Richard P. Hamilton

Richard Parker (Dick) Hamilton entered into eternal rest on December 24th, 2010, surrounded by his loving family. He was 79, born September 13, 1931. Dick was pre-deceased by his devoted wife of 48 years, Nancy, in April, 2007. He was also preceded in death by his father and mother, Ralph R. and Doris I. Hamilton, and by two brothers, Ralph R. Jr. and David C. Hamilton. Dick is survived by his three wonderful children; son, Jeffrey, and his wife Xiao Yan of Grand Rapids, Michigan; daughter, Jennifer, and husband Jay Kassing; daughter, Kimberly, and husband Steve Hopson; and six precious grandchildren, Jack, Emily, Audrey, Ella and Jet Kassing and Olivia Hopson, all of Dallas. He is also survived by sister, Sally, and her husband, Douglas Fairbanks of Naples, Florida, and by brother, Robert, and his wife, Diana, of North Ridgeville, Ohio, and by numerous nieces and nephews. Dick was born in Worcester, Mass., and spent much of his childhood in Toledo, Ohio. He graduated from the University of Toledo in 1953 with a BBA and from Ohio State University in 1954 with a MBA. Following college, he served two years in the Counter Intelligence Corp, mostly in Germany, in 1955 and 1956. Following his military service, Dick joined the Florsheim Shoe Company in Chicago in 1957 and became its CEO in 1970. In 1978, he joined Hart Schaffner and Marx (now Hartmarx Corp.) where he also became CEO. Among his many activities in his 30-year business career, he was a Director of several corporations and served as a trustee of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Lyric Opera of Chicago and on the Advisory Council of Northwestern Graduate School of Management and was active in the United Way. When he retired in 1986, he and his wife moved to Naples, Florida, where he entered the real estate business and pursued several volunteer activities in his church and working among migrant workers. They also took up seriously their love affair with travel and visited some 40 countries, some multiple times. In 2000, with both daughters living in Dallas, and with grandchildren arriving, they moved to Dallas to participate in the lives of their grandchildren and to watch them grow and mature. This period was the delight of their lives. When they moved to Dallas, they became members of Highland Park United Methodist Church. Both Dick and Nancy lived joyous lives and considered parenthood their proudest and most important and enduring legacy. Friends are invited to join the family for a memorial service which will be held at Edgemere, 8523 Thackery Street Dallas, Texas 75225 in the Theater on January 6th, 2011 at 11:00 in the morning where Dick found fulfillment in his last years. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Habitat for Humanity.