Richard Joseph Flavin, 1943-2020
With sadness, we report the death of our friend and colleague, Richard Flavin on May 11th of this year. Richard passed away peacefully at home in Japan, in the company of his wife Ryoko, a few close friends, and his cat Toby. The cause of death was metastatic cancer. Richard is survived by his wife Ryoko Haraguchi, his sisters Mary Gustin and Maureen Sloan, and his brother David Flavin. He was pre-deceased by his sister Peggy Doran and his first wife, Haruko Ito Flavin.
Richard had a certain magic in his being. He valued life, and nature, and friends who make things with their hands, with a natural sincerity that people were drawn to. He saw things the rest of us missed. It was evident he was gifted and it was a gift to be around him. The world will be a different place without him, but it is enriched by all the lives he touched and changed just by being himself. Thus, all he was, still is, and will not be lost. We just have to concentrate on the precious times, the good times we had together, and attempt to live Richard’s approach to life in our own. A website has been created at http://richardflavin.snowbackpress.com/ where friends and colleagues can share reflections and photos. You can also refer to Paul Denhoed’s article on Richard in the Summer 2009 issue of Hand Papermaking Magazine and/or listen to Helen Hiebert’s November 2019 interview with Richard at https://helenhiebertstudio.com/products/podcast/richard-flavin/
