Richard Allen Dellefield

Our father, Richard Allen Dellefield, passed away on the evening of Saturday, February 1, 2025, at the age of 97—prematurely, one might say, because he was shooting for 100. We all believed he would make it because he had been healthy and active his whole life, but the death of his beloved wife of 71 years, Wilma Linnehan Dellefield, and a subsequent series of medical issues brought down this mighty man.

Dad is survived by four of his five children — Karyn, Richard James, William, and Laura (third-born Robert passed in 2017) — and eight grandchildren: Billy, Vanessa, Kevin, Rachel, Rebecca, Alicia, Nicholas, and Jack.

Dad was born May 21, 1927, in Chicago, Illinois, to Myron and Corinne Dellefield, a handsome, fun-loving couple of the roaring ‘20s. Brother Larry (now deceased) was born four years after Dad, followed one year later by twin sisters, Karen Mary and Winifred Sophia. Born prematurely, the girls only lived two weeks and five weeks, respectively

Our father’s life followed a traditional course. Schoolwork, baseball, and hijinks in his tender years gave way to more of the same in high school and college, followed by marriage, career, family, retirement, and golden years spent with Mom. But he did everything with exceptional gusto and skill.

Dad retired from the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power at 63, after 19 years of work as a System Analyst. Attendance at his retirement party was his department’s biggest to date. Dad also owned and operated a side business with Mom, logging job progress and processing payroll for three branches of Leaverton Plumbing.

Other achievements include receiving a baseball scholarship from the University of Illinois, pitching a no-hitter for them, getting an offer to join the Chicago Cubs farm team, being selected at 50 years old to play in an Orange County adult baseball league with guys half his age, picking up snow-skiing with Mom when they were in their 60s, hitting a hole in one at the age of 89 (he was still walking the links at the time), co-designing and assisting with the building of the fourth of his 5 houses (having grown up in a series of small apartments, owning just one would have been a huge accomplishment), traveling extensively throughout the U.S. and Europe, and visiting places as far-flung as Israel and Tahiti.

Dad’s biggest achievement, however, was wooing and marrying Mom. After 71 years of marriage and 97 years on Earth, Dad believed it was his life's most significant and fortunate event.

Dad made friends everywhere he went and left them with a million happy memories still ringing with laughter. He loved hanging out after mass at the churches he attended in Orange, Anza, Idyllwild, Dana Point, and most recently Solano Catholic Church in Rancho Santa Margarita, exchanging stories peppered with jokes and jibes. Mostly the latter: stories were more often set-ups for the jibes, which in turn were delivery systems for affection. Dad did not kid around with people he didn’t like.

Family time was sacred for Dad, and family dinners were High Mass. We kids wanted to stay outside playing with friends long past the streetlights came on, and we squirmed at the thought of neighborhood friends seeing us through the broad front window, brightly lit and seated around the dining room table. But “sitting down as a family” was mandatory until we hit our teens. Dad presided at the head of the table, Mom sat at the other end, and the kids faced off across the table in a contest to get the biggest laugh from Dad. Ultimate prestige went to whoever got Dad laughing so hard that he broke down into a fit of coughing and wheezing. The most successful jabs and japes were honored as “wheeze-worthy.”

Dad loved being surrounded by his family, and we, his children and grandchildren, basked in his delight. Now, as it was then, the world is a safe and beautiful place when we are together.

Richard Allen Dellefield’s rosary, eulogies, and dinner will be at Fairhaven Memorial on Tuesday, March 11, 2025, 5:00-8:00 p.m. Family and guests only. His funeral mass is at San Francisco Solano Catholic Church in Rancho Santa Margarita on Wednesday, March 12, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. All who wish to pay their respects are welcome. The burial afterward at Ascension Cemetery is for family and guests only.