John W. Richards

John Wilbur Richards was born May 23, 1925 in New Haven, Connecticut. He passed away January 16, 2014 in Everett, Washington. He is survived by his sister Beverly, his wife June, his son Jim, his daughters Julia and Janet, his grandsons Ethan, Zachary, Adrian, Colin, and Devin, and his great granddaughters Julie and Lilah.

Visitation will be held on Thursday, January 23, 2014 at 9:00 AM at Evergreen Washelli. Funeral service will be held at 2:00 PM at Evergreen Washelli Tribute Center with reception to follow in Celebration Hall, Evergreen Washelli, 11111 Aurora Avenue North, Seattle, WA 98133.

John spent most of his youth first in the small town of Searsboro and then in the larger city of Ottumwa in Iowa. He liked model railroading and classical music. He was a talented pianist. His formal education was accelerated, and he entered the University of Iowa in 1941 at the age of 16. He met his wife June at the university and they were married in 1946. He graduated from the University of Iowa in 1947 at the age of 22 with BS and DDS degrees.

After graduation, John started his dental career in Ottumwa in partnership with his father Clarence ('Doc') Richards, also a dentist. He was drafted into the Navy as a Lieutenant JG in 1951 during the Korean War. However, he did not go to Korea, or even serve on a ship. He spent the majority of his time doing dentistry at Sand Point Naval Air Station in Seattle. Following discharge in 1953, he returned to dental practice in Ottumwa for a time, but in 1954 he made the decision to make a permanent move to the Seattle area. After a short period of searching and working at part time dentistry, he set up permanent dental practice for himself in Lake City, where he continued to practice until his retirement in 1987 at the age of 62.

John was involved in many activities and organizations during his lifetime:

- President of the Citizens Advisory Committee to the Shoreline school district school board. That committee built one high school, two junior high schools, and seven elementary schools.

- President of the Seattle King County Dental Society

- Member and Chair of the Peer Review Committee of the Dental Association, both at the local Seattle level and at the Washington state level for eleven years.

- Fellow of the International College of Dentists. About 5% of the profession receives this honor.

- Fellow, and President for a time, of the International College of Craniomandibular Orthopedics. Following his presidency, he became business manager and treasurer, leading the organization to a sound financial footing from a very difficult position within three years, and doubling the number of services provided to the organization's members.

- District Governor for Rotary International District 502 (1964-1965)

- Appointed Visa Facilitative Form issuing officer by the US State Department USIA division. Responsible for issuing over 10,000 visas over a period of 28 years to incoming foreign students in the Rotary High School Student Exchange Program. The jurisdiction reached high schools from Montana, through Nevada, into Central California, and up through Alaska.

- Chairman of the International Student Exchange Coalition, a coalition of thirty-one international exchange organizations functioning nationally. His committee crafted and succeeding in getting passed the first student exchange law in the nation in Washington State. That law then became the model for similar laws in California, Minnesota, and other states.

John made a positive contribution to many people's lives. He is missed by all who knew him, and he will be remembered for a long, long time.

RIP