Richard Trythall Death, Obituary -Richard Trythall, a highly respected member of our team and a good friend of ours, passed away suddenly yesterday evening when he was undergoing a voluntary procedure. I’m writing to share the news of his demise with you despite the depth of my sadness and the weight on my heart. Please accept my condolences.
I’ve only known Richard for a short while, but in that time I’ve already been blown away by his enormous brilliance, wide knowledge, and unflinching dedication to the students in our class. It is impossible to find someone who can compete with his leadership and commitment to St. Stephen’s throughout the course of the last fifty-six years.
Because of Richard’s extraordinary ability to encourage and thrill the children, their interests and their natural inquisitiveness were kindled. This ability was evidence of the care and attention he gave. It has been attributed to him in the past that he said, “It seems to me that there is nothing else you could say that would be more convincing than the example you gave.
The only prerequisites are turning up, displaying your art, and potentially performing; everything else is considered incidental. The students view that with a fair amount of respect.” That’s the course of action that Richard chose to take. As the Chair of the Arts Department, he served as a positive role model not only for the students he directly instructed but also for the other students who were enrolled in the department.
Richard was exceptional when it came to cultivating the latent artistic talent that lay dormant within each child and bringing out the unique skills that they possessed. He has worked his way up through the ranks of this company, becoming an integral part of both the culture and the structure. Because he was such a talented artist, composer, and pianist, he will be greatly missed by all of us beyond what we are able to express in words. He was the very definition of a gentleman, and for that he will be remembered.