Richard "Dick" Weber

Richard (Dick) W. Weber, 78, Bismarck, ND, died December 4, 2019 following a brief battle with pancreatic cancer.  He has donated his body to the UND Medical School for research on Parkinson’s disease. A celebration of life will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, December 16, at First Presbyterian Church, 214 E Thayer Ave, Bismarck with Dr. Leanne Simmons officiating.

Dick was born June 22, 1941 at Mary Laning Hospital in Hastings, Nebraska, the first son of Richard G. and Marjorie (Deane) Weber.

Dick attend a one room school house in Adams County, Nebraska from kindergarten to seventh grade, then transferred to the public-school system in Hastings.  Dick graduated from Hastings High School in 1958 and received a bachelor’s degree from Hastings College in 1962.

Upon graduation from college, Dick became the first Peace Corps volunteer from central Nebraska.  He served in Cameroun, West Africa from 1962-1964 at a teacher training college where he taught English literature and English composition, as well as geography, world history, and women’s physical education to future elementary school teachers.

From 1964-1966, Dick attended Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana where he received his M.A. in government.  Upon graduation, he came to North Dakota to serve on the staff of the Governor William L. Guy under a Ford Foundation Fellowship to study governor’s offices in 24 states.  His assignment ended after 6 months, but Governor Guy asked him to stay two more years.  During this time, he was also an instructor in political science at Bismarck Junior College. 

In 1968, Dick married Edith Harju, (they later divorced).  They left North Dakota as he joined a management consulting firm headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland.  Dick and Edith lived in Illinois, Michigan, Toronto, Ontario and Jakarta, Indonesia.  In 1975, they returned to Bismarck.  He went to work at Basin Electric as their first personnel manager.  He served Basin for 26 years, retiring in 2001 as Vice President of Administration.  Dick was a member of First Presbyterian Church for almost 40 years and served four 3-year terms as a member of the church council (session).

Dick’s life was full of lots of volunteer work.  He was appointed to North Dakota commissions and councils by four North Dakota governors of both political parties.  He served as Chair of the North Dakota Council on the Arts from 1987-1993 and as a member of the council from 1976-1980.

Dick was a member of the board of directors of Bismarck Hospital and Medcenter One for 31 years.  He was Chair and member of the Medcenter One Foundation Board from 1991-2011.  Dick also served on the Bismarck Public Library Foundation board for over 15 years and was President from 2016-2018 and served for 6 years on the Library Board from 2008-2014, serving as President of the Board in 2010-2011.  He was also president of the Bismarck Public School Foundation from 2010-2015.  Dick also served on the boards of Missouri Slope United Way (campaign chair in 2003) and was the recipient of the “Lifetime of Caring” award in 2015 and was on the Chamber of Commerce board as the first representative of Basin Electric.  Among Dick’s other volunteer work were the Charles Hall Youth Services Foundation Board, The Symphony for almost 30 years, the Bismarck Arts and Galleries board and the American Red Cross as a board member and President of the Board.  Dick was currently serving as a commissioner of the Burleigh County Housing Authority and Chaired the Advisory Group to the West Central Human Services Center and member of the Burleigh County Council on Aging.  He was a member of the Bismarck Rotary Club and the Elks. 

Throughout his life, Dick had two areas of great interest.  The arts and mental health.  He was a board member and held offices in the North Dakota Mental Health Association over a period of 24 years. He was also a board member of the National Mental Health Association for 12 years.

Dick served as a lobbyist for both mental health and the arts and testified before 8 sessions of the North Dakota Legislature and 4 sessions of the United States Congress.

Dick was also very active in the Democrat-NPL party for over 50 years.  He served as the State President of the North Dakota Young Democrats in 1967.  He went to the White House several times during the administrations of former presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Jimmy Carter and ran for the State Senate in 2004.  He was also chair of three Democratic-NPL districts in the Bismarck area.  Dick was diagnosed with Parkinson Disease in 2014.   His greatest joy following his diagnosis was serving as an officer of the Bismarck Parkinson Support Group.  The group was made up of over 125 persons living with the disease or care givers for them.   This gave Dick great satisfaction in his battle.

Dick is survived by his former wife, Edith, Dickinson; his brother, Robert Weber, Kingman, Arizona; his nephew, Patrick Weber, Florida; and niece, Christine Diaz, Colorado.  He is also survived by several people who have meant so much in his life; Irma Fleck Turgut, Victor Sonneman and many more personal friends and supporters.

Dick was preceded in death by his parents; his stillborn baby sister; and many aunts, uncles, and cousins.

Memorials may be given to the Bismarck Parkinson Support Group, 1837 N. Valley Loop #10, Bismarck, ND 58503, the Library Foundation or the charity of your choice.