Richard J. Reed

Richard J. REED Professor Richard J. Reed, (Dick), 85, died on February 4th in Seattle, Washington with family members at his side. Born in Braintree Massachusetts, Dick demonstrated an early aptitude for math and science, and upon graduating high school enrolled at Boston College anticipating a career in accounting. With the bombing of Pearl Harbor, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy choosing aerology (meterology) as his specialty. It was a field he knew little about, but from the start loved with a passion. It was a matter of rare good fortune, he often recalled, that by failing the U.S. Navel Academy eye exam, he was given the opportunity to further his education at Dartmouth, and obtain a B.S. in Meteorology from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), while still in uniform. From there he was sent to the officer-training unit at Notre Dame, where he was commissioned as an Ensign. By the time the war ended and following his discharge from the military, Dick was accepted to the doctoral program in meteorology at MIT where he received his ScD in 1949. He never forgot the opportunities afforded him by the education the Navy provided, and sought his entire life to repay what he felt was his debt to society. During Dick’s time at MIT, he met Joan Murray who had emigrated from England to the Boston area. They married in Braintree in 1950, and in 1954 relocated to Seattle, where Dick had accepted the position of Assistant Professor in the Department of Meteorology and Climatology at the University of Washington. Remarkably, his teaching and research spanned virtually the entire field of meteorology, a notable accomplishment. It was, as he said "his insatiable desire" to observe and understand all aspects of weather that led him on such a unique path. On an international level, his scientific collaborations and leadership resulted in pioneering scientific contacts between Russia, China and the Western world. In 1972, as President of the American Meteorological society he laid the groundwork for the first delegation of U.S. meteorologists to visit China in 1974 after it opened its doors to the Western world. Colleagues and students alike remarked on his boundless energy, curiosity and contagious enthusiasm. Never forgetting the important role mentors played early in his career, he was known for being readily available to his students and was pleased to have helped guide careers of many current UW faculty members. But, for Dick, perhaps his greatest source of fulfillment in his career came with a scholarship fund he anonymously endowed over the years for undergraduates in the Atmospheric Sciences Department. Having himself dropped out of college after his first year for lack of tuition funds, being able to help promising students who were financially in need gave him great satisfaction. Dick brought the same intensity, passion and intellectual curiosity to family life with Joan and their three children. Always an athlete, he skied and climbed the mountains of the Northwest with the children in winter, and introduced them to the beauty of Cape Cod where summers were often spent in a cottage overlooking Sheep’s Pond. His hobbies, such as gardening, always brought out the scientist and researcher in him. Dick carefully documented the apple crop harvested from his orchard each year, and family members were invited to participate in ‘tastings’, discussing in great depth the attributes of each variety. Leisure travel was often planned and mapped down to the minute and miles per gallon, and his frustration with the unpredictable nature of travel, was only surpassed by his joy and wonderment at the many parts of the world that he, Joan and the children experienced. The arrival of 3 grandchildren provided endless opportunities for play and fun. He never ceased to marvel at their development, and they, in turn adored him. He leaves behind a legacy of great integrity, as both quintessential scholar and humanitarian. Dick is survived by his wife Joan, Seattle; son Ralph (Susan) Langley; son Richie (Debbie) Everett; daughter; Lisa Feshbach (Dan) of Mill Valley, CA; grandchildren: Emma, Reed and Sage and his brother, Robert Reed, of Nantucket, Mass. A Memorial Service will be held March 15th, 11:00 a.m. at the University Unitarian Church, 6556 35th Ave NE Seattle Washington. Memorial contributions may be made to the Richard J. and Joan M. Reed Endowed Atmospheric Sciences Scholarship Fund, c/o Department of Atmospheric Sciences, Box 351640, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195.