Gerald Richard, 71, a popular coach who led the Harlan High School track and field team to a state championship in 1967 and to numerous city titles over the years, died of complications from emphysema, Saturday, March 23, in Oak Brook Health Center in Oak Brook.
Born and raised in Chicago, Mr. Richard was a standout athlete who played football, ran track and wrestled at Englewood High School.
He was drafted into the Army after graduating and fought in the Korean War, where he set smoke screens for advancing soldiers.
When he returned from the service in the mid-1950s, he enrolled in DePaul University, where, as a young African-American student, he often fought to overcome racist sentiments, said his son, Gerald Richard II.
The experience persuaded him to work harder than anyone else, a trait he tried to pass on to those he would coach, his son said.
In the fall of 1959, Mr. Richard took his training in physical education and prior work for the Chicago Park District to Harlan, where he became the school’s first track and field coach.
It would take only a few years for Mr. Richard’s program to become the city standard.
“It seemed like he knew exactly what we needed to become city and state champions,” said Melvin Bassett, who now is the track coach at Harlan.
Over his career, Mr. Richard worked to get dozens of young men into college who may never have had the opportunity otherwise.
His secret was to begin planting the idea in their heads as soon as they came to him as freshmen and keep at them over four years to keep up their grades and think about their futures. Then, when they were juniors and seniors, he would begin calling schools to tell recruiters about his student athletes.
Mr. Richard left Harlan in the late-1970s, moving to Houston where he studied for a master’s degree and a doctorate in school administration.
He returned to Harlan in the early 1980s, leaving after some 10 years to finish his career at South Shore High School in June 1998, his son said.
Mr. Richard is also survived by five daughters; Lysette Bailey, Angelique, Apryl, Geralyn and Beatrice; and six grandchildren.
Visitation will be from 10 to 11 a.m. Wednesday in St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church, 5472 S. Kimbark Ave., Chicago. Mass will follow at 11 a.m. in the church.
