Richard T. Kirkpatrick

Richard T. Kirkpatrick, retired chief executive officer of a Reading business, died of natural causes Sept. 7 at 8:09 a.m. in his residence in Wernersville.

Kirkpatrick, 70, was the husband of Mary Ann (Analavage) Kirkpatrick.

He joined Luden's Inc., Reading, in 1960, and served as cost accounting supervisor, assistant controller, controller and vice president of finance before being named chief operating officer and executive vice president in 1978.

Kirkpatrick served on Luden's board of directors from 1978 until his retirement in 1987.

He was a Wernersville councilman from 1969 to 1973 and served on the borough's zoning board from 1974 to 1978. He served the last year as board chairman.

Born in Pottsville, he was a son of the late Bernard and Marie (Bauers) Kirkpatrick.

Kirkpatrick was previously employed from 1954 to 1960 in cost accounting by the Atlantic Refining Co., West Reading.

He was a 1952 graduate of Wilson High School and a 1960 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business.

Kirkpatrick pitched Wilson to the 1952 Berks Scholastic Baseball League championship and helped pitch the Shillington Juniors to a tie in the Berks American Legion League. He was drafted by the Cleveland Indians.

He was a member of St. Francis de Sales Roman Catholic Church, Robesonia.

Kirkpatrick served on the board of directors of the Berks County Chamber of Commerce, Manufacturers Association of Berks County, Chocolate Manufacturers Association and the Berks County Association for the Hearing Impaired Inc.

He was a past president and board member of St. Joseph Hospital's Development Corp. and a member of the President's Council of Albright College.

In 1984, Kirkpatrick was named distinguished dean of the confectionery industry by the National Candy Wholesaler's Association and the B'nai B'rith American Traditions Award.

Richard T. Kirkpatrick Day was proclaimed in Reading on June 18, 1984.

He is also survived by two sons, Richard Jr., Exeter Township, and Robert J., Omaha, Neb.; and two daughters, Deborah T. (Kirkpatrick) Bossler and Denise (Kirkpatrick) Harter, both of Wernersville.

Other survivors include 11 grandchildren.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Saturday at 10 a.m. in St. Ignatius Loyola Roman Catholic Church, Whitfield. Burial will be in Gethsemane Cemetery, Laureldale. Edward J. Kuhn Funeral Home Inc., West Reading, is in charge of arrangements.