John T. Richards, 82
January 10, 2013
John T. Richards, 82, passed away on Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2013, after a short illness.
He was born Aug. 20, 1930, in Punxsutawney, a son of the late John and Ruth Richards.
He was retired from the United States Air Force after 22 years of service.
He later retired after 20 years of civil service.
Mr. Richards performed avionics maintenance on numerous aircraft, including his favorite, the B-52 Stratofortress.
He received the Air Force Commendation Medal with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters,
Presidential Unit Citation with 1 Oak Leaf Cluster, Air Force Outstanding Unit Award, Air Force Good Conduct Medal with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters, Army Good Conduct Medal with 4 Knots, National Defense with Bronze Star Device, Korean Service Medal, Vietnam Service Medal with 1 Bronze Star, Air Force Longevity and United Nations Ribbon.
He was a Senior NCO Academy graduate and took numerous Air University courses.
Surviving relatives include his wife, Charmane Richards; four children, John (Susan) Richards, Pamela (Jim) Whartman, James (Pat) Richards and Jerry Richards; six grandchildren, John (Kelsey) Richards, Christina (Kent) Jacobs, Jessica Richards, Renee (Ben) Lingl, Cathy Loya and Crystal (Keith) Knobloch; numerous great-grandchildren; a sister, Judith (Jack) Mosier; three nieces, Jan (Jerry) Hudson, Jo (Dave) Crum and Jill (Mike) Burnheimer; and longtime friend James Gniady.
Friends will be received from 7 to 9 p.m. today at Heritage Memorial Funeral Home, Warner Robins, Ga.
Graveside services will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 12, 2013, at Parkway Memorial Gardens.
Memorials can be made to the Museum of Aviation Foundation, P.O. Box 2469, Warner Robins, GA 31099.
