Richard Van Loan
Richard Van Loan, 87 Longtime Connecticut resident Richard “Dick” R. Van Loan, 87, passed away November 26, 2021, following a brief illness. Dick was born in Stamford to Floyd and Virginia Van Loan, was raised in Greenwich and spent his final years in Essex, CT. He was the older of two boys, surviving his brother David Van Loan.
Dick attended Brunswick School in Greenwich and went on to graduate from Springfield College. After brief stints in the Army National Guard and as a teacher, Dick spent his entire working career as a stockbroker for Kidder Peabody in New York City. He retired as a vice president and the compliance officer from Kidder, then part of UBS, in 1999, thus ending years of commuting on MetroNorth… though he held onto his commuter’s tag “Please wake me at Greenwich”.
He married his first wife Mary Jane Kirkwood (deceased) and they had 3 children, Richard Van Loan Jr., Lynn Brainerd, and Robert Van Loan. They were married for 17 years and lived in Greenwich. During this time both Dick and Mary joined the Boy Scouts of America and were each den leaders to different troops. He also loved the hapless New York Jets and had season tickets to see them play at Shea stadium. Dick delighted in watching the New York Rangers play ice hockey and was thrilled when they won the Stanley Cup in 1994. Dick and Mary were avid entertainers and hosted countless pool parties and an annual backyard field day and party for all the neighborhood families.
After his divorce from Mary, Dick married JoanEllis (Jody) Hill Fontana of Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan. Dick and Jody lived in Greenwich with her three children, from a previous marriage, Umberto (Oscar) Fontana Jr., Christine (Tracy) Dineen, and Pamela Fontana Sconzo. Dick and Jody enjoyed many summers on their sailboats Wolverine and The Decent. As members of Indian Harbor Yacht Club they often spent Sunday brunches sharing Dark and Stormies and Blacktops with their fellow sailors. They spent summers sailing and “rafting-up” with friends on The Sound and the Virgin Islands. Prior to Dick’s retirement from UBS, Dick and Jody moved to their home in Essex, CT overlooking the Connecticut River. With his move to Essex, Dick added the Hartford Whalers, of which they became season tickets holders, to the list of teams he followed diligently. At their Essex house “Still on the Hill”, Dick and Jody hosted their family gatherings and entertained the grandchildren through out the years. They and their many Portuguese Water Dogs and Dick’s beloved German Shorthaired Pointers, Slicker and Trig, lived in Essex since 1997.
Dick is survived by his wife Jody of nearly 45 years, 3 children, 3 stepchildren, and 11 grandchildren, all of whom will remember Dick for his easygoing, playful (if slightly mischievous) personality and wonderful sense of humor.
Funeral services will be private. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in the memory of Richard R. Van Loan to The Brunswick School in Greenwich, CT, or USA Hockey Foundation.