He graduated from Lincoln High School and served in the United States Army Air Corps, the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force, where he was commissioned a Second Lieutenant Bombardier. In 1947, he graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Nebraska – Lincoln where he was also a member of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity.
After graduation, he was appointed Secretary of the Atlantic, Iowa Chamber of Commerce. It was there where he met and married the center of his world Jacqueline Jean Beech. When they returned to Lincoln where they would raise their two children, he was named as the Convention Manager of the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce and later the Assistant General Manager.
He began his broadcasting career when he joined KFOR as an Account Executive in 1953 and was named General Manager of KFOR Radio and Television in just over a year. He then made KFOR a household name. By 1958, he was elected the Vice President of Stuart Investment Company, the parent company of Stuart Broadcasting. In the next 30 years, he grew the Stuart organization expanding the business to additional markets within Nebraska and out of the state. In 1989, after a brief moment of retirement, he started his own media brokerage firm Chapin Enterprises, LLC where he also continued to manage and own several radio stations. He closed his office in 2017 at the age 94.
He was the Chair to the National Association of Broadcasters twice and the Radio Advertising Bureau (the first ever to hold both positions), a two term President of the Nebraska Broadcasters Association as well as serving as the Secretary/Treasurer for eight years, and Chairman of the Association of Independent Metropolitan Stations (AIMS). He served on the Lincoln Airport Authority Board, the Nebraska Aeronautics Commission, and was Chairman of the Pershing Auditorium. He was a member the University of Nebraska Board of Trustees, served on the Executive Committee of National Bank of Commerce, and First Trust Company of Nebraska.
Over the years, he received many professional awards and was recognized for his contributions in his community. He was celebrated for 50 years in broadcasting, declared a “Legend in the Broadcast Industry” in 2017, and received the American Broadcast Pioneer Award from the Broadcasters Foundation in 2001. Along with being a longtime member of the First Presbyterian Church, the Country Club of Lincoln, Masonic Lodge 19, and the Scottish Rite; he was a generous philanthropist.
Dick was shaped by the loss of his father, a World War I Horse Marine veteran, who died at the age of 35 when he was only 7 years old. He credited his mother, a nurse, as his hero and the most influential person in his life. He fondly referred to her as the perfect “boy’s mom” and was grateful for how well she navigated being widowed in 1930. His fond childhood memories included shenanigans with his brother and childhood friends, quarterbacking his youth football team, and seeing the “Sower” moved by railcar to the Nebraska State Capitol construction site.
He was honest, straight forward, and generous while he was driven to achieve professional goals and contribute to his community. However, his love for his family was first in his heart. He counted his roles of dedicated son, loyal brother, devoted husband, and proud father, father-in-law, grandfather, and great grandfather as his greatest accomplishments.
Among his guiding principles, “you can count the number of your true friends on one hand”, yet he made many friends throughout his 10-decade long life. His connection to others helped him endure the loss of his dear mother, many life-long treasured friends, his beloved brother Lee, and his cherished wife Jacqueline of nearly 70 years at the time of her 2019 passing.
In the early days, he was known as an athlete, a sharp dresser, being tough but fair, and his favorite management principle “you must inspect what you expect”. He was an avid reader, serious Nebraska football fan, enjoyed travel, occasionally took time to golf, pheasant hunt, or walleye fish. A mentor to many within the radio industry and beyond, he enjoyed connecting new and old friends to opportunity, and often noted, “if you are lucky enough to do what you love, you will never work a day in your life”.
After achieving a certain level of financial comfort, he still appreciated a value, had old school sensibilities but navigated the nuances of a changing world. Throughout his career he may have rubbed elbows with celebrities and former presidents, but he never forgot his humble beginnings and his love of simple things like a good hamburger. As a super-ager who never seemed as old as the calendar said, he convinced those who were closest that perhaps he had found the fountain of youth. But in the end, he was a mere mortal but his impact on his community, friends, and family will live on.
Left to mourn his passing are his daughter Debora (John) Lietzen of Omaha; son Richard (Sarah) Chapin of Lincoln; granddaughter Margaux (John) Pinkston of Omaha; his great grandchildren Aubrey, Maelee, and Landon; nieces Lynn Chapin and Barb Strahan; and nephew Lee (Barb) Chapin.
The family would like to acknowledge the staff from Tabitha Gracepoint, Tabitha, Bryan Hospital, and Tabitha Hospice who provided care, dignity, and love.
Funeral Service: 11:00 a.m. Tuesday (1-10-23) Roper and Sons South Lincoln Chapel, 3950 Hohensee Drive. Livestream available ten minutes prior to service at roperandsons.com. Visitation one hour prior to service time. Memorials to Meals on Wheels or Tabitha Hospice