Richard K. Bestwick

Published 11:50 am Tuesday, February 18, 2025

Richard K. Bestwick

February 24, 1954 – December 23, 2024

Proud father and loving husband, Rick was a man of many passions and talents. He lived a life full of adventure, curiosity and love.

Rick was an avid fisherman, especially for salmon and steelhead, preferring to use a fly if possible. He was a dedicated hunter of both feather and fur, a mushroom hunter, and a gardener who took great pride in canning the tomatoes he grew. His adventurous spirit led him to summit Denali in 1993 and to row many Western rivers, including three stunning trips through the Grand Canyon. He also loved to travel the globe to experience new places and cultures. For 6 years he proudly served as a National ski patroller at Mt. Bachelor. He was on both his high school swim and football teams, and was a life-long baseball fan of the Mariners.

Rick had a kind heart, whose sympathies lay with the underdog. He had a playful side too, often teasing friends and family with birthday cards regarding their advancing age. About the only time he was known to get angry was when someone in front of him was driving too slowly. A sci-fi fan, Rick liked both Star Wars and Star Trek, but his favorite movie might have been The Big Lebowski. It pleased him to no end that he’d seen his favorite band, The Who, live and in concert several times with friends and family. He was known as a skilled amateur winemaker and an aficionado of Oregon pinot noir. He made the best hash browns and was a master of cooking paella.

Driven by a profound curiosity of the complexity of the natural world Rick pursued a career in the sciences, becoming a research biochemist, molecular geneticist, and virologist who worked in biotech. Before retiring he played a big role in a small team of folks who developed a therapy for Duchene’s Muscular Dystrophy. It was work he took great pride in. He grew up in Auburn, Washington, attended the Univ. of Washington, graduated from Evergreen in 1976, and received his PhD in Biochemistry from Oregon State Univ. in 1983. He lived in the Portland area, Corvallis, and Seattle before retiring in south Deschutes County in 2014. Rick had a keen love for the Pacific Northwest.

Rick is survived by his wife, Jill Kellogg, his three siblings, Craig, Neil and Denise Bestwick, two children, Megan Smith and Ryan Bestwick, and five grandchildren, Adara, Wyatt, Ava, Remi and Ethan. He was proceeded in death by his father and mother, Leroy Keith Bestwick and MaryJean Bestwick, née Casperson.

He will be deeply and forever missed by all who knew and loved him.

A farewell party for Rick will be held in Bend Saturday afternoon 22 February.