Peter Charles Richard, executive VP of P.C. Richard & Son, dies at 90

Peter Charles Richard learned the family business early, helping out as a child in the clan’s New York City store that would eventually become the retail chain P.C. Richard & Son.

For Richard, those early years set the stage for him to help shepherd and grow the family enterprise that today has more than 60 stores.

On Monday, Richard died of natural causes at Hospice House in East Northport, surrounded by family and friends, his family confirmed. He was 90.

In business, Richard was a pivotal figure in mapping the upward trajectory of P.C. Richard & Son, which traces its lineage back to the hardware store founded in the 1900s by his Amsterdam-born grandfather, Pieter Christian "P.C." Richard, according to the company.

Under his leadership as executive vice president, the family business fostered a culture of kinship among employees and a customer-centric approach that has stood the test of time amid technological change and the rise of large competitors such as Best Buy and Costco.

As philanthropists, he and his wife, Nancy, created Stony Brook's Pediatric Emergency Department Expansion Fund. A portion of Stony Brook Children's Hospital is home to the Peter and Nancy Richard Family Foundation Lobby.

Despite his other achievements, his family was his heart’s center, relatives said. To them, he was the doting father of five, an excellent cook who made the best meatballs, and the grandfather who sent out morning text messages.

Peter Christian Richard called his father an "amazing person."

"He was very generous, very loving, very family oriented," he said.

Born in Jamaica, Queens, in 1936, Peter Charles Richard grew up in a hardworking family. He was the son of Victoria Himmelmann and A.J. Richard, who represents the son portion of the company’s name.

A.J. Richard, ever the hard worker, evolved the hardware store to an appliance outlet, selling a variety of items, including irons, toasters and televisions, according to a company history on its website.

In the 1950s, the company expanded within Queens and on Long Island. By 1959, Peter Charles Richard joined the U.S. Army, where he worked in cryptology. He left the military in 1962 and married Nancy. The two were high school friends, hanging around the same candy shop.

The couple settled in Fort Salonga, where they raised five children: Susan Richard, Kim Bohl, Patricia Richard, Peter Christian Richard and Jennifer Roberts.

St. James resident Susan Richard, the couple’s eldest daughter, described her family circle like an ongoing party when she was growing up. The family hosted gatherings and always had a St. Bernard dog, and the children.

"My parents ... they celebrated life on a daily basis, and they never took anything for granted," she said, noting that "family was the most important aspect of their life."

And family was at the heart of her father's business pursuits, where he pushed to expand the business' reach by being heavily involved in the renovation and purchase of new stores. Above all, the Richard family’s guiding principle in home life and career was honesty and integrity.

"My dad was a very humble man," Susan Richard said. "He was a very generous man."

Richard's wife predeceased him. Other survivors include  five children;  his brother, Gary; 14 grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.

A visitation service will be held at the St. James Funeral Home on Thursday from 3 to 7 p.m. A funeral Mass will be celebrated at noon on Friday at the Church of St. Joseph in Kings Park.

Richard will be cremated and his remains will be interred with his wife's at Pinelawn Memorial Park.

By Tiffany Cusaac-Smith

tiffany.cusaac-smith@newsday.com@T_Cusaac

Tiffany Cusaac-Smith is a general assignment reporter for Newsday. She previously worked at USA TODAY and is an alum of Howard University.