WILLIAM S. RICHARDS

WINTERPORT – William “Will” S. Richards, Ph.D., clinical psychologist, passed away Sept. 12, 2010, surrounded by loving family and friends at a local hospital. He waged a brave and gracious battle with leukemia for the last 21 months of his life, undergoing a stem cell transplant in March 2010 in Boston. Although he required isolation for his own safety, he let people know he was determined to fight to survive. He was close to death in February 2009, but made a remarkable recovery in a few months. He used this gift of time wisely to have closure with his long-term clients and take care of unfinished business with friends and family. He said shortly before he died that he had no unfinished business. Being seen as a person not an illness was very important to him. Being able to return to and receive treatment and palliative care at Eastern Maine Medical Center with Dr. Karen Giordano and the staff of Grant 6 Oncology and Palliative Care Services made it possible for him to die peacefully and with dignity. Will was born Dec. 3, 1943, in Meriden, Conn., to Sidney G. Richards and Elsie Wooding Richards. He attended schools in Meriden, Conn., and graduated from Lyman Hall High School in 1961. He went on to Trinity College, Hartford, Conn., graduating in 1964 with a degree in psychology. He then entered the doctoral program at Arizona State University, the only clinical program with a behavioral focus. While at Arizona State University, he was strongly influenced by Fred Keller, a pioneer in the field of experimental psychology and self paced learning. Will also worked with autistic children at Valley of the Sun School and did internships at Arizona State Hospital and the Veterans’ Hospital. After completing his doctorate he took a teaching position at Western Illinois University in 1969. In 1973 he moved to Maine as director of behavior therapy services at Bangor Mental Health Institute, now Dorothea Dix Psychiatric Center. He was instrumental in developing behavioral models for positive interventions for long-term mentally ill and autistic individuals. He followed some autistic individuals for years as they transitioned to the larger community and until he closed his practice in 2009. While at Bangor Mental Health Institute, he also served as director of professional services, director of the program on aging and was acting superintendent. In 1977 he became the director of elderly services at Community Health and Counseling Services, which served four rural counties around Bangor. The focus of his entire career had been supporting people who are typically overlooked. For the last several years he worked exclusively with individuals diagnosed within the autism spectrum. He and his colleague, Deb Lipsky, worked together for the last several years throughout the U.S. and Canada, and publishing the book, “Managing Meltdowns,” with individuals with autism and Asperger’s syndrome. His favorite place was his farm in Winterport, where he lived for the last 35 years, raising beefalo and other farm animals. He moved to Maine to escape urban sprawl and to live in a peaceful place similar to his home in Connecticut when he was growing up. He loved his land and home, renovating his 200-year-old house and transforming the landscape into lovely gardens and ponds. As he was planning for his life after leukemia he and Hope were dreaming of developing a specialty garden of their favorite perennials that are not readily available locally. He described his altered sense of sight and smell post-chemo as like seeing everything in high definition. Walking around the farm was a sensory experience he enjoyed immensely. He loved showing any of his 10 grandsons the wildlife around the fish pond or the lily pond. His love of music and song began with the Trinity Pipes in college and continued when he played guitar and sang mostly folk songs with his children and family. Pop, as his daughter Sarah, called him, grew to be an affectionate name used by children, grandchildren and friends. He considered it quite a compliment. He was an expert checker player, a lifelong Red Sox fan, a woodworker, a farmer, an antique tool and book collector and an avid card player. Most of all he was a kind, gentle, honest person who always tried to do the right thing, especially for those who were vulnerable, misunderstood, overlooked or unrecognized by society. He is survived by his loving wife of 29 years, Hope; daughter, Sarah and spouse, Peter Meshanic, of Columbia, Conn., and sons, Jackson, Carter and Hunter; son, Josh and sons, Andre and Tyler of West Hartford, Conn.; daughter, Liz Higgins and spouse, Tim Gray, of Bowdoin and sons, Zach, Noah and Dustyn; son, Andrew and wife, Maggie, of Westbrook and sons, Patrick and Brandon; son, Stanley of Hebron, Conn.; his sister and stem cell donor, Ginny Towle and husband, Gerrit, of Wallingford, Conn.; his brother, Bob Richards and wife, Jean, of Leesburg, Fla.; and his special nieces, Elise Snow of Salem, Mass., and Carey Varney of Winterport. In addition to family he is survived by true and loyal friend, Marshall Moody and his wife, Valerie, of Winterport, who were always there to help everyday from day one. There are so many others who were touched by having Will in their lives and in turn touched Will’s life as well. Many thanks go out to all the neighbors, friends and colleagues who donated time and provided support for Will and Hope throughout the last 21 months. There will be a memorial service 2 p.m. Oct. 16 at the farm, 563 Monroe Road, Winterport. All who knew and loved Will are welcome to come celebrate his life. In lieu of flowers, anyone wishing to donate may do so to Grant 6 Oncology and Palliative Care Services or CancerCare of Maine, care of Healthcare Charities, P.O. Box 931, Bangor, ME 04402-0931; The Jimmy Fund, care of Dana Farber Cancer Institute, 10 Brookline Place West, 6th Floor, Brookline, MA 02445; or Autism Society of Maine, 72B Main St., Winthrop, ME 04364.