Richard Romain Pennant was born at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Tacoma on July 7, 1950, to his loving parents, Jack and Dorothy Pennant. He passed away at his home in Hoquiam after a brief illness on Sept. 12, 2024.
He was preceded in death by his parents, baby sister Maxine and sister-in-law Terri, plus many other friends and relatives.
Richard leaves behind three children — Casey, Alyson (aka Gummy Bear), and Will. There’s also his furry little best buddy, Thumper. He’ll be missed by his siblings, Jack and Pam, his nieces, nephews, grandsons and many lifelong friends.
Our Dad left a memorable impression on everyone he met. If it wasn’t his sense of humor or his way with words that got your attention, it was probably his unmistakable laugh. It was his personality (and a nudge from our Maternal Grandmother, Maxene) that steered him toward his life’s work in Real Estate. He started as an Agent in the early 1980s and eventually became a successful property investor.
Pop would want you to know that as a young child, he “invented” the pet-rock before it actually became a thing; and he had a different wad of gum for each day of the week that he kept on his bed post.
He was incredibly passionate about his many hobbies, including collecting vintage cars, clothing, art, and collectibles of every description. He was also a voracious reader with a huge collection of books. After an immense amount of pressure from Casey and Alyson, he finally started listening to audio books earlier this year on a road trip to California. Naturally, he loved it and couldn’t get enough!
Everything in his young life changed when he first heard “From Me to You” by The Beatles in 1963. This started a lifelong love affair with Rock & Roll; if he wasn’t listening to music – he was playing it! He loved singing and playing guitar, with Gibson being his six-string of choice. He was in several bands throughout his lifetime and had a great time playing gigs with his friends. Here’s a shout out to Wiseguy, Stage Door Johnny, The Mars Dodgers, The Kelvinators and all of the other bands he loved being a part of!
He loved baseball and his favorite player of all time was Duke Snider of the Dodgers. Pop played softball in a keg league with The Mars Dodgers (a softball team and a band!) for many, many years, and then eventually with Firetruck. For 30 years – on both teams – he played catcher for his great friend, pitcher Reno Fontana (or if you want to use his gov’t name – Rick Petkovits.
Then there was the era of “Bend My Ear Seattle,” the Public Access variety show that showcased a weekly monologue from Chardmo (Pop’s nickname and alter ego), his sidekick Johnny 99 (played by the incomparable Neil Clarey), local comics, pre-taped comedy bits, a live band (The Bend My Ear Orchestra), Beaver and Bulkhead (my brother Casey and his best friend Omar). The cast and crew were either already family or grew to be family. The show was mostly filmed on Friday nights at 8 p.m. at TCI studios. Watch parties took place afterward at Dad’s house where no “table talk” was allowed and all the drinks and other mood enhancers were happily consumed as the cast and crew watched it on tape.
When it was time to finally try something different, he picked up and moved to Grays Harbor after falling in love with it when he sold a house in Aberdeen in 1999. This immediately became his home, and he loved it here. All it took was selling everything he had and convincing his then wife, Sandie. He also managed to talk a few other friends and his sister, Pam, into moving down here as well. Then, after a solid decade of trying, he finally talked me (Alyson) into moving down here 5 years ago.
Chardmo served as a City of Hoquiam Councilmember for Ward 2 Position 4, from January 2014 to December 2017. This decision was influenced by his love of the Bird Sanctuary and wanting to protect it, which is why he was dead set against the wood pellet mill being built.
Our Pop could tell you anything you’d ever want to know about The Three Stooges. He even traveled to Hollywood to meet and interview Larry Fine. He was obsessed with The Beatles (his first concert and first date at age 14) and owned every recording by them and every book written about them. He could talk at length about Buddy Holly, W.C. Fields, and just about anything else concerning entertainment and pop culture of the early to mid-twentieth century. He loved animals fiercely and was known to try taking in any stray cat that had the nerve to make its way through Thumper’s cat door.
Richard Romain Pennant knew he was blessed to have lived a great life and wasn’t afraid to enjoy a stiff drink, while most likely wearing his favorite pair of Levi’s and a matching jean jacket with a lapel pin. This is why when he found out he had cancer, he faced it head on and never once felt sorry for himself or questioned his fate.
Pop, we will miss you every day for the rest of our lives, but take solace in the thought of you getting to play catch with Grandpa again, having a beautiful lunch with Grandma and Maxine, then finally getting that long-awaited jam session with John Lennon and the rest of the band that’s been up there waiting for you.
Since Dad didn’t want a funeral, we’ll be planning a memorial for him instead. We expect it to take place in early spring. The details will be provided when available.
In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to PAWS of Grays Harbor or your favorite animal charity.
