Richard Alexander Chapman

Richard Alexander Chapman of Dallas, Texas, beloved patriarch, gentleman, athlete, academic, and scientist passed away peacefully on August 16, 2022, at age 89 after a short illness bringing a conclusion to a well-lived and accomplished life.

Richard came from a long line of Chapmans living in Ellis County since 1850. When he was born weighing in at 11 pounds on September 24, 1932, Richard s parents Hazel Stevens Chapman and Richard Franklin Chapman surely knew that this was a premonition of great things to come.

Growing up in Waxahachie, Richard excelled at school graduating in the top 10% of his class at Waxahachie High School while playing football all four years. He was active in Boy Scouts, attended the 1947 Jamboree in Moisson, France, and became an Eagle Scout.

Richard balanced his devotion to schoolwork and football in college at Rice University. He selected the university based on the reputation of the institution and the opportunity to play on a football scholarship for its head coach Jess Neely.

A standout on the field, Richard was selected as an All-Southwest Conference defensive guard in 1952 and consensus Southwest Conference tackle in 1953. During his senior year, he was selected to the Player s All-America first team and as an MVP of the January 1, 1954, Cotton Bowl in which #6 nationally ranked Rice defeated Alabama 28 - 6. He was later chosen as a member of the 1950s Cotton Bowl All Star Team in recognition of his outstanding performance.

Richard matched his success on the football field with a determined focus on academics earning a degree in Physics while also actively serving in Rice student affairs. He was selected as an Academic All-American, served as Junior Class President, and named an Outstanding Senior. In recognition of his many accomplishments Richard received one of Rice s highest honors, the 1954 Bob Quin Award for excellence in sportsmanship, scholarship, leadership, and athletics.

On a blind date during his freshman year, Richard met the love of his life, Barbara Dell Madden. Four days after their graduation, Richard married his college sweetheart in Houston. Richard and Barbara were happily married for 68 years.

A critical turning point in Richard s life was when the Detroit Lions selected him as their 1954 first-round draft pick. True to his character, Richard took the road less travelled and elected to pursue science rather than the fame of football. He remained at Rice, and received his Masters and PhD degrees in nuclear physics.

After receiving his PhD, Richard and Barbara moved to California when he accepted a position with General Electric at Vallecitos Nuclear Laboratory designing commercial nuclear power reactors. In 1959, they returned to Texas for Richard s position at Texas Instruments (TI) in Dallas where he worked at TI s Central Research Laboratories on Opto-Electronic materials and devices. Richard played a leading role in developing charge transfer devices for infrared detector arrays. He received the Jack Morton Award from the Institute of Electric and Electronic Engineers for his work and became a TI Fellow.

Later, he worked on silicon integrated circuit technology for and was responsible for transistor design for four generations of silicon integrated circuits. Richard was chairman of the Symposium on VLSI Technology in 1996 presiding at events in Hawaii and assisting with others in Japan. In recognition for his multiple scientific contributions, Richard was awarded the prestigious honor of TI Senior Fellow.

Richard received a second chance at life after receiving a life-saving bone marrow transplant from his brother Steve for lymphoma at M.D. Anderson. After he recovered, Richard returned to work as a consultant for TI and later worked part time at The University of Texas at Dallas on thin film transistors. Richard was the author of 154 papers and 42 patents. He was a Fellow of the American Physical Society and a Fellow of the IEEE.

Richard cherished his relationships with his alma maters and frequently returned. He served as a Trustee Advisor at Rice University and was inducted into their Athletic Hall of Fame and received their Distinguished Alumnus Award. In 2012, he was elected to the Waxahachie High School Athletic Hall of Fame.

Richard s fortitude, athleticism, and dogged determination remained evident throughout his adult life as evidenced by his success as competitive runner in 10Ks and Dallas Turkey Trots where he was consistently on the podium for the 65+ age group.

Despite his many accomplishments the story of Richard s life is not in his resume, but in how he lived. Throughout his life Richard lived up to the ideals of his Scout Oath and will be remembered for his character, service and leadership. Richard enjoyed his life, family, and friends and strived to have a positive influence on everyone he met. He was a loving and involved father and devoted Christian, sharing the values he learned from his parents with his four children. He became of member of First Presbyterian Church of Richardson in 1961 and served in multiple capacities as well as Ruling Elder.

Richard was beloved by his family and is survived by his wife Barbara and their children: Carol and husband, Larry Faldet, Janet McCormack, Laura, and husband, Bret Owens, Rick Chapman, and wife Marty; grandchildren Lauren Campbell, Erik Faldet, Jessica Bridwell, David McCormack, Kayla Owens, Kyle Owens, Julia Chapman, Jake Chapman, Lexie Chapman, and great-grandchildren Hazel Campbell,

Mac Campbell, and Madden Campbell. Richard s brother Steve Chapman and his children live in Waxahachie.

Memorial services will be held Saturday, September 24th at 11:00 pm which would have been Richard's 90th Birthday at First Presbyterian Church of Richardson located at the intersection of 271 N. Walton and LaSalle. A private burial will be held at Restland Cemetery in Dallas, Tx. Contributions may be made to the institution of your choice.

Funeral arrangements for Mr. Richard Chapman have been faithfully entrusted to Restland Funeral Home and Cemetery, which is located at 13005 Greenville Ave., at the intersection of Restland Road, Dallas, Texas 75243, and can be reached at (972) 238-7111.