Richard L. Wright

1953 - 2026

Richard Lynn Wright (72) was born September 30, 1953, in Valdosta, GA, and died peacefully at home January 9, 2026, in Savannah, GA, after a brief illness. The eldest of three children of Eugene F. Wright and Billie Ruth (Nix) Wright, Richard grew up in Georgia, Japan, Virginia, and Germany, following his dad's Army assignments. He graduated in 1971 from Zweibrücken High School, where he was senior class president. Back in the U.S., he enrolled in Valdosta State College. When his dad was reassigned to the Panama Canal Zone, Richard moved back to northern Virginia's better job market, where he completed his business degree at George Mason University while working full time.

He met his future wife Jan there in 1979. They married in 1980 and raised two daughters, Stephanie and Virginia. Richard and Jan moved to Savannah in 2006 to be closer to their parents, escape metro DC traffic, and get out on the water together. During COVID, he suggested they find a second home in Richmond, VA, to be closer to Stephanie and Virginia's families there, and they did.

Richard loved sports, as a participant and a fan. He played little league and high school baseball and played both ways on his high school football team. He enjoyed fresh-water fishing with his dad and later became an expert saltwater fly fisherman, traveling the world and creating great memories. As a fan, he enjoyed watching college basketball and professional ice hockey, baseball, and football.

Richard was an avid reader, audiophile, and cinephile. He learned to make furniture, rebuild cars, create English gardens, tie flies, ballroom dance, brew beer, and master any cuisine that captured his imagination. A modern-day renaissance man.

He loved international travel and enjoyed the planning and anticipation as much as the actual experience. He felt blessed to have visited 35 countries, learning about their history, people, and culture; and he enjoyed bantering with Jan in Spanish and French at home. A favorite pastime was following travel blogs both to see new destinations and revisit old ones through others' eyes. He is especially grateful to have taken artist-daughter Virginia to London and Paris in 2014 and Stephanie's family there in 2025.

Richard's professional career was in human resources with the U.S. Departments of the Army, Navy, and Agriculture. Trading guns for butter, his last assignments were with the Soil Conservation Service and Forest Service. He retired in 1994 to be a "stay-at-home dad" for his girls.

Richard is survived by his loving wife of 45 years, Valerie Jan (Osborn) Wright, his daughters Stephanie Lynn (Justin) Schoop and Virginia Leigh (Dustin) Myers, and his granddaughters Austin Lynn and Dylan Pauline Schoop. He is also survived by his brother William E. (Lynne) Wright and sister Susan Kei (David) Barney, mother-in-law Ruth Valerie Osborn Utsey, sister-in-law Elaine Anne (Tom) Jeffrey, and brother-in-law Stephen A. (Taraneh) Becker, extended family, and friends.

Family was everything to Richard. As a husband, Richard was a devoted and loving partner, encourager, and protector who was secure in Jan's love. As a father, he always had Stephanie and Virginia's well-being and happiness in mind, encouraging them and delighting in their families and pursuits great and small. He simply adored them and was blessed to know how very much they loved him.

At Richard's request, services will be private in Richmond, VA, with a plan that his ashes be buried at sea at a later date. The family expresses its appreciation to Hospice Savannah for their skilled, compassionate support. Should you wish to honor Richard's memory through charitable giving, please consider Casting for Recovery, Coastal Conservation Association Georgia, or the United States Power Squadrons.