Obituary of Richard William Hodges

            Richard William Hodges, 80, passed away, peacefully, at St. Luke's Cornwall Hospital, in Newburgh, NY, on Tuesday, January 9^th. He is survived by his sister, Joan Elizabeth Conjura, and brother-in-law, Tim Conjura.  Richard also leaves his nephew, Will Conjura, his wife, Staci, their children, Matthew and Hannah; as well as niece, Maria Reininger, her husband, Urban, their daughters Natalie and Katie; and nephew, Tom Conjura , his wife Kylie, their sons: Tyler, Jonathan and William.  He is further survived by sister-in-law, Kathryn Hodges, nephew Jonathan, his wife, Emily, and children Tristan and Nora, as well as niece, Jennifer Wilson, her children, Helena Small, Kendall Small, and Harbor Wilson. Richard is also survived by his former domestic partner, Carole Hart.

            He was predeceased by his parents: Guy William Hodges and Natalie Camp Hodges, as well as his brother, Peter Earle Hodges, who passed away this past July.

            Richard was born in Glen Ridge, NJ, on December 26, 1943. He and mom, Natalie, lived with grandparents in Rutherford, NJ, while Dad was overseas in the Army, during WWII. After Dad was discharged, the family moved to Scotia, NY, where Dad got a job with IBM. A few years later, the family moved to Cazenovia, NY, later Mountain Lakes, NJ.

            Dick graduated from Mountain Lakes High School, in 1961, attended Rutgers University, and later graduated from Pennsylvania Military College in 1967.  At PMC, he was awarded the Chicago Tribune Silver Medal as the most outstanding Freshman Cadet, based on military achievement, scholastic attainment and character. He also received the Theodore Hyatt Medal which was awarded to the cadet who maintained the highest-class record in scholarship as a freshman. He received a commission as a 2^nd Lieutenant in the Army,upon graduation, and headed off to Ft. Sill, OK for four months of basic artillery and surveyor school. He flew to Okinawa on Thanksgiving 1967 via San Francisco. He served as a surveyor there until August 1968, Richard returned to Mountain Lakes for a month's leave, and headed to Vietnam in September. 1968. He spent one year at Chu Lai in a 155mm artillery unit. In September 1969, he traveled back stateside, posting at Ft. Knox, KY until July 4, 1970, when he was honorably discharged from the United States Army. During his tenure in the military, he was awarded the Bronze Star, Vietnam Service Medal, Vietnam Campaign Medal w/60 Device, and the National Defense Service Medal. Richard reached the rank of Captain while in the service.

            After his discharge, Richard started work as an auditor for Jersey Central Power & Light, in Parsippany, NY, a position he held for nineteen years. During that time he earned a Master's Degree in Finance from Farleigh Dickinson University in Madison, New Jersey. Dick moved to Green Hill, Rhode Island in 1991. He worked for the State of RI as a senior auditor, until his retirement in 2007.

            Dick relished watching sports on television, especially the Boston professional sports teams.

            Before moving to the Fishkill Center, he lived in Charlotte, NC, then Holmes, NY for many years. He enjoyed going to Karen's Diner in Pawling, and he considered them family.

            The family would like to thank everyone at the Fishkill Center for Rehabilitation, in Beacon, for their kindness and attentiveness to his care over the last year. In addition, we would like to thank everyone at St. Luke's Cornwall Hospital, for their care while he was a patient there.

            In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to Hospice of Orange and Sullivan County of NY, or a charity of your choice.  A celebration of life is planned for a later date.

Arrangements under the care of Colonial Memorial Funeral Home, for further information call 845-434-7363 or visit www.colonialfamilyfuneralhomes.com

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