Richard E. McGinnis

Dick graduated from Wadsworth (Ohio) High School in 1940 as class president and captain of the football and basketball teams. He entered Oberlin College on a scholarship and after two years enlisted in the Naval Air Corps. He earned his wings and commission as a fighter pilot. He returned to Oberlin College after receiving an honorable discharge and graduated in the class of 1947 with a degree in economics. There he met his beautiful wife, Mary, class of 1949, and they were married in September of that year.

Dick began his business career as sales trainee with Gregory Industries, an international manufacturer of welding equipment and industrial fasteners and formed metal parts. He was President and a Director when Gregory was acquired by TRW, Inc. in 1968. In 1970 Dick was promoted and moved to Boston as a Group Vice President. He was Chief Executive Officer of twelve divisions and subsidiaries in most of the major automotive and industrial markets in the world, producing metal and plastic parts and electro-mechanical and electronic parts.

Dick retired from TRW, Inc. in 1983, but continued an active schedule as a director and consultant. He was a Trustee of the Lahey Clinic and Chairman of the Operating and Finance Committee; and non-executive Chairman of the Board of Bird Johnson Co., at that time the largest manufacturer of propellers and propulsion systems for the U.S. Navy submarines, destroyers, and cruisers.

Dick and Mary were both avid golfers and each had five verified holes-in-one. He was a Director of the Weston Golf Club in Weston, MA, and of the Royal Poinciana Golf Club in Naples, FL. They moved from Weston to Osterville, MA, on Cape Cod in 1987 and built homes in both Osterville and Naples. While living on the Cape Dick and Mary were members of the Oyster Harbors Golf Club. In 2004 Dick and Mary sold both of their residences and moved into Moorings Park Retirement Community in Naples, FL.

Dick is survived by his wife, Mary; son John McGinnis and his wife, Mary, of Durham, NC; grandson Oliver McGinnis of San Anselmo, CA; daughter Katherine Ellis of Owings Mills, MD; and granddaughter Lynn Ellis of Sagamore Hills, OH.

Honoring Dick’s wishes, no services are planned.

In lieu of flowers donations may be made to Avow Hospice @ https://avowcares.org/ (1095 Whippoorwill Lane, Naples, FL 34105) or Moorings Park Foundation @ https://www.mooringspark.org/get-to-know-us/foundation/ (120 Moorings Park Drive, Naples, FL 34105).

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Consider this an addendum to my father’s obituary which appropriately acknowledged and emphasized his many accomplishments. The thoughts that follow are offered as tribute to who he was as a father and of a more personal nature. While my bias in his favor is a given, my guess is that those who knew him will agree with my characterizations.

Dad was 30 years older than me and 300 years wiser. He was driven to succeed and succeed he did; in sports he was a gifted athlete; in business he was a humble giant; as a father he was a strong, consistent, and reliable parent and teacher; he had so many close friends; and he was as generous as one can ever imagine.

He clearly loved his wife, Mary, my mother. Not in my 65 years did I witness anything other than respect, admiration, and genuine love. He adored her and treated her, as his granddaughter says, “like a Queen.” I know they had their moments but they were few and far between and private.

Dad taught me the meaning of honesty and integrity; those qualities were the foundation of his life and value system. He told me “don’t ever cheat on your taxes…but take every deduction available!” He never altered his golf score. He was direct and would state his opinions respectfully and persuasively. He was a man of conviction. He was confident but humble.

He was a fierce competitor; another reason he enjoyed such success in business and sports. He constantly evaluated and set goals and rarely didn’t achieve them. He could be a tough hombre at times, too, making his wishes crystal clear. As a kid he would simply give me “the stare” if I was not behaving and I knew it was “game over.” On other occasions he would reveal his playful side; he had a subtle but undeniable sense of humor and had a number of quirky and very funny jokes - always well-delivered and in good taste.

He was a planner and that’s an understatement. He developed habits that were all influenced by this trait and it was, I’m convinced, why he was such a success in virtually all his endeavors. He leaves us with all of his affairs in perfect order, with nothing to do other than grieve his absence.

He’s one of those people that will never be gone, though. His spirit and energy is part of me and I feel so lucky to have absorbed it, and I know others feel the same way. His last days were so painful to watch but there were tender moments that I will remember always. I said goodnight to him last night and told him I loved him, that I was going to miss him when he was gone, and I was going to join Mom for dinner and drink some of his Ketel One vodka. He smiled and gave me a thumb up and followed that with a weak fist bump. That was our last exchange.

Cheers, Dad!

John McGinnis

May 3, 2018