Richard Monroe Beckman

July 6, 1934 – June 17, 2012

      Richard Beckman died on Father’s Day surrounded by his family in his home on Bainbridge Island. Throughout his battle with cancer, he remained remarkably optimistic. He was extraordinary in his unwavering devotion to his work and family.

      Richard was a passionate architect and a committed educator. He traced his interest in the relationship between architecture and the natural world to his early mountain climbing days in the northwest and to his first visit to Timberline Lodge. He was a graduate of the University of Oregon and Harvard University. Subsequently, he worked for the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency, redesigning the San Francisco waterfront, spent many years in private practice in Oregon, California, Nevada and Washington, and finished his career as a professor of Architecture, first in Dhahran Saudi Arabia and then at the University of Nevada Las Vegas where he taught for 20 years. Professionally, he was known for his warm and intimate home designs, for championing affordable housing, and as an early advocate for sustainable design both in single family homes and urban development. After his retirement, Richard continued to design individual homes and turned his eye for design into transforming his own garden into lush greenery and food for the table.

      Richard had a profound commitment and hope for a better world. He remained optimistic about the future and believed that through poetic and visual imagination we might prevail. In the words of one of his students:

      A successful architect embodies the principles of integrity, benevolence, truth, honor, respect, and character. These principles were the foundation of Richard Beckman. His impact on the local architecture community cannot be quantified. He inspired generations of students, always expecting more from them then they expected of themselves. He pushed all of us to be better people, better friends, and better architects.

      He remains in our hearts and we will cherish the memory of his smile, his wonder for the natural world, and his joy and enthusiasm for life.

      He is survived by his wife Sally, daughter Jennifer, son Jesse, sister Liz, brother John, and the apple of his eye, his granddaughter Juliette.

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