Richard Goodwin, 91, of Ashley Falls passed away on June 24, 2023. He was born on February 22, 1932, the son of Earl and Pearl Goodwin, on a farm in northern Indiana. His parents divorced before he was born, and he was raised by his grandparents, Paul and Nettie Rosenbaum.
Dick was the first in his family to graduate from high school in Wanatah, Ind., and with a small scholarship from his Lutheran Church, he attended Valparaiso University. He graduated in 1954 after working various jobs to pay his own tuition for four years and three summers. His majors were English as well as Speech and Theatre, with minors in music and education.
The same year he graduated, Dick married his high school sweetheart, Dorothy June Keehn, and he became a father to their daughter, Gina, born on his birthday in 1955. Both Dick and Dorothy had their first teaching jobs at Rolling Prairie High School in Indiana. A few short months after Gina’s birth, Dick was drafted into the U.S. Army’s 3rd Armored Division and left in July of 1955 to get his basic training at Fort Knox, N.Y. As chief assistant to the Chaplains’ corps, he served as both secretary and music director in chapels both in Kentucky and 14 months in Frankfort, Germany. Upon his discharge in 1957, he returned to Indiana and his job teaching at Rolling Prairie High School. His “new” job required that he get graduate credit in library science, so he spent that summer at Indiana University.
Dick and Dorothy divorced in 1956, and Dick left for a teaching/music job in Bronx, N.Y. at Our Saviour Lutheran Church/School. In this position, Dick was again a teacher of English, but also began to put his music and theatre training to good use. He sought public school employment after three years in the Bronx because he needed an increase in salary to survive in New York City.
As English Department Chairman and sponsor of the Theatre Club in Elmsford, N.Y., he finally got to apply his talents in staging productions. For nearly two decades, he led his English Department, developed new courses, and taught high school English, along with various elective courses. During these years, he directed many shows. Among his favorites were, “The Crucible,” “Johnny Belinda,” “West Side Story,” and “Showboat.”
Dick retired to the Berkshires in 1987, having purchased property in the Ashley Falls area in 1970 during one of his many ski weekends at Brodie Mountain. Locally, he became a very active member of the Sheffield Kiwanis Club for 23 years, where he held terms as President, Secretary, and Treasurer.
More recently, Dick did volunteer duty at the Sheffield Senior Center and called Bingo games at the center and also at Geer Village in Canaan, Conn.
Dick leaves his partner of nearly 62 years, Nathan Padin, and four nieces and nephews in Indiana.
He was predeceased by his brother, Donald Shireman.
A Celebration of Life will be announced at a later date. In lieu of flowers, please consider memorial donations to the Sheffield Kiwanis Club or HospiceCare in the Berkshires in care of Finnerty & Stevens Funeral Home, 426 Main Street, Great Barrington, MA 01230. To send remembrances to the family, please visit the funeral home’s website.
