Richard Lee Worthington

I met Richard in October of 1973. He was just out of the service as a Naval Flight Surgeon and was divorced several times, a single parent, jobless and living with his mom and pop. I envied all those people, wives, friends, significant others and co-workers that knew him prior to me as he had already had a very rich and fun life.

Richard graduated from Portland State College in 1962 and 1966 with a Bachelor of Science followed by an Arts and Letters degree and Medical School at University of Oregon. He finished his medical degree serving in the Navy. Richard continued his education in 1976 with a Masters Degree in Public Health from the University of California at Berkeley.

While in the service in the late ’60’s and early ’70’s, Richard was stationed in California, New York, Florida, and Maryland. In 1977 he worked at Fairview Hospital in Salem and then joined Kaiser Hospital in the Emergency Room eventually moving to Family Practice in Beaverton after Board Certifications.

At Kaiser Richard wore several hats. He did some dermatology, treadmill testing for cardiology, worked on the “Mr. Fit” program at the Research Center, and held an administration position whilst maintaining his medical practice. Richard very much enjoyed the variety and the challenges of this role.

In the mid 1990’s Richard left Kaiser and a short time later he went to work at the Siletz Clinic in Newport, Oregon, taking the job of physician and later becoming the Clinical Director.

Putting his medical career aside, Richard’s broader interests led him to enroll in community college courses for creative writing, opera, French, film study, music appreciation and in 2001 performed in a local play. Richard had a great time. It was a rich experience with no pressure; he even did all the homework too! At one point he bought a trumpet and took lessons. Truthfully, he was not very good.

Richard’s creative side also saw him work with contractors to remodel our home and several other construction projects. He had a keen eye for design and the effective use of space. The results of his input on each of these projects were excellent. His creative skills were also applied to the garden; planning, designing and creating beautiful and functional layouts. I look around our home now and see Richard’s touches everywhere. Style, he definitely had it!

In his early life, Richard was a handball player and later played tennis, racquetball, and learned to ski. He turned out he was a pretty good downhill racer with no fear. Richard also ran the Cascade Run Off a number of times and his enthusiasm for the race convinced several of his friends to join in the run.

He had a great sense of humor. He teased people he was fond of but would often make fun of himself, believing that it was best not to take oneself too seriously. In the workplace it seemed that he was also a source of fun and good humor.

We travelled to many places, near and far, and counted ourselves lucky to have each other, our health and the time to make a wonderful life. Richard liked to go on a quest. We might be looking for a Chinese restaurant in Palm Springs, a statue in New Orleans, the hotel in Mexico where Malcolm Lowry wrote “Under the Volcano” or most recently the Trolls in Washington.

Richard loved life and knew when he was diagnosed with metastatic prostate cancer, that the next months would be a gift for the two of us to talk, share and plan for the future.

He loved learning and still had an Emeritus Medical License as he was very interested in the changing world of medicine. His passion for information, facts, and studies assisted in our personal health care and added to the extension of his life. He questioned and challenged his providers. He was rational and clear-headed in his thinking, reluctant to be drugged and foggy brained.

As an only child sharing for Richard was a challenge. He would give whatever he had but preferred that everyone had their own portion be it a bowl of popcorn or a piece of cake. He was spoiled by his mom, Lola, who would always have a sandwich ready whenever he visited and would make him his own pie.

Richard came late to his kitchen skills. But skills he did have-especially with knives. He watched the videos and learned technique from chef Briwa at the Culinary Institute of America/Davis. His Thanksgiving spatchcock turkey, crispy hash browns, and brown sugar glazed salmon could be topped. He had a knack for seasoning and was always called in to add the crowning touches to the dish. His favorite cocktail was an icy cold vodka martini “Martino” with a lemon twist whilst the house wines were a Kendall Jackson Chardonnay and Oregon Pinot Noir, not forgetting the Jamison Irish Whiskey which was always in the drink cabinet. It should be noted that Richard liked to have a few bites of Rogue Valley Caveman Blue Cheese with his wine.

Music, always music in the house. The stereo played all day long. Opera, classical, jazz, pop, country, new age, meditation… his collection included all of it. Richard also loved books and was a voracious reader. Every corner in every room has stacks of books (even the bathroom) as well as endless bookcases that decorate those rooms. The book jackets doubled as decorations. Richard made sure there was proper lighting as he thought lights were “the jewels of the house”.

He loved movies. After we had watched “Bladerunner” for the fifth time he would say, “Aren’t movies great?”. Movies and books and music… I do not know which took first place. Richard was good company and very entertaining. He would put together a film festival for a particular holiday or trip that we would be going on or pick an actor or director and gather films to view. Great fun. Then he would add a stack of books to read!

Autumn was his favorite season. Our relationship started in the fall. Richard learned to ride a motorcycle in the fall, watched the US Open, and backpacked around Mt. Hood in the fall. Richard was courageous, competitive, creative, competent but most of all curious. He wanted to know the story. A story had a beginning, a middle, and an end. “Go slowly and tell the story”. He wanted all the details.

Richard was everything to me. I loved him and I liked him too. He was a wonderful person, husband, lover and partner. He was always there for me. Always. It is enormously difficult to put down on paper 50 years of the life we shared.

He was my gift. In 1976 I got a second chance to spend my life with Richard, and I would choose him again. I would love to have a “repeat” or “do it again” life with Richard Lee Worthington.

“He was my North, my South, my East and West”

Please consider making a donation to your local library in Richard's name and keep his legacy of the love of these institutions and literature alive.