Obituary of Richard E. Atkinson

On October 26th, Richard E. Atkinson, Sr. of Deep River passed away peacefully with family by his side at the age of 82. Dick was preceded in death by his parents, Rollin E. Atkinson and Alma Birks Atkinson. He will be deeply missed by his children Rick & Sandy, Penni & Paul, Shawn & Alyssa and Aaron. He will also be lovingly remembered by his seven grandchildren, McKenna, Patrick, Haley, Rick, Paige, Hannah, and Cameron. As a native of Deep River, he graduated from Valley Regional High School in 1955 and retired from the Deep River Post Office after 38 years of service. May 21st was officially declared “Dick Atkinson Day” in the town of Deep River. As a lifelong member of the United Scandinavian Society (The Swede Club) in Deep River he served as President and on several committees. Dick lived a simple life. On a normal day you would see him delivering your mail, swinging the clubs on the golf course, playing softball and basketball and if he wasn’t playing the game he was volunteering his time to coach your kid’s basketball, baseball or football team. You would see him walking 2 mile walks through town stopping to say hello to all those he knew, eating lunch at a local restaurant, spending time with his family and friends, and if you were a lucky enough lady, he would sing you a song and twirl you around the dance floor. We will miss you Papa. A Celebration of Life Service will be held on Sunday, November 3rd at the Deep River Congregational Church, 1 Church Street Deep River, CT 06417 at 1pm followed by a reception at his home away from home, The United Scandinavian Society, 10 Riverview Ave., Deep River, CT 06417. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation on Richard Atkinson’s behalf to the Alzheimer’s Association at http://act.alz.org/goto/RichardE_Atkinson