Richard E. Fuhrer
Richard E. “Dick” Fuhrer, 87, of Oakmont passed away Wednesday after a long struggle with Parkinson's Disease.
Born Feb. 12, 1928, in East Brady, Dick grew up during the Great Depression and matured into an amazing athlete as World War II raged on. He set scoring records in basketball for East Brady High School that stood unbroken for decades until only another great athlete by the name of Jim Kelly came along to finally break them.
Dick enlisted in the Marine Corps at the tail end of World War II but was turned away due to bad eyesight. He went on to Westminster College, where he also enjoyed basketball success and was a key member of the team that was ranked 10th in the nation, an era when tiny Westminster was a basketball powerhouse and literally lived up to its nickname of “Towering Titans.”
Westminster also is where he met the beautiful Gladys Stitt, and the two were married April 5, 1951. They settled in Oakmont, where Glad actually grew up and began a family.
Dick originally started his business career as a pharmaceutical sales representative and while perhaps secretly always desiring to be a physician, he quickly migrated to the life insurance business, where he set a standard of excellence that once again put him into a category of success that can only be described as a “Towering Titan.”
He started his own independent agency, Fuhrer's Inc., in 1962, and was not only a lifetime member of the prestigious Million Dollar Round Table but also qualified five times for the elite status of Top of the Table. His legacy is evidenced by the many clients he served and families that he helped make whole during their time of need.
In addition to the insurance business, Dick's other passion was golf. He was a life member of the Oakmont Country Club and president of the club from 1983 to 1984. And once again, he left an indelible footprint in the golf world that many fans of golf today might not realize. Dick very much can be recognized as the inventor of the “modern U.S. Open,” where the golf course is set to a standard of excellence and difficulty that demands that the winner of the event play his very best and thus the championship itself produces the most deserving winner.
In 1983, when the U.S. Open Championship came to Oakmont, Dick demanded the course be set to a standard that the leaders of the USGA of that time did not agree with. They thought Dick's standard was too difficult, in particular the height of the rough that captures errant shots. However, Dick's preference prevailed and the Open was a major success.
Since then, the USGA sets its Open venues to extreme difficulty, often to the dislike of the players participating, but nevertheless the modern Open is accepted as “The” toughest test in golf, admired by golf fans worldwide for its demanding nature and producing great champions. They can thank Dick Fuhrer and his unyielding stance in 1983 for today's modern Open.
However, Oakmont was not the only golf course that Dick had an influence on. He also owned the St. Jude Golf Club, which he bought as a nine hole public course in 1979 and eventually built into an 18 hole facility. St. Jude was known for its fast greens and own difficulty and built a reverend following of members and elite golfers in Western Pennsylvania, representing another lasting legacy of Dick's strong personality and vision.
His life was one of remarkable accomplishment and enduring influence.
Gladys predeceased him in 2000 but he leaves behind many friends, clients and cherished family, his brother, Frank Fuhrer (Heidi); his sister, Mary Lou Waltman; his daughter, Gayle Hitchcock (Doug); his sons, Kurt (Becky) and Steve; along with grandchildren, Amber, Erik, Ashley, Brad, Steve, Drew and Wil; and great-grandchildren, Carter, Lucca and Colton.
FUHRER — The family and relatives of Richard E. Fuhrer, who died Wednesday July 29, 2015, will be received from 2 to 4 and 6 to 9 p.m. Sunday at the BURKET-TRUBY FUNERAL HOME CREMATION & ALTERNATIVE SERVICES, 421 Allegheny Ave., Oakmont.Mass of Christian Burial will be at 12:30 p.m. Monday, at the St. Irenaeus Catholic Church, Oakmont. Everyone is asked to meet directly at church.Private interment will take place at the St. Eusebius Cemetery next to his wife, Gladys.Donations may be made in his name to St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital, 262 Danny Thomas Place, Memphis, TN 38105.
