EASTLAND – Richard Ralph “Dick” Meade, 69 of Eastland, passed away Wednesday, February 3, 2021 in Abilene. Visitation will be Monday, Feb. 8th, 4~7 p.m. at Edwards Funeral Home in Eastland. Services will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday at St. Rita’s Catholic Church in Ranger. Burial will follow in the Eastland City Cemetery.
Dick was born June 26, 1951 in Highland Park, IL to Vernon Zillinger and Tamara (Fester) Zillinger. When he was 5 he was adopted by Tamara's second husband Edward Meade. He married Margaret O’Connell-Hennessey in Edison Park, IL on September 18, 1976. He was a dispatcher for the Arlington Heights, IL Fire Department for a time. He worked for Hunter Automated Machinery Corp. until 1983. Dick went out on his own for a while with a design company before he was asked to join DISA Corp. in Oswego, Illinois. He worked as a technician and in design upgrades for this foundry equipment provider for several years where he traveled extensively in Europe and the US for his work. Dick settled in Eastland Texas in 1994. He was Plant Engineer for EBAA Iron until his retirement in May of 2019. Dick was a car enthusiast and served as Headmaster for Road Rallies for 10 years. He enjoyed piloting airplanes and attending “Fly-Ins” especially Oshkosh WI. He served on the Eastland Fine Arts Association (Theater) Board and helped build and place the Christmas star on top of the local courthouse for 18 years. Dick was an avid traveler and enjoyed vacationing all over the world.
Survivors include his wife Maggie Meade; son, Richard Meade and his wife Aimee; his mother, Tamara Passarelli and her husband Julion; a brother, Thurston Meade and his wife Monica; 3 sisters, Lori Baird & her husband Jim, Deborrah Lohrmann and her late husband Steve, and Holly Fisher and her husband Timothy; his pride and joy, grandson, Declan Meade; and his stepmother, Elaine Meade.
Online condolences for the family may be left at:
www.edwards-funeral-homes.com
. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the American Heart Association.