Gordon Wendell Richardson

Gordon W. Richardson, 83 of Ft. Collins Colorado passed away on Saturday, March 21, 2015. He is survived by his loving wife of 55 years, Sonya Richardson. He was preceded in death by their newborn daughter, Carla Jolene Richardson in 1974.

After graduating from Oklahoma State University, he enlisted in the army where he found his passion for missiles and space design. He graduated from “rocket school” while serving in the Army. After his military service he returned to graduate school at Oklahoma State University where he received his Master’s Degree in engineering. He was hired by Douglas Aircraft in Santa Monica California where he worked in the beginning stages of the space program for 14 years. When Rockwell International Corporation was awarded the Space Lab contract, Gordon was hired by Rockwell as the lead engineer where he designed parts for the shuttle and the moon shot; he was proud of his “fingerprints on the moon”. He retired from Rockwell in 1988.

Gordon, together with his wife Sonya enjoyed traveling, camping, taking rides on the motorcycle and jeep trips. He was a great photographer and shared many stories of their adventures together. He belonged to the Oklahoma Masonic Lodge & Al Malaikah Shriner’s of Los Angeles California.

Gordon was a wonderful, caring man who never met a stranger. With his witty personality and wonderful laugh, he always had a story to tell that was never dull or boring, he was a thought provoker and quite a teaser. He loved his family and will be dearly missed by everyone. He is survived by numerous nieces, nephews and extended family.

Memorial Services will be held 11 am Saturday, April 4 at the Allnutt Funeral Chapel, 2100 N. Lincoln Avenue in Loveland. A reception will follow. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Gordon’s name to Shriner’s Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah or the American Heart Association.