Richard Warren "Dick" Hillendahl

October 20, 1926 - May 15, 2008 Richard Warren ("Dick") Hillendahl, 81, devoted husband, loving father and grandfather, passed away after a long illness on May 15. He was born in Los Angeles, California, on October 20, 1926. He was gifted in many areas, and generously shared these gifts by helping other people throughout his life. He was a friend to all and will be greatly missed. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II, attending Preflight School at St. Mary's College in Moraga, California, and the V-12 Program at Arizona State Teacher's College in Flagstaff, Arizona. He completed his training at U.C. Berkeley, and earned a Bachelor's degree in Physics in 1948. During this time, his teachers and mentors included seven Physics Nobel Prize winners. He attended the signing of the Charter that founded the United Nations in San Francisco as a student representative from U.C. Berkeley. After graduating, he taught Physics for a year at the Uni versity of Southern California for Professor Willard Greer, who invented the first practical color television tube. He then moved back to Oakland and worked at the Naval Radiological Defense Laboratory (NRDL) in San Francisco. In 1951, Dick bought a house on GI Bill in San Lorenzo, California. He met his bride-to-be, Lorraine Elmstedt, when both were in the wedding party of Dick's cousin, Don Hillendahl, and Lorraine's cousin Elaine Berry. They fell in love and were married at Trinity Lutheran Church in Oakland on August 2, 1952. They lived in San Lorenzo for seven years. Dick received an honorable discharge from the Navy and left NRDL for Lockheed Palo Alto Research Laboratory in 1957. Between 1963 and 1968, he returned to U.C. Berkeley and earned a Ph.D. in Astrophysics with Professor Louis Henyey, with a thesis on Cepheid variable stars. In 1972, he joined SAIC International in Palo Alto, where he stayed until his retirement in 2002 at age 75. During his employment, SAIC grew from a small start-up company to a $7 billion a year corporation. Upon retirement, Dick received a personal commendation from the President of SAIC for his contribution to the company, and for services to the United States that were vital to the national defense, nuclear non-proliferation, and ending the Cold War. In 1955, Dick and Lorraine's first child, Chrissy, was born. At about nine months of age, Chrissy suffered an adverse reaction to a childhood pertussis immunization and became very severely develop-mentally disabled. They spent the next 45 years of their lives involved in numerous volunteer endeavors for the developmentally disabled. This was Dick's crusade, and he was instrumental in building schools, workshops, and residential facilities for the developmentally disabled throughout the Western States, including the Dawn School, Serra Center, and the Good Shepherd Lutheran Homes. Dick received enormous satisfaction from his volunteer work, and met many wonderfully kind people through this work. In 1956, their second child, Bill was born, followed in 1959 by their third child, Jim. Soon after Jim was born, the family moved to Fremont, California, where they lived for 43 years. Dick was very active in Boy Scouts with his two sons. Dick loved to build, and he worked with his sons on four home additions and remodel projects as they were growing up. He was very active in the Lutheran Church and served as church president. He enjoyed many hobbies, including playing basketball and running varsity track in his teen years, camping and hiking, photography (including studying with Ansel Adams), playing piano, and watching football (The Raiders and U.C. Berkeley). Dick and Lorraine retired and moved to Vacaville, California in 2002, to be close to their children and grand-children. The same year, they celebrated their fiftieth wedding anniversary in 2002 with a family trip to Hawaii. Dick Hillendahl was predeceased by his daughter, Christine. He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Lorraine, two sons: William and James, daughter-in-law Mary Markiewitz, and three grandchildren: Tiffany, Keith, and Megan Hillendahl, all of Vacaville, California. He is also survived by his brother and sister-in-law, Ed and Ginny Hillendahl of Georgetown, Texas, nieces Anne and Kay, and brother- and sister-in-law Charles and Carol Elmstedt of El Cerrito, California. A celebration of his life will be held at Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, 580 Trinity Drive, Vacaville, California, on Thursday, May 29, at 2:00 PM. Donations can be made to The Good Shepherd Fund, Conservatorship Program, 1641 N First St, Suite 155, San Jose, CA 95112, or to the charity of your choice. McCune Garden Chapel 707-448-6546