RICHARD PETER DAHLGREN

CORNWALL — How can you sum up 82 years that made such an impact on so many? Whether you knew him as a beloved husband, father, “Opi,” “Richie,” “Coach” or “Mr. D,” you have likely never met a kinder soul than Richard Dahlgren. Raised in Bergenfield, N.J., he excelled in multiple sports at Bergenfield High, and went on to play basketball and lacrosse at Lafayette College. While there is documented proof of his vast academic and athletic achievements, we can find no such support for his claim he was selected for the “All Bergen County Chorus” or that anyone ever encouraged him to sing.

In a scene straight out of a Hollywood rom-com, he first spotted the love of his life, Eva, while working as a summer lifeguard. The next day, he ended up at the hospital, surprised to find the same pretty blonde was his nurse on her very first day on the job. His blue eyes leaving her so flustered, she had to have him take his own temperature. They married in 1967 and were together for almost 58 years of laughter, love, and a lot of (mostly) good-natured bickering.

After receiving his masters, Richard received many lucrative job offers, but his love of teaching, science, sport and time with family led him to his dream job — teaching and coaching at Northern Valley Regional High School in Demarest, N.J. He was a favorite with students, and had a brilliant knack for knowing just how to motivate each one.  As a basketball coach, he had the highest winning percentage in school history.

His proudest achievement, though, was being a Dad. Craig and Kristen, meant the world to him, and he instilled in them a love of learning, family, nature, adventure and Lake Dunmore, Vt. For more than a decade Rich spent summers as the head counselor at Camp Dunmore for Boys, making lifelong friends and eventually retiring on the lake. We were touched when one former camper recently described how he “only had him in my life a couple of 1970’s summers, [but] still regard him as one of [his] most influential role models.”

Retirement was filled with travel, boating at the Jersey Shore, winters in Englewood, Fla., and time with his grandchildren. His shed became a ‘science lab’ and an afternoon with Desi and CC was usually filled with erupting volcanoes and hands-on experiments. “Opes” was always a teacher, his lessons full of fun … and usually some facts you weren’t quite sure if he was making up. His campfire stories were epic, his skills on the grill superb and his dry humor a gift to any gathering. He was as even keeled as they come and tough as nails to the end. When doctors suggested having a railing built to help him get down to the lake as his balance waned, Rich showed them and carried 40-lb. bags of concrete down the steep hill to build his own railing, just to prove he could still do everything himself.

He was a beloved brother to Wayne, a best friend to Jim and like family to many he had mentored over the years. Whether you knew him for a lifetime or simply a season, you were sure to learn something that made you better. It is a comfort to know how many of us carry those lessons, especially how to live life with grace, kindness and strength.

He is survived by his loving wife Eva (Opolony,) Craig (Katie,) Kristen (Greg) and six grandchildren.

In lieu of flowers please consider a donation to one of the nonprofits run by his children: The Cancer Vaccine Coalition (www.cancervaccinecoalition.org) to accelerate cancer vaccines so no family has to go through this.

Or The Perry Institute for Marine Science (www.perryinstitute.org) to help save the oceans he so loved.

A celebration of life will be held June 14, in Cornwall, Vt.

Arrangements under the direction of Sanderson-Ducharme Funeral Home. Online condolences at www.sandersonfuneralservice.com. ◊