Richard Tinsley Hitchcock

Dick’s Motto: Life’s an Adventure… Richard (Dick) Tinsley Hitchcock was born on March 26, 1939 in Indianapolis, Indiana to Raymond and Katharine Hitchcock. He was the third of three children including Don (Catie) Hitchcock and Nancy (Mike) Hitchcock Chirtea. Dick grew up surrounded by family and made some of the best friends of his life, including his brother, through Sea Scouts. He also became a Christian at a Sea Scout Jamboree as a teenager. Dick attended Shortridge High School and attended Indiana University for two years. At 21, following the death of his father, he moved to Los Angeles and attended UCLA. Shortly after moving to Los Angeles he met and married Kathy Higbee. Their life centered around the young married group (Shareringers) at Santa Monica First Methodist with whom they spent much time sailing and camping, resulting in life-long friendships. Dick also earned his small plane pilot’s license while living in the LA area. Dick and Kathy moved from Santa Monica, CA to Anchorage, AK and soon after had two daughters Tori (Brian, children Spencer and Chloe) Berntsen and Erin (David) McIntosh whom Dick affectionately called “big frog and little frog” or “senior frog and junior frog.” While living in Alaska, Dick worked as a stockbroker, police officer and resident manager of the men’s dorm at Alaska Methodist (Pacific) University. From there the family moved onto a sailboat for almost a year, sailing down the inner coastal waterways and beyond, including a harrowing trip through the Bermuda Triangle. Upon selling their sailboat the family settled in Bellevue, WA in 1973. While living in Bellevue, Dick was a salesman at several high end car dealerships and a real estate agent. Additionally he opened and co-owned Hitchcock’s Gifts for Men, volunteered for the King County Sheriff’s Department and served in leadership at First Presbyterian Church of Bellevue. Most importantly, he loved to spend time with his family both at home and on many exciting adventures. One adventure took eight of them 14,000 miles across the country in a Jamboree Camper. Other adventures continued to include boats, motorcycles, visions of land development, camping and exploring historical sites. Any adventures he didn’t have in person he had through the many, many books he read each year. Dick and Remi Potuzak Hitchcock married in 1987 and were best friends, companions and lovers for over 37 years. His excitement for living was contagious and together they had adventures on both water and land. After living on a 1939, 40 foot Chris Craft in Seattle for a year, they moved to San Diego where they enjoyed living aboard a 37 foot trawler, Patty Kate for seven years with their two Maltese dogs, Connie and Kadey. Weekends would often find them anchored at one particular harbor in Coronado, puttering around the bay in their dinghy or out riding motorcycles. Dick continued his career in real estate and the mortgage and loan industry. They moved to Galveston, TX for two years and then to St. Petersburg, FL where they worked to restore their 1920’s bungalow in the Old Southeast neighborhood. As Vice President of OSEN, Dick was involved in starting up the historical neighborhood home tour and raising funds for projects in the neighborhood. In 2006, Dick enthusiastically supported Remi’s acceptance of a job in Wilmington, NC. There Dick found more friends who shared his love of wooden boats, motorcycles and restoring antique cars. He volunteered at the Cape Fear Community College Boat Building School, the Blockade Runner Project, Kids Making It, and was an election poll worker. Dick was also an avid member of both the Goldwing Club and the Antique Auto Club. Dick overcame a variety of hardships in his life including breaking his femur twice within a year when he was young. The second cast was too tight and resulted in gangrene. He was lucky to not lose his leg, but it did result in that leg being shorter than the other which eventually caused significant back and knee pain for him. He attributed his love of reading and developing empathy for others to this experience. Throughout his life if you were looking for Dick you could find him under the hood of an antique car, working/living/sailing on a boat, riding a motorcycle, driving across the country, finding an adventure, volunteering or helping out a neighbor/friend, cooking/grilling, at the movies, reading book after book, meeting new friends or encouraging someone. All of these were often done with a friend or family member. These activities and the presence of friends and family were constants throughout Dick’s life. While Dick no longer attended church regularly, he continued to embody Jesus’ invitation to “love your neighbor as yourself.” Dick made friends easily and would strike up a conversation with just about anyone. He was known for giving waitresses a hard time and then befriending them. He often spent his time supporting others in achieving their dreams and goals. Dick was generous in supporting various organizations, but more notably carried several one hundred dollar bills in his wallet at all times so he could quietly give one to those who mentioned a need. These bills were kept close to both pictures of family and a small piece of paper on which he had typed a few of his favorite jokes so he could be ready at a moment's notice to offer an opportunity to laugh together. Dick, 85, died peacefully in his sleep at home on July 14, 2024. He was preceded in death by his parents Raymond and Katharine, his sister Nancy and his mother-in-law Patricia Potuzak. Dick is survived by his wife, Remi, his daughters Tori (Brian) Berntsen and Erin (David) McIntosh, his grandchildren Spencer and Chloe Berntsen, and his brother Don (Catie) Hitchcock. He had a close relationship with his father-in-law Chester Potuzak and cherished spending time with the Potuzak family in-laws and out-laws. Funerals were always difficult for Dick so he asked his family not to plan a service and instead to go enjoy an adventure. However, a celebration is tentatively planned in the spring with the commemoration of a Free Little Library in his memory. If you would like to send a favorite memory or story we would be grateful. You can email those to: [email protected], [email protected] and/or [email protected].

Richard Tinsley Hitchcock

March 26, 1939 - July 14, 2024