Richard Wayne Richardson

In Memory of Richard Wayne Richardson

Richard Wayne Richardson, age 86, of Ellendale, DE, passed away peacefully at his home, on December 13, 2024. He was born on September 11, 1938, in Neptune, NJ. As a boy, Richard was nicknamed “Possie”, which became his name of preference.

Possie graduated from Middletown High School in New Jersey. Upon graduation he joined the U.S. Coast Guard. After being honorably discharged from the military, he went to work for the Middletown Township Police Department. He served for 8 years as a policeman, before deciding to follow in the footsteps of his father, grandfather, and uncles, to become a commercial fisherman. His heart was on the boat and at the “crick”, a seaport in Belford, NJ. He prospered in the fishing industry and soon extended his career by opening a business, “Richardson’s Seafood Market”. The restaurant was a very successful, but short-lived business. He preferred to be out at sea catching fish. He owned his own boat and employed a crew of fisherman for most of his career. In the wintertime, he drove for the Academy bus line. Poss was also a very crafted mason. He turned his masonry work into a business titled “Poss’s Statuary and Fountains” where he sold concrete ornaments. He retired from his work in NJ at age 65, and moved to DE where he lived his retirement years.

As a hobby, Poss enjoyed carpentry and woodwork. He built several boats in his lifetime, which included fishing, recreational, and decorative boats. He built lobster pots, decks and docks, gazebos, and additional rooms on his house. He was very crafted in this way.

Poss was preceded in death by his father, William (Bill) Richardson, his mother, Mable (Burke) Haines, his stepfather, Earl Haines, and his brother, William (Coogie) Richardson.

He is survived by his wife, Pamela Richardson; his brother, Harley Richardson (Jean) of Sebastian, FL; his three children, Jacqueline Tam (David) of Yuba City, CA, Arlene Finucan (John) of Barnegat, NJ, and Richard E. Richardson (Dawn) of Leonardo, NJ; his two step daughters, Holly Pate of Federalsburg, MD, and April DeShields of Ellendale, DE; his six grandchildren, Jillian Richardson, John Charles Finucan IV, Chelsea Richardson, Liam Richardson, Brian Finucan, and Jessica Finucan; and his two great grandchildren, Keira Finucan and Cash Eugenio.

Private arrangements are under the direction of Cranston Funeral Home, Seaford, DE.

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