Peter McMartin Richards Obituary – The Republic of Arizona

Peter McMartin Richards of Scottsdale, AZ and Moultonborough, NH passed away peacefully on November 9, 2022 surrounded by his loving family. Born in 1926 to Archibald McMartin Richards and Betty Price Richards, Peter was the eldest of four children who lived in New York City and Litchfield CT. He attended Millbrook School in 1939, where Peter excelled in physical education; During his senior year, he was tri-captain of football, hockey and baseball teams and made many lifelong friends during his 5-year residency. After graduating from Millbrook in 1944, Peter enlisted in the US Navy and served as 3rd Class Radioman USNR in the North Atlantic, where he received the Victory and American Theater Medals. After World War II, Peter graduated from Yale University in 1950, where he was a member of the St. Elmo Society and a contributor to the Yale Daily News. Peter married Anne (Nancy) Taylor Slocum in 1951, has three daughters and works for several companies as an energetic sales representative. Peter settled in Duxbury, MA and started his own business in 1965 with engineer David Pixley. Pixley-Richards, Inc of Plymouth, MA manufactured microplastics and supplied tiny but vital parts to NASA, Texas Instruments, Motorola, Johnson & Johnson and Raytheon Technologies and many other worldwide customers. When he retired in 1986, Peter was able to spend more time with his family and became deeply involved in various conservation organizations including the Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences, the Squam Lakes Natural Science Center, the Squam Lakes Conservation Society, the Loon Preservation Society, and the Native Plant Trust among many other non-profit organizations. He enjoyed seeing the world, especially when he rode trains, planes, or boats; never travel without a jar of peanut butter in his suitcase. Peter had an innate photographic eye and enjoyed taking pictures of his family and his numerous travels. He was active to the very end and played golf well into the 1990s. His wife Nancy predeceased him in 1999. Peter married Suzanne Talbot Williams in 2003, where they split their homes between Arizona and New Hampshire when not enjoying the world. Peter’s sisters Susan Riegel Little and Betsy Chisolm also predeceased him. Peter will be greatly missed by his brother Archie of Concord, NH, his wife Suzanne, daughters Elizabeth, Harriet and Linda, son-in-law Timothy, six grandchildren, two great-granddaughters and many cousins, nieces and nephews. Worship services will be held on December 15, 2022 at 10:00 am at First Congregational Church, Litchfield CT. In lieu of flowers, the family is asking for donations in Peter’s memory to the Squam Lakes Natural Science Center.