Richard (Dick) Allen Herrin

Richard (Dick) Allen Herrin, beloved husband of Heidi R. Herrin, and father of Benjamin Zac Herrin, Rochelle H. Beaupre, and Shanel H. Votry, unexpectedly passed away at age 73 in Bluffton, South Carolina on January 9 ^th , 2022.  He was laid to rest at Beaufort National Cemetery on January 18 ^th , 2022.  He was born in Seattle, Washington to Lucy Jeanne and Eldon Wayne Herrin, and to brother Dr. Donald A. Herrin.  He was a proud grandfather to Ashton, Caylee, Elly, Rebecca, Trey, Sylas, Violette, Lillian, Paige, and Flynn. He was also a beloved uncle.

Dick graduated from high school a semester early and immediately enlisted in the US Marine Corps.  Sergeant Herrin served as a Computer Operations Tech.  Afterward, he graduated from City College in Seattle with degrees in both Marketing and Finance.  He rode the wave in both telecommunications and computer information technologies.   He had a long career as a Senior Executive in Information Technologies and retired in 2012.  His desire to continue to learn and develop skills motivated him to earn a Master's Degree in Computational Science from the University of South Carolina, Beaufort.

Dick had a great sense of humor and readily and heartily enjoyed a good laugh.  He would absolutely light up and you could see the twinkle in his big blue eyes.  He especially loved to put a smile on his wife Heidi’s face and hear her great laugh.  He was a thoughtful and affectionate partner who once retired, brought lunch to Heidi at work more often than not and enjoyed finding a spot to sit and eat together.  Dick never met a stranger. He could always find a way to relate and a way to converse with anyone he met.  He jumped at opportunities to pitch in and serve others in the community.  He often drew upon his experiences to teach and support others.  He mentored and taught classes at Sun City Wood Shop and made so many beautiful things for his loved ones which we will cherish.

Dick was always up for an adventure.  He loved to travel to new places, enjoy nature, and especially loved the water.  He loved to boat and fish from time to time and had said for years that he would love to retire and become a riverboat captain.  From a young age, he took his children camping for many summers at Ohanapecosh Campground in Mt. Rainier National Park.  The Grove of the Patriarchs Trail was always a highlight, but we all know that he was always amused at our dips in the freshly melted glacier waters of the Ohanapecosh River.  He’d observe the kids with a grin as they made it across and hopped out to warm up on the other side knowing that they’d have to do it all over again to get back to the other side.

Dick didn’t just keenly enjoy his children’s swimming adventures in ice-cold glacier water, but participated in years of year-round swim meets for all three kids.  He acted as a starter, timer, and a stroke and turn judge.  More weekends than we can count, he spent the entire weekend volunteering at those swim meets. Dick also spent many of the other weekends driving the icy passes before the crack of dawn to take the family skiing.  After moving to New Jersey, he enjoyed being on ski patrol.

Dick spent a lot of time pouring over his parents’ genealogy to continue the efforts to build connections and discover our ancestry.  Dick was a Son of the Revolution and the fourth great-grandson of Brigham Young, and many other Mormon pioneers.  Dick was a lifelong member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  He was serving as a First Counselor in the Ridgeland Ward Bishopric.  He was a man of faith and enjoyed a wonderful connection with his ward members.  He loved music through the deepest depths of his soul, shared his passion through his love of singing, and did so in several choral groups.  He loved his music loud and proud and had been known to provide additional rhythm on the steering wheel or air piano on the dashboard.

Dick said that he joined the military so that he could become a pilot, but never did learn to fly.  Although, he found so many other vantage points to view and enjoy his life to the fullest.  He jumped out of planes, ziplined, traveled overseas, and enjoyed the beauty of this earth wherever he could.  For eleven years, he enjoyed the stillness of the South Carolina Lowcountry, and the wildlife it nurtures.  In that time, he rose each new day to observe the stillness and tranquility of wild egrets and herons out his back window.  Let him share that same peace and tranquility as he finally takes flight into the loving embrace of those who left this earth before him and provide him sanctuary at the end of his journey.