Richard Stephens

Richard G. Stephens, 90, departed peacefully on October 28, 2016. He was preceded in death by his parents, Richard and Ruth Stephens; his sister, Rosalie Heard and his son, Richard J. Stephens.  He is survived by his wife, Joan C. Stephens; his brother and sister-in-law, Raymond and Julie Stephens; his son, Jeffrey G. Stephens; his daughter, Mary Ann Stephens and son-in-law, Philip Grabowski and his three grandsons, Christian, Alex and Michael Grabowski. He grew up in Hammond, IN where he was affectionately known as “Bud”.  He served in the US Navy during WWII, received a degree in electrical engineering from Purdue University in 1948, followed by a law degree from George Washington University in 1953.  While at GW, he worked in the US Patent Office and received the prestigious Order of the Coif for excellence in legal scholarship.  Dick and Joan married in 1954, moved to Westchester and Dick worked briefly in the Chrysler Building for the patent law firm, Darby & Darby. He quickly tired of commuting into NYC. He much preferred heading upstate to Kirkwood, where he tirelessly devoted himself to the patent work and engineering on pioneering flight simulators at Link Aviation.  Before long, Dick and Joan moved to Binghamton and Dick worked directly for Link.  A few years later, he started his own intellectual property firm based in Binghamton and kept happily busy with clients from around the world until the age of 80.  The family is very grateful to the staff at the NYS Veterans Home in Oxford for their constant dedication, compassion and professionalism.  Funeral services will be private. Donations in Dick’s name may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association, P.O. Box 96011, Washington, DC 20090-6011. To forward condolences please visit www.demunn.com. Arrangements for the family are directed by the DeMunn Funeral Home.