RICHARD JOHN O'CONNELL

O'CONNELL, Richard John Age 73, a 24 year resident of Cohasset, died peacefully on April 2 after a valiant three-year battle with prostate cancer where he never sacrificed either his humor or his positive outlook. Professor O'Connell is the loving husband of Susan Playfair. He was son of rancher Brian Daniel O'Connell and musician Hazel Richardson. In addition to his wife, he leaves his son Brian O'Connell in Houston, TX; his step-daughter Lily Faulhaber in Paris, France; his sister Pat Anderson in Wolf Creek, MT; his niece Shannon Trimboli in Boise, ID; and his nephew Ian Anderson in Wolf Creek, MT. He also leaves a step-son by marriage, Tom Faulhaber and family in San Francisco, CA. Two twin brothers, Michael and Tom O'Connell, both pre-deceased him. Rick was a professor at Harvard University for 42 years, where he taught in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences. At CalTech, he earned a BS in Physics, an MS in Geology, and a PhD in Geophysics. Following postdoctoral work at UCLA and CalTech, he joined the Harvard faculty as an Assistant Professor of Geology in 1971, was promoted to Associate Professor in 1974, and became a tenured Professor of Geophysics in 1977. He has been an Associate of Lowell House since 1983.Rick loved sailing Whisper, the Alden yawl he and his wife Susan sailed together out of Quissett Harbor in Falmouth, MA. He was a Fellow of the American Geophysical Union, the American Association of the Advancement of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the Quissett Yacht Club. A memorial service is planned for Saturday, May 2 at 4 P.M. in King's Chapel, 58 Tremont Street, Boston, MA. Donations may be made in Richard's name to the Pat Roche Hospice Home, 86 Turkey Hill Lane, Hingham, MA 02043 or The American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 136 Irving Street, Cambridge, MA 02138. For an online guestbook, please visit www.mcnamara-sparrell.com