On March 28, 2021 our father, Dick Duda, died unexpectedly in Redondo Beach, California, following complications from an accidental fall. He was 88 years old.
Dick Duda was born on December 13, 1932 in Bessemer, Michigan. He graduated with a degree in Physics from Michigan State University in the mid ‘50s and then joined the USAF. He was stationed at Edwards Air Force Base in California where he met our mother, Billie Joyce in 1956. Married in Las Vegas in 1957, they just recently celebrated their 63rd wedding anniversary in Nov 2020.
Our dad spent several years working at McDonnell Douglas, but the majority of his working years were spent at United Detector of Technology (UDT) in Culver City, California. I believe we all, (his daughters), wrestled with how to explain to people what our dad did for a living. “He’s a scientist. He works with light”. Blank stares every time. I remember his business card reading “Senior Scientist” – but I felt I needed something more descriptive for this piece, so I reached out to his long-time, close friend Kemal, who had worked for years with him at UDT and who remained close with my dad to the very end. He answered, “Senior Scientist is good – or Thermodynamics & Electro-Optical Scientist.-You might also use Wile E. Coyote’s
‘Super Genius’.” That made me laugh. My dad ….. he would have enjoyed that title the best.
“Super Genius” indeed.
He was an interesting man. He had the brain of a scientist and the heart of an artist which I believe gave him the dual sides to think up solutions to problems, and then design and create them. He did this not only in his role as Scientist at UDT, (like the QED200 – which he won an award for in 1985), but also solving problems with his artistic endeavors: photography, drawing, enameling, jewelry making, and in his later years, wood working. He would often submit ideas and solutions to his favorite magazines, sometimes having those suggestions published.
His laugh was heard often and he found humor throughout the good times as well as the more difficult times. Sometimes his humor would be a very welcome relief to a very difficult situation and sometimes ….well, you might just be annoyed that he was laughing at something you were not ready to, but eventually would. His smile and his laugh were never far away… and I think that is perhaps what we will miss the most …. his sense of humor.
He had been retired for nearly 25 years when he passed away. Upon retiring, our Mom and Dad had relocated to Meadview, Arizona – in the middle of nowhere – on 8 acres of land – where they hauled their own water and had the most beautiful view of the canyon amid a Joshua tree forest. Our parents recently returned to California in 2019/2020 – to be closer to medical attention and family. But we all know it was the dessert which held his heart.
He is survived by his wife of 63+ years, Billie Joyce Duda; his three daughters, Barri, Terri, & Marcy; his three sons in law, David, Charlie and Jim; his 5 granddaughters Madeline, Ashley, Jillian, Halie and Mallory; his brother in law Joey, and his faithful dog Scruffy.
We will be holding two Celebrations of Life in his honor; one in Meadview, AZ on Saturday, June 5, 2021; the second in Redondo Beach, CA on Saturday, July 10, 2021.Both will be small informal gatherings.
My dad always enjoyed his weekly Manhattan, Sunday Champagne, or 4:00 “Wine Time”. I think he’d appreciate one more toast to celebrate who he was and his place in our lives.
“We’re drinkin’ my friend, to the end, of a brief episode ….. make it one for my baby,
and one more for the road.”
If you would like more information regarding either celebration, please email Marcy at
madsmal603@gmail.com. Stories and or photos to share at the celebrations can be sent to that email as well.
