Richard W. Birnie

Richard W. (Dick) Birnie of Hanover, NH, 71, passed away on Wednesday, September 21 at Hospice House in Concord, New Hampshire, surrounded by his adoring family.

Dick radiated warmth and cheer to all those with whom he shared an interaction, whether in the geology classroom, on the trail, or over a meal. He took genuine delight in everyone, expressed through his indefatigable conviviality and signature smile. He enjoyed a wide range of pursuits, from Dutch-oven cooking to mountain climbing to his illustrious academic career. Those who witnessed his enthusiastic pauses to share a “30-second geology lecture!” saw firsthand how his joy for understanding — and teaching about — the earth’s processes was infectious, and how it provided the backdrop for his happy and full life. Along the way, it was the people who filled Dick’s life — family, friends, legions of students — who brought him greatest joy, and in turn to whom he extended enduring light.

Dick was born in Boston, Massachusetts on December 8, 1944, the youngest of the four children of Walter H. and Mary K. Birnie. He enjoyed his childhood in Winchester, Massachusetts and in Freedom, New Hampshire, spending time with his large and loving immediate and extended family. Freedom remained his favorite place throughout his life; he visited there often, sharing in hikes and fishing trips and carpentry projects with his family.

After graduating from the Belmont Hill School, Dick matriculated with the class of 1966 at Dartmouth College, which his father and brother had attended. He played freshman baseball and hockey, and was a member of Psi U fraternity and the Outing Club. Following his first year, he embarked on a two-year leave of absence to travel and work: hitchhiking his way across Europe and Asia, returning from Singapore on a Norwegian Navy freighter, earning his passage by painting the ship.

Dick returned to Dartmouth, where the opportunity to do volcanology research kindled what would become his lifelong interest in earth science. He graduated with a geology major and then had the good fortune to be stationed at CRREL during his tour in the Army. He continued his insatiable interest in the earth and its processes at Harvard, where he obtained his Ph.D. in geology in 1975. While in Cambridge, he met his future wife, Pietie, at a geology party where he conveniently forgot his tweed hat; the two were married in 1973.

Dartmouth beckoned Dick back; he accepted a job offer to join the faculty of the Earth Sciences department, where he taught for 34 years and became faculty emeritus in 2007. While he maintained a robust lab and research agenda (in mineralogy and crystallography, volcanology, and remote sensing), his main focus was on his students, whom he cherished. He always treated them as his equals, and he enjoyed working with each of them, no matter her or his capability. Dick never kept office hours; his door was always open. His classes filled up quickly. His Boston accent, his gentle way of inspiring students to rise to their full potential, his unflagging support and friendship, even his silly jokes were hallmarks of his teaching. His oft-proclaimed “I never met a rock I didn’t like” and “I’ve got the best job in the world!” capture his zeal for geology and for the students to whom he introduced the discipline. Many students, whether they continued in geology or pursued additional interests, have told him that he was a pivotal force in their development as investigators, as lifelong learners, and as people. Dick was the first to say that the learning experience, admiration, and respect were mutual.

In addition to his teaching and research, Dick served Dartmouth, the community, and the field of geology in multiple other ways, including terms as Department Chair and Dean of Graduate Studies. He taught geology to high school students in Switzerland and led numerous community field trips in the Upper Valley and beyond. He served on the Hanover Advisory Board of Assessors. He led Dartmouth first-year trips and participated in many other Dartmouth Outing Club trips and functions at Moosilauke, the Grant, and the Class of 1966 Lodge, extending genuine friendship and camaraderie to students — and enjoying every minute of it.

In his free time, Dick pursued wide-ranging interests, from tailgating with his family at the New England Patriots to learning French at the Alliance Française to researching and building a pétanque court. He loved his antique tractor and his regular poker games with friends. He ardently hiked all the New England 4,000 footers and hundred highest peaks — with his sisters, children, and faithful dog Carter. He treasured his canoe trips with friends, and was fortunate to have explored many corners of the world by foot and paddle, through travel for work and for fun. Later in his life, he shared many friendships and connections with his doctors, nurses, caretakers, and fellow patients at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center — to whom he was eternally grateful. In each chapter of Dick’s life, he sought out new adventures and associations; he approached each of these with delight, a spirit of learning, and above all else, a desire to share in the experience with others.

Dick was a devoted and treasured father to his three children. He shared deep affinities with their friends, and could always be found cheering on the side of a ski race, baseball game, or tennis match. He seamlessly blended his work and family time. He famously included his children in his geology lecture slides “for scale,” and frequently he would bring them on trips with students and to conferences — where they would roam the halls and tag along at his side, soaking up their father’s delight in his work. With each conference trip, he worked in exciting adventures, taking each child to the bottom of the Grand Canyon, which, to him, was the world’s most wondrous geologic formation. He was a loving, attentive, and magnanimous husband to Pietie. Together they enjoyed many wonderful trips to France. Everyone who came in contact with Dick was touched by his optimism, gregariousness, zest for life, good nature, and humility. Dick’s light shines bright over so many, most especially his adoring family.

Dick leaves his wife, Pietie, of Hanover; his children: Katherine and her husband Wayne of Baltimore, Maryland, Peter and his wife Kate and their newborn daughter Abigail (whose name he had chosen) of Duxbury, Massachusetts, and Elisabeth and her husband Mark of Manhattan; his brother and sister-in-law Pete and Barbara Birnie of Madison, Connecticut, his sister and brother-in-law Sally and Bill Stoops of Freedom, and his brother-in-law Vic Holan and his partner MJ Larned of Savannah, Georgia. He also leaves numerous cousins, nieces, and nephews in his wide and loving family. He was predeceased by his parents, his infant daughter Betsy, and his sister Hart Holan.

A celebration of Dick’s life will be held on Saturday, November 19 at 1 pm at Rollins Chapel, with a reception immediately following at the Top of the Hop, both in Hanover. In Dick's memory, and in lieu of flowers, the family welcomes contributions to the Richard W. Birnie Science Teaching Fund at the Montshire Museum of Science (1 Montshire Rd, Norwich, VT 05055). The Fund will provide dedicated support to the museum’s School Partnership Initiative, which strengthens science education in rural schools in Vermont and New Hampshire.

— Katherine Birnie