Obituary of Richard Ernest Koss

Richard E. Koss loved life, enjoyed people, good food and good stories. He walked Yellowstone National Park on a llama trek and, at the age of 60 and 72, hiked in and out of the Grand Canyon on the Bright Angel Trail. He never met a dog he didn’t like. He was born on February, 5, 1919 to Albert Kos and Blanche (Terry) Kos in Rochester, Minnesota and passed away on August 7, 2012 in Tucson, AZ. After graduating from the University of Minnesota and serving as a Captain in the Army, he married Alice Green, of Rochester, at Calvary Episcopal Church on August 10, 1947. Alice predeceased him in 1974. He is survived by his brother, M. Terry (Mary) Kos of Rochester, and two children, Linda (Nelson Wright) Koss, formerly of Tucson, currently in Macomb, MO and David (Ann) Koss of Tucson, AZ. In 1962 the family moved to Platteville, Wisconsin where Richard worked on the business staffs at University of Wisconsin-Platteville and the Tri-county Mental Health Clinic. With neighbors and friends they enjoyed lively sing-alongs, homemade cinnamon rolls and classic mid-western summer barbecues. He would retire, in 1982, to Tucson, Arizona. After a career in hospital administration and business management, Richard expressed energetic and creative ideas with his hobbies including avid gardening, stamp collecting, art, theatre, music, reading and hiking. He traveled to Europe, the Mediterranean and Ireland and saw much of his own country while making many good friends and corresponding with some for 60 years or more. Focusing on the painted wall murals in Tucson, Arizona, he took time to introduce one young friend, Alex Marie Yocum, to the art of photography. He was active in the Library Committee at St. Philips Episcopal Church in Tucson, AZ. He enjoyed much of the desert wildlife and mild winters in contrast to his snowbound Minnesota youth. On one camping trip to the Mexican Beach of Los Cocinas, he went snorkeling early and announced with great delight: “I have seen an octopus before breakfast!” The family will have a private memorial service in Rochester. He will be greatly missed.