ONEONTA - Richard A. Couch, 61, died of a fatal heart attack on Saturday, June 20, 2009 while playing golf, the game he loved, at the Oneonta Country Club, Oneonta, New York.

Richard was born on January 22, 1948 to Neal Emerson and Madeline Louise (Bemis) Couch in Sabetha, Kansas.

He married Nancy Bondurant 22 years ago on June 27, 1987 in Radford, Virginia.

In 1970 Richard received a Bachelor of Science in Education from Emporia State University in Emporia, Kansas, and in 1990 was awarded a Doctorate in Education by Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, Virginia.

Richard and his family moved to Oneonta, New York in the summer of 2002 when he began working at the State University of New York College at Oneonta as the Dean of the Division of Behavioral and Applied Science. He was also a Professor of Education at the College. Prior to his tenure at Oneonta State, he held administrative and teaching positions at: Central Connecticut State University, New Britain; Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, North Adams; and Clarion University of Pennsylvania, Clarion. While at Virginia Tech, Richard served as a Graduate Teaching Assistant in the College of Education and the Theatre Arts Department. Earlier in his career, he taught and coached secondary school students in New Hampshire and the State of Washington. As a young man, Richard combined his love of teaching and his love for the outdoors as a mountaineering instructor and a professional ski patrol member for many years.

During his professional career, Richard authored an extensive list of publications, presentations and grants, collaborating often with his university colleagues. He served on many university committees, provided workshops and seminars, and participated in several fellowships. He was proud of his membership in the Eastern Educational Research Association; the International Visual Literacy Association; and other professional organizations.

Richard was an outstanding member of the Oneonta community. In addition to his membership at the Oneonta Country Club and the First United Methodist Church, he coached Little League baseball, basketball at the Boys and Girls Club, and served on the Upper Catskill Community Council for the Arts. He supported the arts, his church, and especially his wife and children in all of their activities.

After his family, Richard's greatest passion was golfing. As a teenager he fell in love with the sport while caddying for local & professional golfers at Prairie Dunes Golf Course in Hutchinson, Kansas. He participated in many tournaments throughout his life, winning many of them. Among recent victories were the New York State Golf Association Men's Senior Golf Championship in 2003 and Oneonta Country Club Championships in 2003 and 2004. His latest triumph on June 1, 2009 was--with a foursome that included his older son, Martin--winning the afternoon Flight A of the A.O. Fox Memorial Hospital Golf Classic in Oneonta. For several years, he helped coordinate the Red Dragon Open for Oneonta State, and most recently organized the upcoming First Annual Habitat for Humanity Golf Tournament in Otsego County.

Richard was a gentle and compassionate man who cared deeply for the condition of humankind and the environment. He was passionate about liberal politics and a life long Democrat, who loved this quote from Dr. Seuss: "Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind."

He is survived by his wife, Nancy, and two sons, Martin Hix, age 18, and Mitchel Richard, age 15, sisters, Ellen (Ronnie) Welch of New Hampshire, Cheryl (Gary) Huckins of Florida, and a brother, Neal Thomas (Monica) of North Carolina and Mississippi. Also surviving in Virginia are his parents-in-law, Hix and Lillian Bondurant; sister-in-law, Carolee Bondurant; brother-in-law, Bill (Becca) Bondurant; and from Louisiana, brother-in-law, David (Alison) Bondurant; as well as aunts, uncles, cousins and numerous nieces and nephews.

In addition to his parents, Richard was predeceased by a Nancy's brother, Kenneth Bondurant (husband of Carolee).

A memorial service will be held at 4:30 p.m., Sunday, June 28, 2009 at the First United Methodist Church, 66 Chestnut St., Oneonta, with the Rev. Teressa Sivers officiating, with a reception to follow at the church.

In Richard's honor, a memorial fund has been established for the college education of his sons. Contributions may be sent to Richard A. Couch Memorial Fund, Post Office Box 1384, Oneonta, NY 13820.

Arrangements are by the Lewis, Hurley & Pietrobono Funeral Home, 51 Dietz St., Oneonta, www.lhpfuneralhome.com.