Richard E. Olds - Loving Husband and Father Richard E. Olds, 83, of Lancaster, PA, more recently of Mechanicsburg, died Sunday, March 29, 2015 at Country Meadows West Shore. Born January 25, 1932 in Detroit, Michigan, he was the son of the late Nicholas Vecchio Olds and Concetta DiBlasi Maglia. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his stepmother Mary Rogers Olds, stepfather, Andrew R. Maglia, and brother-in-law Steven D. Rakich. He is survived by his wife, Marilyn Lee Olds; two daughters, Emily Olds Davis of Camp Hill, PA and Shelley E. (Robert Workman) Olds of Nederland, CO; two grandchildren, Eleanor and Christopher Davis; siblings Viola (James) Peponis, Charlotte (Steven) Rakich, Betsy (Ron) Cline, William (Lisa) Olds, David (Marcia) Olds, and many nieces and nephews. A memorial service will be celebrated at 2:00 pm, Monday, July 6, 2015 in the Binns Room at the Ware Center, 42 N Prince St, Lancaster, PA 17603. Richard Edward Olds was born in Detroit, Michigan to first generation Italian-American parents. As a young man, he fell in love with music and learned to play piano, becoming a classical pianist. He graduated from Redford High School, where he participated in many school theatricals and gave many piano recitals. Dick attended Wayne State University for his bachelor's and master's degrees and in 1970 earned a PhD at the University of Michigan in educational psychology (go blue and gold!). Upon graduation, he accepted a job at Millersville University, in Millersville, Pennsylvania, where he taught thousands of future teachers, nurses, and counselors for the 21 years. After Millersville, Dick and his business partner and friend, Tony Marinucci, shared a family counseling practice until Dad's full retirement in 1996. In retirement, Dick returned to his love of music and serious piano study, giving several solo concerts at the Pennsylvania Academy of Music and to friends and to family in Florida, Michigan, and Colorado. He was stage manager for a number of productions at the Fulton Theater in Lancaster. He also was active in the Democratic Party, and served as a Lancaster County committeeman during the 2008 National Election. Dick married the love of his life, and was a devoted husband to Marilyn for 57 years. He respected and cherished Marilyn all the days of his life, and taught his children through his example, the strength behind commitment in marriage. He cared about all people and lived his life with integrity. He was a peacemaker, bringing family together after decades of being apart. Dick was a kind, compassionate, gentle, and interesting man, liked by everyone whose lives he touched. His early training in B.F. Skinner's philosophy that "a failure is not always a mistake, it may simply be the best one can do under the circumstances. The real mistake is to stop trying," permeated his life. He encouraged his children and other family members to be adventurous or try something new, and if things didn't work out, it was not necessarily failure. He loved humor, telling jokes to the very end. He was a phenomenal listener; walks around Big Twin Lake or visits in the living room or on the deck were often filled with laughter and gentle counseling. Always curious about science and math, Dick read many books on astronomy and the origins of the universe. He also enjoyed the stories of science that Emily, Shelley, and his many nieces and nephews would weave to explain concepts of biology, geology, chemistry, and physics, encouraging his younger family to simplify and refine the stories to better communicate science to all people. Dick was a loving father and grandfather, and no one could top him as a story reader! To hear Charlotte's Web read by Dad with different and hilarious voices for Wilber and Charlotte was truly a gift. He also had a special talent for making up amazing accents and singing every voice in the Halleluiah Chorus from Handel's Messiah. He loved cars and could tell a 1950's vintage Ford from a Chevy at 100 yards. In recent years, he frequently and enthusiastically attended the many concerts and athletic events of his grandchildren going so far as to be the "brownie baker" for his granddaughter's ice skating team! Above all, Dick was a devoted husband. He and Marilyn shared a passion for history and spent 20 years restoring a Revolutionary War era tavern in Lancaster County. In their 57 years as husband and wife, they visited many countries and especially loved their time in Italy with their daughter, son-in-law, and niece. Above all, Richard Olds was a kind, gentle, patient and generous man, and his family misses his support, wisdom, and sense of humor very much.