Richard Charles Hnath of Bella Vista, Arkansas, passed away on February 1st, 2024 at the age of 76.

Richard was born in Passaic, New Jersey to Peter Hnath and Florence Diffley and raised in the Detroit suburb of Bloomfield Hills. He was part of Brother Rice High School's first graduating class in 1965, matriculating to the University of Michigan where he studied Mechanical Engineering. Upon graduating, Richard began a 30-year career with Western Electric, part of AT&T, making his way into the early days of UNIX administration. His career took him from Chicago to Orlando in the early 80s to help open a chip plant with Agere. In the early 2000s Richard relocated to Bentonville, Arkansas to join Walmart's IT security team where he earned a CISSP, working there for 12 years until his retirement in 2014.

He was a passionate life-long golfer with three official holes-in-one, and found great joy and friendship in the Bella Vista Lakers golf league. He also had the photography bug, which he picked up from his father early in life along with his flowing Ben Hogan style golf swing. Richard was an avid hiker and backpacker who loved to share stories of trips to the Smokeys, Rockies, Sawtooth, Glacier, and Isle Royale among many others. In later years, he enjoyed traveling to see his sons in Boston and New York.

Richard was first married to Carol Sump in 1969 and divorced in 1987. He is survived by his son, Peter Hnath and his wife Kelli Hnath, and their two children Jason and Kristina Hnath. Richard was a fixture at Peter's sporting events and they enjoyed playing golf all over Chicagoland together. In those days he was also a frequent jogger which helped him stay in shape for his backpacking trips.

He was then married to Dana Higginbotham from 1988 to 1998 and is survived also by his son, Lucas Hnath and his wife Mona Pirnot. Richard was delighted to attend the plays that Lucas acted in as a high-schooler then later wrote as an adult. They were both foodies who would seek out adventurous restaurants and swap new recipes to try at home.

Richard, or Rick to many, was soft-spoken, generous, and kind. He was an attentive listener, curious, and always up for learning new things. He loved and admired his sons and daughters-in-law and was a doting grandfather to Peter's children Kristina and Jason Hnath.

If you wish to remember Richard, you are encouraged to make a donation in his honor to the Sierra Club, who organized many of his favorite trips, and is dedicated to conserving our natural resources ( http://tinyurl.com/53mhyjrb)

Arrangements are under the direction of Bella Vista Funeral Home & Crematory.  On-line condolences may be made at www.funeralmation.com.