Richard Lyon

Essex — Richard W. “Rick” Lyon died on Oct. 14, 2017, of a much-used, worn-out heart.

Born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on Oct. 24, 1953, Rick was a poet, sailor, biker and beloved husband of Lisa LeVally.

Rick earned his bachelor’s degree from Boston University and his master’s from Columbia. He was an artist-in-residence at the Camargo Foundation in Cassis, France, MacDowell, Yaddo and Centrum.

Lisa and Rick met at Ragdale, an artists’ colony in Lake Forest, Ill., where she worked in the office and he was a poet-in-residence. Having known each other almost 19 years, Rick and Lisa married in April 2017. Their wedding party was held in Havana, Cuba.

Rick and Lisa toured all over the country by motorcycle — Honda, Harley and Ducati.

Friends will know how Rick was interested in everything about them, and was never one to shy away from keeping in touch.

Rick loved motorcycles, jazz, sailing vessels and Essex. His book of poetry, “Bell 8,” is a remembrance of people and circumstances in his adopted hometown. Aside from “Bell 8,” Rick’s work was widely published — in American Poetry Review, The Nation, and the Colorado Review, among others.

Rick will be returned to Essex, to be buried at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 5, 2018, at River View Cemetery, joining his parents, Basil “Bud” and Nancy W. Lyon.

Rick is survived by his wife Lisa LeVally, and his brother Robert.

His last night was spent writing his final poem, “Jesus at the Greyhound Station,” which Lisa will read at the graveside service.