Saying Goodbye to Richard

Sadly, I've reached the point where my friends are starting to shuffle off this mortal coil.  The last few years have witnessed several of them passing, and as I close in on sixty it's hard to imagine that a year will slip away without someone joining that cold fraternity.  Last weekend I drove over to Fairfield, Maine for my friend and ex-colleague Richard Hunt's funeral.  We had taught together for over a decade at Champlain.  He retired a few years ago and had been in poor health.  His cousin Josh contacted me and asked me if I would speak at the funeral, which was an honor but also daunting (I joked during my talk that I had foolishly confided to Richard that I hate public speaking, and that this was his last joke on me).  As with all funerals we never want to go, but then are happy that we worked up the courage because it is such a communal supportive emotional cleansing.  Plus, in my faith we're required to attend the funeral of other adherents, even if we didn't know them, and in this case I'm more than happy to expand that directive.  In my short talk at the funeral I focused on Richard as a teacher (per Josh's request), but also made the point that he lived his teaching like he lived his faith: practically and organically and intentionally, taking every moment to find the best way to be of service to society.  We should all live lives so rich.

Richard was a man of tremendous faith, and served an important role in his church, the Fairfield Center Methodist Church, as he did when he lived here in Burlington, including often giving the sermons.

A very fitting way to honor Richard, and the one that brought me to tears.

The church itself, on an appropriately overcast day.  This was after I mistakenly went to the Fairfield Methodist Church, where the nice lady there told me that I was at the wrong Methodist church, which meant that I was almost late to a funeral wherein I was speaking. It did allow me to turn it into a gentle joke during my talk, which the good folks in the church thought was funny.  GS: "So, the nice lady at the Fairfield Methodist Church came out and asked me if I was there for Richard's funeral, and when I said yes, she said, 'You're not supposed to be here,' and I then thought, 'Wow, you Methodists are tough.'"

Richard nephew Josh said, during his talk, that Richard's dream was to see the church full, and for one day he got his wish.