Richard Bachenheimer

Richard Bachenheimer Berkeley real estate investor, scholar and World War II veteran, died January 24, 2010 in San Francisco at age 87. Bachenheimer was born in the Bronx, NY, October 9, 1922 to Moritz and Gertrude Bachenheimer. During the Great Depression, the family moved to Denver and later to Santa Barbara.where Richard graduated from high school. As an undergraduate at the University of California, Berkeley, he joined the ROTC where he was called to active duty in the army. As a lieutenant in the Philippines he was wounded, lost a leg, and received the Purple Heart. While recovering in a VA hospital, he met Mary Jean King, a physical therapist. They were married in 1946, and had a son, Marc. Richard returned to Berkeley as a graduate student in anthropology in the late 1940s. Receiving a Fulbright Fellowship in 1953, he went to India to study social relations in remote Kurnool District, a part of Telugu-speaking Andhra Pradesh. Not surprisingly, an American scholar with only one leg became well-known in Kurnool. Back in Berkeley after India he was active in the American Veterans Committee (AVC) which young WW2 veterans formed as an alternative to the conservative American Legion. He also joined the Young Democrats, and was on the staff of The liberal democrat (small l, small d) published in Berkeley from 1960 to 1964. In 1961 Richard married a teacher, Barbara Lassel, and they had two daughters. He founded Premium Realty acquiring several east bay buildings, most notable of which is the Bachenheimer Building on University Avenue opposite Shattuck Square. He was a generous philanthropist supporting the Sierra Club, and the Audubon Society among other environmental, wildlife and political causes. He served as president of the Society for Asian Art in San Francisco for several years. He loved traveling, white water kayaking, bird watching and classical music. He was a philatelist, connoisseur of the arts, an avid reader, collector of books, Oriental carpets, and fine wine. His extensive library was recently bequeathed to the University of California, Berkeley. He is survived by his sister, Frances Chavarria-Aguilar, his son Marc Williams, daughters Alaiya Aguilar and Juli C. Lasselle, as well as several grandchildren, great grandchildren, and his longtime friend and companion, Franchelle Howes. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, February 27 at 4:30 pm. It will be at the Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda, Berkeley. Donations in his honor may be sent to The Sierra Club.