Richard Molyneux

Richard always helped others in any way he could. Throughout his life he maintained a deep commitment to his family members, coworkers, and friends, encouraging them all to gather as much joy and laughter from life as he did.

As America recovered from the devastating effects of the Great Depression in the 1930's, Raymond and Virginia (Tuttle)worked hard to make ends meet.Raymond worked as an ironworker while Virginia looked after the home and supplemented the family income by working as a teacher.

During the winter of 1937, Virginia and Raymond prepared to welcome their fourth child, Richard. He was born just after the new year, arriving January 28, 1938. He joined his older siblings, Calvin, Gilbert, and Lois, and was followed by a brother, Wayne as well as sisters Kay and Janice. Richard and his siblings attended North Muskegon Schools, and it was early on that Richard emerged as a very good student and graduated with the class of 1956.

At 17, Dick went to work with his father, brother, and brother-in-law at the Straits of Mackinac. As ironworkers they built support structures for the Mackinac Bridge which was being constructed at the time. He also worked on projects in the West Michigan area, including the Ludington Pump Storage Project and the Port Sheldon Power Plant.

While living in Florida, he helped build the Epcot Center in Disney World. Upon returning to the Muskegon area he was employed at Erickson's Inc. No matter what or where the job was, Dick had great pride in his union memberships with the Ironworkers Local 340 and the Teamsters Local 250. Being supportive of his fellow workers was very important to Dick, who never failed to think of others first.

On December 2, 1988, Rich married the love of his life, Sue Kingery. They had a lot in common, including their passion for golf. They both enjoyed the game, but for Rich, golf was never a serious event. He enjoyed the game for the fun of it and for the time it allowed him to spend with people he loved. Recently, Rich and Sue won first place (in their flight ) in the husband/wife tournament at Lincloln Golf Club and also a tournament with his daughter,Cindy. Rich enjoyed being a part of Lincoln with Sue, and together they made many, many friends there.

Rich and Sue moved to Free Soil, Michigan and being an avid outdoorsman, he was able to enjoy the hunting, canoeing, and snowmobiling that the northern part of the state offered. He spent time canoeing on the Pere Marquette and the Little Manistee Rivers with his friends in the summer, but is was on a cold ,snowy winter snowmobile ride that Rich came across an abandoned puppy. He picked her up and wrapped her in his snowsuit. Once he got her home, he named her Lucky and from that day on, Lucky, Rich and his dog ,Jake ,were an inseparable trio.

Over the years, Dick made sure to have time with his siblings, particularly Janice and Wayne. Once Janice and Dick were on a boat in the waters between the lower and upper peninsulas of Michigan. Dick climbed up on one of the bridge supports and began tossing banana peels at his sister. On another occasion, Dick, wrote a humorous letter to his brother, Wayne, who was at the time stationed in Vietnam. Dick told Wayne that he borrowed his gun to go deer hunting, but when he took a shot, the gun jammed, and Dick panicked. He then ran to the deer and began hitting it with the barrel of the gun. The deer ran off, but soon it was shot by another hunter, who had watched the hilarious event unfold. The hunter offered the now dead deer to Dick, who accepted the offer gratefully.

Rich was always full of laughs and fun, especially when it came to his children. His daughter, Cindy, was incredibly thankful to her dad for welcoming her and her infant son, A. J. into his and and Sue's home. He was always there for all of his grandchildren and loved playing outside with them all. The winter time was their favorite time with Grandpa. They all, from the youngest to the oldest, shared his passion for snowmobiling . The biggest thrill for Rich, was when he was leading his family of ten on the snowmobile trails surrounding his home in the woods. Thus, earning him the nickname, "NANUCK of the North". Rich was a gracious host to his family and circle of friends. He always reminded his children to "be safe" in everything they did and they knew that he meant it with all of his heart and love.

Rich wanted nothing more than to be with his family and have them all together and enjoying each other's company. They will all remember the wonderful times that they shared with Rich and will miss him always.

Mr. Richard Molyneux, age 67, passed away Tuesday, March 8, 2005, at Mercy General Hospital. He is survived by his wife Sue; children, Cindy Knox of Leslie, and Mike Kingery of Muskegon; five grandchildren, Derrek and Brittani Kingery, A.J. and Cameron Knox, and Katie Artz; his sisters and brother, Lois (Ralph) McClees of Tempe, AZ, Wayne (Barbara Ann) Molyneux of North Muskegon, Kay (Bruce) Ricco of Fountain, Janice (Roger) Santose of North Muskegon; many nieces and nephews; and two sister-in-laws, Virginia Molyneux of Grand Rapids and Margaret Molyneux of Whitehall. He also leaves behind, his 2 loyal canine companions, Jake and Lucky. He was preceeded in death by his father Raymond in 1982, his mother Virginia on January 30, 2005, and by two brothers, Gilbert and Calvin.

The Life Story Service will be held Saturday, March 12, 2005 at 1:00 p.m. from the Heritage Life Story Home-Achterhoff Chapel, 1751 Peck St., Muskegon. Visitation will be one hour prior to the service. Memorials may be given to the Lincoln Memorial Scholarship Fund. You may visit Richard’s personal web page at www.lifestorynet.com, where you can leave a favorite memory, sign the guest book, order flowers, or send a memorial contribution.