- David W. RICHARDSON David Wesley Richardson, 87, a retired local pharmacist and active member of his church, died April 23 at Providence Mt St Vincent assisted living facility. Dave was a trusted and respected pharmacist at his store, North Roosevelt Pharmacy, and at other pharmacies for more than fifty years. He was active in his faith, most prominently at Christ Church (Episcopal), St. Luke's Episcopal Church, and St. George's Episcopal Church, where he was a lay reader and member of the vestry. Dave was born in East Helena, Montana, April 20, 1924 and from an early age helped out in the family drugstore. He lived through the great depression as a child, learned early on to love baseball, became an Eagle Scout, starred in Gilbert and Sullivan musicals, graduated from Helena High School as Valedictorian, and volunteered as a smoke jumper to fight forest fires. He enlisted in the Navy after the attack on Pearl Harbor, became a technician in the new field of radar, and quickly rose to the rank of chief petty officer. After the war, he moved to Seattle and received a degree from the college of Pharmacy at the University of Washington, finishing at the head of his class. When the Korean War broke out, he reenlisted in the Navy. Dave spent the rest of his life in Seattle, where he married Paula Hall (1924-2005), established his own pharmacy, and raised five children. He loved the outdoors and regularly took his children on hikes, fishing trips, camping adventures, and epic car trips to national parks in the western US and Canada. He was also an avid sports fan, rooting for the Huskies, the Mariners, and the Seahawks. In 1979, he took into his home a family of ten Cambodian refugees and assisted their transition into successful American lives. A friend to all, Dave will be remembered especially for his unfailing cheerfulness, optimism, and willingness to help anyone who asked. He is survived by his five loving children, Kathy Rither (Alan), Brian Richardson (Sangeeta Ray), Alan Richardson, Lisa Schmidt (Ed) , and Lori Richardson (Peter Notschke) as well as his grandchildren Leon Hayward, David Rither, Sara Strandquist, Melvin Donaldson, Nathan Richardson, and Lida Richardson, and one great-grandson, Ellison Hayward. A memorial service is scheduled at the Main Chapel (3rd Floor) of Providence Mount St Vincent, 4831 35th Ave SW, Seattle on Saturday, May 14, at 1:00 PM. Donations in his name may be sent to the 'Dinner at St George's Fund,' c/o St George's Episcopal Church, 2212 NE 125th St, Seattle, WA 98125-4219.
Published by The Seattle Times on May 1, 2011.
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1924 - 2011 (87 years)
