by Tom Shafer
December 31, 2019
It is with deep sadness that I must announce the passing of a great man and friend – and my father-in-law and originator of Signal Hill Musings – Richard Dwight Seifried. He left us peacefully on Sunday, December 29, 2019, after a brief illness, surrounded by loving family. Richard’s health had been declining for the past few months, but in spite of that, he was nonetheless as thoughtful and perceptive as ever. Up until a couple of weeks ago, we were still enjoying engaging dialogue, discussing topics ranging from wolves in Arkansas to the 2020 presidential campaign. Because he was yet weighing the candidates, he had not made a clear selection from the dwindling Democratic field – though he liked (but was not leaning toward) Amy Klobuchar, Elizabeth Warren, and Joe Biden. He was involved until the end.
Richard knew he was dying and seemed okay with the idea, especially given that he had died before (for more, read “The Beauty of Life After Death” under Ole Richard’s Archives). For much of his life, he had been a force of nature, working hard to lead and educate the world from under his many hats: soldier, teacher, wildland firefighter, ranger-naturalist, UFO investigator, seminar speaker on a variety of topics, writer, and blogger. But after a poorly healed fractured hip five years ago, he was rendered wheelchair bound, which effectively ended his travels and adventures. It was hard for him to watch the world essentially moving on without him, though he did his best to keep up through the written word and the boob tube. But at the end, he was tired – and frankly, who wouldn’t have been after all that he had accomplished in his ninety-one years. He even went so far as to say goodbye to his regular weekday caregivers on Friday. He knew it was time.
Should you like to learn more about arrangements, please read his obituary below. I will be writing much more about Richard in the coming months.
Richard Dwight Seifried, age 91, passed away peacefully on December 29, 2019, at Friends Care Community in Yellow Springs, Ohio. He was born June 23, 1928, in Piqua, Ohio, to father William Stoeffer Seifried and mother Catherine Isabelle (Carey) Seifried. Preceded in death by wives Betty (Romer) Seifried and Norma Jean (Galeener) Seifried, he is survived by his son Steven (Ann) Seifried; daughters Carol (Ercell) Day, Jane (Tom) Shafer, Julie (Dave) Fisher, and Amy Stephens; and sister Diane (Rick) Robbins. He is also survived by nine grandchildren, two great-grandchildren, and numerous cousins, nieces, and nephews. Richard grew up in Piqua, Ohio, but a trip west while in high school set in motion a long life of travel and adventure. He served America during the Korean War with the U.S. Army from 1950-52, returned home and initiated his life-long thirst for education at the Ohio State University (Bachelor of Science in Education), then continued his studies at the University of Montana (Master of Science in Education) and Wright State University (postgraduate work). His career as an educator of history led him from American Samoa to Oakwood High School in Dayton, Ohio, but it didn’t stop there. During his summers (then winters after retirement), he continued teaching for the National Park Service, first in fire service in Idaho, then as a ranger naturalist leading hikes and delivering fireside talks in several national parks and monuments (including Mt. Rainier, Crater Lake, Glacier, Olympic, and Organ Pipe Cactus). His extensive travels covered many, many more of our country’s beautiful (and historical) places, and his love of history compelled him to follow the trail of Lewis and Clark at the ripe, young age of eighty! Richard was also a successful writer who authored numerous books including A Voice from the Forest and the Wolf Man trilogy, and he maintained a monthly writer’s blog, Signal Hill Musings, for many years, which will continue in memoriam at signalhillmusings.com. His other hobbies included wilderness hiking, spelunking, reading, and investigating/researching UFO sightings and phenomena. Richard had a deep passion for wolves and an intense desire to protect all endangered species, and that carried over to love of his own pets, especially his very special dogs and cats. Though in failing health the last few years of his life, Richard continued his love of reading and writing, and of course teaching a little history to anyone when the chance presented itself. He even organized and contributed his life story, the Richard Dwight Seifried Collection, to Wright State University Archives and Wright State University’s Veterans Voices Project, which is also catalogued with the Veterans History Project at the Library of Congress. He will be missed by his friends and family, and all others who got a chance to know him. Special thank-you’s go out to caregivers at Friends Care and to the Greene County Library Outreach Program for faithfully providing books to him over the past three years. In lieu of a traditional funeral service, a celebration of his life will occur on Saturday, June 20, 2020, from 1 to 5 p.m. at the lower picnic area at John Bryan State Park just outside of Yellow Springs. Those who can’t attend but want to honor Richard should take a purposeful walk on a favorite trail on that day or on his birthday, June 23.
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