Obituary

Richard Albert Loring

August 20, 1938 – May 19, 2025

Richard (Dick) Albert Loring of Duxbury, Massachusetts, formerly of Westford and Pocasset, MA, died on May 19, 2025 at the age of 86. He leaves his wife, Patricia (Pat) Pierce Loring, his son, Douglas Arthur Loring of Duxbury and daughter, Beth Anne Loring of Westford and Pocasset, MA. He also leaves his son-in-law Jonathan Chute and his grandson, Stephen Chute of Chelmsford, MA.

 Dick was born in Concord, MA, the son of A. Franklin and Mildred A. Loring.  Growing up in Arlington and Concord, MA, Dick graduated from Concord High School in 1956.  He then attended Worcester Polytechnic Institute, graduating with High Distinction in 1960 with a B.S. degree in Chemical Engineering. He went on to M.I.T, receiving a Master’s Degree in Chemical Engineering in 1962. Later, Dick attended the American Studies for Executives program at Williams College.

Following his M.I.T. graduation, Dick began a thirty-five-year career at Polaroid Corporation, working in Cambridge, Waltham, and New Bedford, retiring in 1996.  While at Polaroid, he held management positions in research, manufacturing, corporate safety and corporate manufacturing strategies. In the latter role, Dick was responsible for the design, construction, and startup of Polaroid’s $150M chemical manufacturing and film coating complex in New Bedford, MA.

Following his career at Polaroid, Dick worked for Presstek Corporation in Hudson, N.H. and became the acting C.E.O. of a new Presstek subsidiary, Delta V Technologies in Tucson, AZ.  In 1999, Dick joined Battelle Memorial Institute in Columbus, Ohio as a Senior Consultant.

 After retiring from the business world in 2002, Dick began a new life as a Duxbury oyster farmer. He and his partner, Joe Grady, were among the first Island Creek Oyster growers.

Dick loved boating of any kind. Some years he had a power boat, some years a sailboat and some years both. He especially loved his time spent on Buzzards Bay where the family had a Pocasset summer home for 25 years. Duxbury skipper, Di Hunter, introduced Dick to cruising and they went off on many maritime adventures. He regularly cruised with Di to and from the Bahamas. 

An avid skier, Dick was a member of National Ski Patrol and the Ski Instructors Association. He was a member of the Seacoast Ski Club, skiing in Europe into his 70s. He was also a member of the Duxbury Yacht Club and the Duxbury Investment Club where he enjoyed the research, discussions and friendships around investing.

With a group of traveling friends, Dick and Pat traveled the world, sometimes renting a house, sometimes taking a river cruise and sometimes traveling with a tour group.

Also an inveterate gardener, Dick could always be found transplanting, pruning and nurturing plants, shrubs and trees and tending his vegetable garden.

A private burial is planned followed by a Celebration of Dick’s Life at a later date.

Donations in Dick’s memory may be made to the Duxbury Bay Maritime School, 457 Washington St. Duxbury, MA 02332