Richard A. Webster

Richard A. Webster, passed away from natural causes on August 30, 2025, in Sarasota, Florida. Richard (Dick) was born to Ward and Ann (Triba) Webster on September 11, 1931, in South Haven, Michigan. He graduated from South Haven High School in 1950. He attended University of Notre Dame, transferred to Michigan State University his junior year and in 1954 he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Hotel, Restaurant and General Institutional Management. It was at Michigan State University that Dick met his future wife, Joan Marie Derezinski. Following graduation from Michigan State University he accepted duty as a Second Lieutenant in the Michigan Air National Guard and officially joined Holly’s Inc. He was called to active-duty United States Air Force and was assigned to Air Material Command at Wright Patterson Airforce Base in Dayton, Ohio. While serving he was assigned to a logistics and planning team for food service at United States Air Force Military Academy, Colorado, Springs. He completed his service in 1957 and returned to the family business, Holly’s Inc., Grand Rapids, Michigan. He was a manager of several family restaurants and advanced to the position of Vice President of Marketing and Menu Research. In 1958, Dick and Joan were married and resided in Grand Rapids, Michigan for thirty years. He served as a Director of West Michigan Tourist and Resort Association for several years and as a Marketing Team Director of the National Restaurant Association. The Holly’s Inc. family hotel restaurant business was sold, and he retired in 1987. After retirement from Holly’s Inc., Dick and Joan spent summers at their Northern Michigan home on Lake Charlevoix where they enjoyed cruising the Great Lakes on their sailboats and trawler all named Tequila. Winters were spent on Longboat Key, FL until they became permanent Florida residents. Dick was a long-time member of the Macatawa Bay Yacht Club, Holland, MI serving as commodore and served two years as commodore of Eastshore Lake Michigan Sail Race Federation. He was a member of Bird Key Yacht Club, Bird Key, FL. He enjoyed sailboat racing and competed in seventeen Chicago to Mackinac races on Lakes Michigan and Huron. He was an avid tennis player. He was an amateur radio operator. As a proficient instrument rated private pilot, Dick enjoyed flying to rendezvous with friends in tropical locations and routinely flew from Florida to Northern Michigan. Dick and Joan embarked on numerous memorable trips to the northwest and northeast coastal areas of the United States. They also enjoyed exploring Europe together. All their trips were chronicled by Dick’s photography with some photos receiving recognition in local photographic events. Family and community events throughout his lifetime were recorded by his photographs. Dick’s guiding philosophy, “Do your best and trust in God.” Richard (Dick) is survived by sister-in-law Marcia Derezinski, (Tom dec.) and brother-in-law Thomas Miknavich, (Phyllis dec.) and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his wife of 67 years, Joan Derezinski Webster, sister-in-law, Alice Derezinski Donahue (James), his brother, Robert W. Webster (Gloria) and (Eleanor), and his parents Ward and Ann Webster. Per Dick’s wishes cremation will take place and he will be inurned at Holy Cross Catholic Cemetery in the Derezinski family plot in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Memories may be shared at Toale Brothers Funeral Home and Crematory. toalebrothers.com Memorial gifts may be given to St. Martha Catholic Church, 200 N. Orange Avenue, Sarasota, FL 34236. stmartha.org

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Richard A. Webster

September 11, 1931 - August 30, 2025