Dr. G. Richard "Dick" Childs

Dr. G. Richard "Dick" Childs, age 91, of Forest Hill, Maryland, formerly of Decatur, Indiana died June 4, 2016 in Forest Hill, MD. He was born October 9, 1924 in Terra Alta, West Virginia, the son of the late Wesley and Lulu Grace (Bucklew) Childs. He was preceded in death by his first wife Mildred (Midge), his brother Glenn, and sister Laura Shade. He married Sara B. Durst in 1989, who survives at their home in Maryland. Also surviving are sons Mark (Becky) of New Haven, IN; Greg (Loretta) of Fort Wayne, IN; Brad of Nashville, TN; and Rick (Jane) of Cicero, IN. Also surviving are Sara's sons Fred (Marcy Sherry) Durst of Falston, MD; Steve (Lisa) Durst of Bel Air, MD; and Tim (Suzanne) Durst of Gulf Breeze, FL. Grandchildren surviving are Jason (Tara) Childs of Cabot, AR; Adam (Becky) Childs of McMinnville, TN; Blake Childs of Roanoke, IN; Brittany (Jeff) Barnett of Fort Wayne, IN; Ryan (Molly) Childs of Indianapolis, IN; Kelly (Pete) Williamson of Boston, MA; Philip (Katie) Childs of Nashville, TN; Stuart (Jeff Fields) Childs of Boston, MA; and Alyssa and Grant Childs of Cicero, IN. Sara's grandchildren surviving are Michael Durst of MD; Stephen (Robbie Heacock) Durst of MD; Alex and Tyler Durst of MD; and T.J. and Chris Durst of Gulf Breeze, FL. Great grandchildren surviving are Alexis, Addison, Chloe, and Isabelle Childs of Cabot, AR; Aiden and Camden Childs of McMinnville, TN; Grace, Ben, Mercy, Luke, Zoey, and Austin Barnett of Fort Wayne, IN; Theo Childs of Indianapolis, IN; and Ethan Childs of Nashville, TN. After graduating high school in Kingwood WV, Richard served in the US Army Air Corps during WWII; he was a member of the flight crew of a B-24 bomber and served overseas in the Pacific Southwest. After discharge from service he graduated WVU with a BS in Agriculture, and continued graduate work at Purdue graduating with a MS in Poultry Nutrition, and earned a PH.D in Poultry Nutritional Biochemistry from the University of MD. He was director of Feed Research for Central Soya in Decatur, IN for many years, retiring in 1987. Dr. Childs traveled widely both domestically and internationally and was the author of numerous articles both for the scientific as well as the popular press. He was a long time member of the Nutrition Council of the American Feed Industry Assoc., serving as chairman 1976-77 and was elected as a Life Member at his retirement. Dr. Childs was active in both church and civic affairs. He was co-founder of the Adams Central (IN) Scholarship Foundation and served on the Board of the Decatur, IN Public Library. He was a member of the First United Methodist Church in Decatur, IN and an associate member of Fallston (MD) United Methodist Church having served in many leadership positions in each church. He served as a volunteer at Hooper House Hospice in Forest Hill, MD for several years. Visitation will be from 3:00-5:00 and 6:00-8:00 pm. on Thursday, June 9, 2016 at Haggard-Sefton & Hirschy Funeral Home. A Funeral Service will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, June 10, 2016 at the First United Methodist Church in Decatur, with calling 1 hour prior to the service from 10:00 – 11:00 a.m. Officiating will be Pastor Amy Covington and burial will take place in the Decatur Cemetery. Those desiring may make contributions to the Adams Central Scholarship Foundation.