. This made working with Richard and knowing him as a friend special and such a pleasure. During his time in Charlottesville, he was a good friend of the family and was a favorite with our children when they were young. Richard was comfortable with children and seemed to instinctively know how to relate to them in a way that was comfortable and rather special.

We all know that Richard was a bit of a cynic! But his resistance to the status quo and search for other paths was what we liked and admired, especially because of his affable nature. It was really good to work with him in the lab, indoor and out. We have particular memories of him coming over to our place one Fall to collect airborne samples for Aspergillus and there we were, with sampler running, jumping up and down in piles of dead leaves and having great fun. The kids thought that it was hilarious (and somehow the experiment worked too).

These joyous moments of Richard laughing and enjoying life are what we remember and hope that they will be some solace with his passing. We will all miss him and hope that you and the children are coping as best you can.

Our thoughts are with you,

Martin and Maddy