Obituary of Richard Patrick Dodge

Dr. Richard Patrick Dodge, known to friends and colleagues as Dick, passed away on July 9, 2020. He was born on March 17th, 1932 in Wichita, KS. He receive his B.S. degree in Chemistry from Wichita State University in 1954; his Ph.D. degree in Chemistry from University of California at Berkeley in 1958. His research focus was x-ray crystallography. He was a Research Chemist at Union Carbide Research Institute from 1958-1964. He hired on to University of Pacific in Stockton, CA, in 1964 as an Assistant Professor in Department of Chemistry. He promoted to Full Professor in 1978. When UOP had a radio station, Dick DJ’d and played Jazz, his favorite genre of music. His favorite artist was Art Tatum; Dick owned everything he recorded. Dick introduced computers into classroom teaching in the 80’s. HIs expertise in computer technology helped other professors and students in their research work. In addition to his highly valued intellectual prowess, Dick enjoyed playing bridge and poker with friends and colleagues. He offered a winter term class for students wanting to improve their chess game. He was passionate about sports, especially track and field, volleyball and softball. He was an informal scout for UOP athletics department. He also loved pro football. He traveled abroad to see Olympic Track and Field. He read extensively about the Civil War and visited many sites in the US to learn more. He was an avid astronomer and wrote software for fun to share with other astronomy lovers. He was admired by his peers and colleagues for his generosity in teaching others what he knew and his amazing memory and analytical skills. He never stopped learning. Dick was a unique personality that touched many people. He will be missed dearly by those who knew him. As teaching Chemistry at University of Pacific was a vital part of Dr. Dodge’s life, we request memorial donations in lieu of flowers go to the university’s John Stauffer Undergraduate Summer Research Endowment in Chemistry and Biochemistry. This experiential research opportunity provides a chance for students to grow and be challenged academically, while inspiring a thirst for creating new knowledge. Donations, which will be matched, can be made securely online at https://www.pacificalumni.or/StaufferMatch or by mail to: University of the Pacific Advancement Services 3601 Pacific Avenue Bannister Hall, 1st Floor Stockton, CA 95211