Richard Funkhouser
Encyclopedia
Richard Edgar Funkhouser (September 10, 1917 – May 15, 2008) was an American diplomat and geologist, specializing in oil. He served as United States Ambassador to Gabon
.
, he was the son of noted psychiatrist Dr. Edgar Bright Funkhouser and Evelyn Hayes. He attended Taft School before entering Princeton University
where he was a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society
and Sigma Xi
, the Honorary Scientific Research Association. He graduated from Princeton in 1939.
working as a geologist in Venezuela, he volunteered for the U.S. Army Air Corps
during World War II and was with the Cal-Aero Academy Army Air Cadets Class 43-J. Following training in Texas at Kelly Air Force Base, Cox Field, Paris
, Jones Field, Bonham
, Brooks Air Force Base
, and Bergstrom Air Force Base, Austin
, he was stationed stateside in Sedalia Army Air Base
, Jackson Army Air Base
, and Baer Army Airfield
. His first flights of the war began in August 1944 with the 9th Combat Cargo
out of Moran Town
, India to Myitkyina
, Burma. He transferred to Warazup, Burma in January 1945. After serving in the China Burma India Theater of World War II
, flying 302 missions and earning 102 points, he was awarded several medals, and was demobilized in July of the same year as a First Lieutenant
.
After the war, he worked as a geologist for Shell Oil domestically and Standard Oil of New Jersey
overseas. Passing the career U.S. Foreign Service
exams, Funkhouser became a Regional Petroleum Officer for the Middle East, assigned to Iraq
, Syria
and Lebanon
in 1953 and then Bucharest
, Damascus
, and Moscow
. He served as United States Ambassador to Gabon
from August 9, 1969 to August 2, 1970 and then served in the Vietnam War
, appointed as civilian deputy to Lt. General Michael Davison
at Bien Hoa Air Base
. He gained the military equivalent rank of Major General and received the National Defense Service Medal
. Interviews conducted by Charles Stuart Kennedy, director of the Foreign Affairs Oral History Program, covering Funkhouser's work in Damascus, Moscow, Paris, Gabon, and Vietnam during the period of 1955-1972, are archived at Georgetown University
.
After 33 years serving in various Foreign Service Specialist
positions, Funkhouser retired from the Department of State
in 1975 and moved to Scotland as an International Affairs Advisor to the Texas Eastern Corporation. While there, he wrote several papers which today are deposited at the Oil and Gas Institute in the University of Aberdeen
. After five years in Scotland, he returned to Washington in 1980 and became the Director of International Affairs in the Environmental Protection Agency and a consultant to the US Department of Education before appointment to his final position as Director of International Activities at the Young Astronaut Council
.
In early 1944, Funkhouser married Phyllis Parkin. They had three children, sons, Phillip Hayes Funkhouser (died 1961) and Bruce Bedford Funkhouser, and a daughter, Blaine Laskowski. He belonged to several clubs and organizations, including Diplomatic and Consular Officers Retired, Metropolitan Club, Chevy Chase Club, the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers, Royal and Ancient Golf Club, Prestwick Golf Club, and Scottish Civic Trust
.
In the mid 1990s, Funkhouser and his wife survived a plane crash while on holiday in Europe. It had a lasting impact on the health of his wife, partially crippling her. She also began to suffer from dementia
and gradually grew weaker and weaker. On May 15, 2008, Funkhouser shot his wife dead, before turning the gun on himself in the underground garage of their retirement home in Ingleside, Washington, D.C.
United States Ambassador to Gabon
This is a list of Ambassadors of the United States to Gabon.Gabon had been an overseas territory of France since 1910. At that time it became part of French Equatorial Africa, which included Middle Congo , Chad, and Oubangui-Chari...
.
Early years
Born in Trenton, New JerseyTrenton, New Jersey
Trenton is the capital of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Trenton had a population of 84,913...
, he was the son of noted psychiatrist Dr. Edgar Bright Funkhouser and Evelyn Hayes. He attended Taft School before entering Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
where he was a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society
Phi Beta Kappa Society
The Phi Beta Kappa Society is an academic honor society. Its mission is to "celebrate and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences"; and induct "the most outstanding students of arts and sciences at America’s leading colleges and universities." Founded at The College of William and...
and Sigma Xi
Sigma Xi
Sigma Xi: The Scientific Research Society is a non-profit honor society which was founded in 1886 at Cornell University by a junior faculty member and a handful of graduate students. Members elect others on the basis of their research achievements or potential...
, the Honorary Scientific Research Association. He graduated from Princeton in 1939.
Career
Though Funkhouser had a defermentSelective Service System
The Selective Service System is a means by which the United States government maintains information on those potentially subject to military conscription. Most male U.S. citizens and male immigrant non-citizens between the ages of 18 and 25 are required by law to have registered within 30 days of...
working as a geologist in Venezuela, he volunteered for the U.S. Army Air Corps
United States Army Air Corps
The United States Army Air Corps was a forerunner of the United States Air Force. Renamed from the Air Service on 2 July 1926, it was part of the United States Army and the predecessor of the United States Army Air Forces , established in 1941...
during World War II and was with the Cal-Aero Academy Army Air Cadets Class 43-J. Following training in Texas at Kelly Air Force Base, Cox Field, Paris
Cox Field
Cox Field is a city-owned, public-use airport located six nautical miles east of the central business district of Paris, a city in Lamar County, Texas, United States. It is owned by the city of Paris but is operated and maintained by J.R...
, Jones Field, Bonham
Jones Field
Jones Field is a public airport located approximately north of Bonham, Texas. It provides general aviation service.-History:Originally dedicated as the Bonham city airport on 11 November 1929 as George Jones Airport. The land was leased from the city of Bonham, and construction began in summer,...
, Brooks Air Force Base
Brooks City-Base
Brooks City-Base was a United States Air Force facility located in San Antonio, Texas, southeast of Downtown San Antonio.In 2002 Brooks Air Force Base was renamed Brooks City-Base when the property was conveyed to the Brooks Development Authority as part of a unique project between local, state,...
, and Bergstrom Air Force Base, Austin
Bergstrom Air Force Base
Bergstrom Air Force Base was a United States Air Force base located seven miles southeast of downtown Austin, Texas. It was activated during World War II as a troop carrier training airfield, and was a front-line Strategic Air Command base during the Cold War...
, he was stationed stateside in Sedalia Army Air Base
Whiteman Air Force Base
Whiteman Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located approximately south of Knob Noster, Missouri; east-southeast of Kansas City, Missouri....
, Jackson Army Air Base
Hawkins Field (airport)
Hawkins Field is a city-owned public-use airport located three miles northwest of the central business district of Jackson, a city in Hinds County, Mississippi, United States.-Facilities and aircraft:...
, and Baer Army Airfield
Fort Wayne International Airport
-Top Destinations:-Airfield infrastructure:As of 2006, the airport's main Runway 5/23's usable dimensions are long and wide while the grooved-surface dimensions are long and wide, large enough to accommodate the NASA Space Shuttle orbiter, Boeing 747s, and military air mobility and aerial...
. His first flights of the war began in August 1944 with the 9th Combat Cargo
9th Operations Group
The 9th Operations Group is the operational flying component of the 9th Reconnaissance Wing, stationed at Beale Air Force Base, California....
out of Moran Town
Moran Town
Moran Town is a census town in Dibrugarh district in the Indian state of Assam. Moran is an important industrial town in India. It is a major oil field and a major tea producing area.-Geography:Moran is located at . It has an average elevation of ....
, India to Myitkyina
Myitkyina
Myitkyina is the capital city of Kachin State in Myanmar , located from Yangon, and from Mandalay. In Burmese it means "near the big river", and in fact "Myitkyina" lies on the west bank of the Ayeyarwady River, just below from Myit-son of its two headstreams...
, Burma. He transferred to Warazup, Burma in January 1945. After serving in the China Burma India Theater of World War II
China Burma India Theater of World War II
China Burma India Theater was the name used by the United States Army for its forces operating in conjunction with British and Chinese Allied air and land forces in China, Burma, and India during World War II...
, flying 302 missions and earning 102 points, he was awarded several medals, and was demobilized in July of the same year as a First Lieutenant
First Lieutenant
First lieutenant is a military rank and, in some forces, an appointment.The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations , but the majority of cases it is common for it to be sub-divided into a senior and junior rank...
.
After the war, he worked as a geologist for Shell Oil domestically and Standard Oil of New Jersey
Exxon
Exxon is a chain of gas stations as well as a brand of motor fuel and related products by ExxonMobil. From 1972 to 1999, Exxon was the corporate name of the company previously known as Standard Oil Company of New Jersey or Jersey Standard....
overseas. Passing the career U.S. Foreign Service
United States Foreign Service
The United States Foreign Service is a component of the United States federal government under the aegis of the United States Department of State. It consists of approximately 11,500 professionals carrying out the foreign policy of the United States and aiding U.S...
exams, Funkhouser became a Regional Petroleum Officer for the Middle East, assigned to Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
and Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
in 1953 and then Bucharest
Bucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
, Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
, and Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
. He served as United States Ambassador to Gabon
United States Ambassador to Gabon
This is a list of Ambassadors of the United States to Gabon.Gabon had been an overseas territory of France since 1910. At that time it became part of French Equatorial Africa, which included Middle Congo , Chad, and Oubangui-Chari...
from August 9, 1969 to August 2, 1970 and then served in the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
, appointed as civilian deputy to Lt. General Michael Davison
Michael S. Davison
Michael Shannon Davison was a United States Army four star general who served as Commander in Chief, U.S. Army Europe/Commander, Central Army Group from 1971 to 1975.-Military career:...
at Bien Hoa Air Base
Bien Hoa Air Base
Bien Hoa Air Base is a Vietnam People's Air Force military airfield located in South-Central southern Vietnam about 20 miles from Saigon near the city of Bien Hoa within Dong Nai Province....
. He gained the military equivalent rank of Major General and received the National Defense Service Medal
National Defense Service Medal
The National Defense Service Medal is a military service medal of the United States military originally commissioned by President Dwight D. Eisenhower...
. Interviews conducted by Charles Stuart Kennedy, director of the Foreign Affairs Oral History Program, covering Funkhouser's work in Damascus, Moscow, Paris, Gabon, and Vietnam during the period of 1955-1972, are archived at Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
.
After 33 years serving in various Foreign Service Specialist
Foreign Service Specialist
Foreign Service Specialists are employees of the United States Department of State and other foreign affairs agencies. They are members of the Foreign Service system who provide technical, administrative, or security support and services at embassies and consulates worldwide, in Washington, D.C...
positions, Funkhouser retired from the Department of State
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
in 1975 and moved to Scotland as an International Affairs Advisor to the Texas Eastern Corporation. While there, he wrote several papers which today are deposited at the Oil and Gas Institute in the University of Aberdeen
University of Aberdeen
The University of Aberdeen, an ancient university founded in 1495, in Aberdeen, Scotland, is a British university. It is the third oldest university in Scotland, and the fifth oldest in the United Kingdom and wider English-speaking world...
. After five years in Scotland, he returned to Washington in 1980 and became the Director of International Affairs in the Environmental Protection Agency and a consultant to the US Department of Education before appointment to his final position as Director of International Activities at the Young Astronaut Council
Young Astronaut Council
The Young Astronaut Council was established by the White House in 1984 in an effort to promote greater proficiency and interest in science, math and technology using space as the underlying theme. Since then, tens of thousands of Young Astronaut Chapters have been formed in every state and around...
.
Personal life
Funkhouser dropped the middle initial "E." during World War II.In early 1944, Funkhouser married Phyllis Parkin. They had three children, sons, Phillip Hayes Funkhouser (died 1961) and Bruce Bedford Funkhouser, and a daughter, Blaine Laskowski. He belonged to several clubs and organizations, including Diplomatic and Consular Officers Retired, Metropolitan Club, Chevy Chase Club, the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers, Royal and Ancient Golf Club, Prestwick Golf Club, and Scottish Civic Trust
Scottish Civic Trust
The Scottish Civic Trust is a registered charity. Founded in 1967, and based in the Category A listed Tobacco Merchants House in Glasgow, the Trust aims to provide "leadership and focus in the protection, enhancement and development of Scotland's built environment"...
.
In the mid 1990s, Funkhouser and his wife survived a plane crash while on holiday in Europe. It had a lasting impact on the health of his wife, partially crippling her. She also began to suffer from dementia
Dementia
Dementia is a serious loss of cognitive ability in a previously unimpaired person, beyond what might be expected from normal aging...
and gradually grew weaker and weaker. On May 15, 2008, Funkhouser shot his wife dead, before turning the gun on himself in the underground garage of their retirement home in Ingleside, Washington, D.C.