Richard Karl Holzwarth

On February 24th at the age of 87 years old, Richard (Dick) Holzwarth left this world in exactly the way he wanted to; Peacefully, quietly, and without any unnecessary pain or suffering. While our father could most certainly handle pain and discomfort, he spent the majority of his adult life (post boot camp) going out of his way to avoid it. 

Born in Brooklyn, New York on May 29, 1937 to Herbert and Helen Holzwarth, Richard was little brother to Herb Jr. and Gloria. It is unclear if one or all of his immediate family members were responsible for our Dad’s knack for storytelling but whoever it was, we are most certainly grateful to them.

We heard the stories from childhood in Brooklyn; serving coffee and sandwiches at Herb’s lunch service and visits from the FBI wondering what one family could need so much sugar for other than a bootlegging operation. We heard about chicken noodle soup with the neighbour that looked after him who didn’t understand how a young boy could be satisfied with the same meal every single day, which never changed, right up until his last lunch. We were always envious when the stories turned to summers at Rockaway Point and trips to Coney Island and were especially thankful to have enjoyed visiting Rockaway Point about 25 years ago and watching the memories come rushing back.

It was in High School at Brooklyn Tech where Richard’s passion for problem-solving through Math and Engineering really came into focus. His time at Brooklyn Tech led to another one of the stories that he very much loved to share (especially when our grades were low); having been awarded both the New York State Regents Scholarship and the Emil Schweinburg Scholarship which allowed him to continue his studies at Cooper Union and NYU.

After launching his professional career with General Foods, Richard spent most of the '60s with M.W Kellog in New York before working with Heldor Topsoe in both New York and Copenhagen. It was while at Heldor Topsoe that Richard met Kathleen Claire Grey, a Jamaican, studying at the University of New Brunswick and working in New York for the summer. Richard and Claire were married in Denmark in November of 1969 which provided another great Richard story. As foreigners their marriage needed to be approved by the King of Denmark and the young couple were granted a certificate signed by the King himself. They were excited to have such a wonderful keepsake, only to discover that they had to return it after the ceremony because the certificate was reused for all weddings involving foreigners.

Following the wedding, Richard and Claire went to Jamaica for what would be an almost year-long honeymoon living with Claire's parents, Locksley and Dolly. The honeymoon eventually came to an end as the newlyweds prepared for the arrival of their first child, Lisa. Preparing for parenthood Richard wrote what would turn out to be his last resume which resulted in a position at Alcan Jamaica Ltd. A new daughter, a new job, a new decade, and a new country. Richard, Claire, and Lisa embraced the '70’s with their arms wide open. Life as an Expat suited Richard; Traveling the Caribbean for car rallies and field hockey and even a little cricket thrown in for good measure! As per usual the stories were plentiful, including a car rally that concluded at the National Stadium in Mexico City in front of a crowd of 60,000 people. Unfortunately, their team finished in last place and when they arrived at the stadium, everyone was gone. The couple welcomed their son Karl in 1977 and in 1981 Richard was transferred to Montreal Canada where he remained employed with Alcan until his retirement in 1999. 

Richard is survived by his two children Lisa and Karl, his daughter-in-law Trish, and his grandson Spencer. We as a family are so very thankful that in his last week Richard was upbeat and full of even more of the stories we cherished so very much and that he got to spend those days with Lisa. We very much believe that his only regret would have been falling just 2 months and 14 days shy of outliving his father and capturing the Holzwarth clan longevity record.