Richard Mandel

Richard Mandel, also known as Rich, Richie, Rich Man, or Rolatzi, passed away at home on May 21, 2025, after living for four years with kidney cancer and reaching his goal of celebrating his 80th birthday surrounded by friends and family. Rich is survived by his loving wife of 40 years, Judith Motzkin, sons Jamin and Sasha, daughter-in-law Sydney, and granddaughter Miyako. He is predeceased by his parents Jack and Helen (née Greenwald) Mandel and his older brother, Gerald.

Born in the Bronx on May 5, 1945, Richie was an intellectually curious child who loved sports and music. He attended Bronx Science High School and went on to graduate with honors from Harpur College. He completed his PhD at University of Chicago, and post-doc at Brandeis University. In 1977, after a year and a half working at the University of Paris, he returned to the Boston area. He settled in Cambridge, which he considered an ideal American city, and began work as a professor and researcher in the BU Medical School Pathology Department, where he studied HIV and Cancer cells for over 25 years.

In Chicago, Rich became a political activist who demonstrated against the Vietnam War and marched at the 1968 DNC. Later, he was involved in organizing the Black Rose anarchist lecture series and magazine. An experienced backpacker and mountaineer, he traversed the glaciers of Baffin Island in his 30s and hiked the Grand Canyon in his 40s. He was an avid cyclist who commuted to work by bike for decades, rode 600 miles through France in his 60s, and continued biking long after his diagnosis.

When Rich met Judy, her spontaneity was a match for his adventurous spirit. They immediately became travel companions and, after bonding over a hair-raising journey in the cargo hold of a Mexican bus, soon fell in love and started a family. Their trips together were always freewheeling; they strived to reach the very edges of the map - a sentiment they passed down to their children.

Rich was a supportive father: very involved in his boys’ lives throughout childhood, helping with homework and coaching their youth soccer teams. As they grew, he provided keen financial advice and inspired indefatigable home repair and garden projects. In the last few years, he played a big part in his young granddaughter’s life, as her beloved “Baba” who lived next door.

After retirement, Richard devoted himself to varied interests, embracing communities centered around computer programming, investing, French language, and bicycling. An accomplished cook and self-proclaimed chocoholic, he delighted in summer shellfishing in Wellfleet and sharing oysters with friends. Richard’s warmth led him to strike up conversations with strangers and foster lasting friendships. Travel remained a shared passion with Judy, including memorable experiences teaching English in China and Cambodia.

A memorial service will be held at Mount Auburn Cemetery Story Chapel, 580 Mount Auburn Street, Cambridge on Wednesday, June 4, at 10:30 AM.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Dana-Farber Cancer Institute or American Cancer Society.