Richard Regenburgh III

1/30/40  –  5/3/21

Richard was born Jan 30, 1940, in Patterson NJ, to Richard and Frances Michel Regenburgh II. He grew up in Hollywood, FL.

He obtained a BS in Business Administration from UF in 1962, before joining the Navy as a communications officer to fight the Vietnam War.

Richard was ranked Chief Petty Officer 1st Class while serving on the USS O’Brien destroyer  from 1964-1967, then was Naval Reserve 1968-1970. He was incredibly proud to have served his country, and proudly wore his Vietnam Veteran gear frequently in retirement, which led him to meeting many fellow veterans and appreciative US citizens alike.

When he returned to the states, he began his career with NASA, first in Alabama, then was promoted and moved to Johnson Space Center Houston. It was then that he met his first wife, Linda, and had his only child, his daughter Robin.

He attended South Texas College of Law, earning his JD in 1977.

He worked in procurement for NASA for 35 years, then at Boeing 5 more until his retirement. He was heavily involved with international relations and purchases for the Space Shuttle program: from spacesuits, to shuttle tiles, to the state of the art arm for the Challenger craft.

Additionally, Richard was a law professor, and taught at 3 institutions: College of the Mainland, Alvin Junior College, and the University of Houston.

Richard was a Freemason; an endowed member of Clear Lake lodge No. 1417 in El Lago.

In retirement, he started Santa N Clown Family entertainment with his second wife, Eadie, and became a graduate of professional clown school. He had two primary clown personas – Hot Air and Dime Box. (Not every kid can call their father a clown and get away with it…)

He became a member of The Fraternal Order of Real Bearded Santas, and brought joy and light to the faces of thousands of children for Christmas.

Richard’s charity work he deeply loved brought smiles to the children in the Shriners Hospital burn unit. He visited the young patients as different clown characters, entertained them with his storytelling skills, and also drove children in need to their appointments to be healed.

He is survived by his daughter, Robin, and son-in-law Steven, as well as his girlfriend Annette, her children and grandchildren, and his ex wife, Linda. His second wife, Eadie, preceded him in death in 2011.

He will be laid to rest at the Houston National Cemetery at 2:15 on May 12, 2021, with full military honors. His viewing will be from 3-5pm Tuesday May 11, 2021, with Freemason honors.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in his name to Shriners Hospitals for Children, Office of Development, 2900 Rocky Point Drive, Tampa FL 33607 or www.shrinershospitalsforchildren.org .