Born: June 23, 1948; Boston, MA
Died: May 11, 2023; New Haven, CT
Richard Scully, a chef, family man, naturalist, Boston sports fan and Madison, CT, resident, died May 11 of complications from ALS at Yale New Haven Hospital. Scully, who was 74, was for three decades executive chef at the Woodway Country Club in Darien, CT. During his tenure there, he worked alongside a generation of professionals whose talent he was quick to recognize and encourage. Over the years, Scully promoted dishwashers to key positions in the kitchen, while continuously expressing gratitude for the steady support he and his staff received from the club’s membership.
Scully’s love of cooking was sparked by a European backpacking trip shortly after graduation from the College of the Holy Cross. His first job was garde manager, or pantry chef, at the venerable St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco, where he earned $18 a day while observing and learning from French colleagues. Later, he was night chef at the Ritz-Carlton and sous chef at the Parker House Hotel, both in Boston. Scully also was executive chef at the Old Lyme Inn in Old Lyme, CT.
From 1985 to 2007, Scully lived in Redding, CT. He then moved to Madison with his wife, Beverly (Boyko), whom he married in 1979 and survives him, to be closer to the Long Island Sound. The couple were regulars at the Madison Surf Club beach, enjoying wine, cheese and sunsets.
A birder, cyclist, kayaker, swimmer and hiker, Scully was a keen observer of nature. In the outdoors, he was often accompanied by his Portuguese water dog, Tuela, named after a river in interior Portugal, where Scully and his wife recently traveled.
Scully is also survived by two grown children whom he was always proud of, Nicholas, a fellow committed Boston sports fan, and Kathleen, mother to Scully’s two young grandchildren/playmates/daily FaceTime companions, Simon Ellis and Julian Jett, as well as his daughter in-law, who he could talk to for hours, Lauren.
Scully is also survived by three sisters; one brother; nine nieces and nephews; a sister-in-law; and legions of friends and former kitchen brigade colleagues, all of whom will remember him for his graciousness, gentle counsel and warmth.
A funeral is scheduled for Thursday, May 18 with calling hours beginning at 12PM and a service beginning at 2PM at Swan Funeral Home in Madison.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the ALS Association’s Connecticut chapter at alsact.org.
COMPARTA UN OBITUARIO
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