Richard E. Farnum

Richard Ernest Farnum, 92, of Chepachet, passed away at home on Saturday, May 13, 2023. He was the husband of Elizabeth J. (Levesque) Farnum. Dick and Betty recently celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary. Born in Harmony, a son of the late Earl F. C. and Nora A. (Tucker) Farnum, he had been a lifelong resident of Glocester, also residing in Pascoag and Stuart, Florida. Dick served in the United States Air Force during the Korean War, stationed at Turner Air Force Base in Albany, Georgia with tours of duty at R.A.F. Station Lakenheath, England as a teletype cryptographer and Misawa Air Force Base in Japan.
In addition to his career as a sanitarian for the Rhode Island Department of Health, Dick started his own business, Rhode Island Antenna Service, and was also the owner/proprietor of the Stagecoach Tavern in Chepachet during the 1970's. He was a former member of the Harmony and Chepachet Fire Departments, a member of Friendship Lodge #7 in Chepachet and the Odd Fellows Lodge in Pascoag. He served for a time as the Glocester Zoning Inspector and was a founding member of the Glocester Conservation Commission, being instrumental in obtaining parks and recreation facilities for the town. He was a former member of the Glocester Jaycees, the Glocester Lions Club, and the Glocester Business Association.
Dick Farnum's greatest joy was his family. He also enjoyed traveling, fishing, hunting, gardening, cooking, and most of all, clamming. He was proud of his swamp-yankee heritage and could build, fix, or jury-rig anything. He lived a life of hard work, service to his town and country, and raising a decent and upright family.
Besides his wife, he is survived by five children, Cynthia L. Chace of Chepachet, Donna K. Codman of Naples, Florida, Richard E. Farnum of Fort Mill, South Carolina, Robert A. Farnum of Foster, and Mark A. Farnum of Chepachet. He is survived by 15 grandchildren and 20 great-grandchildren. Dick is also survived by a brother, William E. Farnum of Chepachet and a sister, Edith Aldrich of Harmony. He was pre-deceased by a brother, Cyrus F. Farnum.
His funeral and burial service in Acotes Hill Cemetery, Chepachet, will be private.