Catalyst behind Mingo Creek observatory
Richard Y. Haddad was a lifelong philomath.
Loosely translated from the Greek for “a lover of learning,” the 89-year-old delighted in learning as well as debating and reading about everything from current events to religion, science and philosophy.
An author and philanthropist from Upper St. Clair, Mr. Haddad died Saturday after a battle with heart disease.
His contributions were vast and varied.
He was the driving force behind the construction of the Mingo Creek Park Observatory in Washington County along with a philosophical forum established at Washington & Jefferson College.
The son of the late George and Rosalie Yazbeck Haddad, Mr. Haddad was born in Shreveport, La., where he earned a bachelor’s degree in geology from Centenary College of Louisiana. He went on to receive a master’s degree in geophysics from the University of Arkansas before enlisting in the Army during the Korean War and being sent to Germany.
Upon his return to Shreveport, he worked as a geophysicist at Humble Oil and Refining Co.
When he was stationed with a seismic crew in New Mexico in 1956, Mr. Haddad met fourth-grade teacher Susan Cunningham on a blind date. They married June 30, 1957.
“He was being reassigned to Central America, but his father was in poor health and begged him not to go,” Mrs. Haddad recalled. “So he quit the crew and proposed to me instead.”
Mr. Haddad continued working in the oil and gas industry, which meant frequent relocations for his family. When he was assigned to the Upper St. Clair area in 1965, the family had enough with the constant upheaval, Mrs. Haddad said.
That year, he and colleague Schuyler Brooks forged a partnership, Haddad & Brooks Inc., an oil and gas exploration firm. Mr. Haddad remained in the partnership until his retirement about 20 years ago.
In 1985, he became chairman of the first Basic Issues Forum at Washington & Jefferson College, which Mr. Haddad explained at the time was conceived to stimulate thinking and awareness of issues common to mankind and “those issues which people … have lived for, pondered about, and argued, fought, killed and died over,” he told The Pittsburgh Press at the time.
The forum selected an annual theme and solicited original papers on the subject from experts in various disciplines.
Mr. Haddad’s love of philosophy led him to write a book, “No Sign in the Sky,” in 2004. Mrs. Haddad, a watercolor artist, illustrated the cover.
“It took him years to write the book and many, many family discussions,” said his daughter, Julie Young of Fort Worth, Texas.
His retirement also afforded Mr. Haddad time to focus on his charitable works, including helping to raise funds for an expansion of Canonsburg Hospital and for United Cerebral Palsy of Southwestern PA, Child’s Way, and Citizens Library in Washington, Pa.
But, perhaps Mr. Haddad’s most lasting contribution came in 2002, when he took an idea to several officers of the Amateur Astronomers Association of Pittsburgh.
“He actually approached the organization about the idea of building an observatory here in the south, which has a little bit of a darker sky than [Wagman Observatory] in the North Hills,” said Mike Meteney, treasurer of the organization.
A location in Mingo Creek County Park in Nottingham was chosen and Mr. Haddad served as the chief fundraiser, netting at least $400,000 for construction and equipment, Mr. Meteney said. But Mr. Haddad was as modest as he was gracious.
When it came time to open the facility in fall 2004, planners wanted to name the planetarium at the observatory for Mr. Haddad but feared he would reject the idea.
“I think he always considered how other people felt about things,” Mr. Meteney said. “He knew that if he would say anything negative that it might hurt some of our feelings. So he didn’t. He was OK with it.”
Even in the photos taken at the observatory opening and later at the 10th anniversary, Mr. Haddad preferred to stay in the background, Mr. Meteney recalled.
“If you met him on the street and talked to him, you would never think that he did all these things,” he said. “He was the most humble, unpretentious, soft-spoken person. … You couldn’t help but like him.”
“I think my dad was interested in helping people,” said his daughter Betsy Haddad of Garrison, Texas. “I think he was good at getting people together for a worthy project.”
Mr. Haddad’s interest in so many subjects made for intriguing debates, his daughters recalled.
“I think we’re all going to miss the dinner table conversations we had,” Ms. Young said.
“A lot of times, when you ask someone what they think, they’ll repeat something they heard, but my dad really thought about it,” Betsy Haddad said. “He was an original creative thinker.”
In addition to his wife and two daughters, Mr. Haddad is survived by two other daughters, Sarah Hicks of Lexington, Ky., and Katie Flynn of Philadelphia; 13 grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.
Visitation is scheduled for 2 to 4 p.m. and 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at Beinhauer Family Funeral Home, 2828 Washington Road, Peters. A celebration of life service will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday in the courtyard of Westminster Presbyterian Church, 2040 Washington Road, Upper St. Clair.