1/21/22 – 12/29/02
Richard Thomas Mackey was born in Cleveland, Ohio to parents Harry and Agnes Delia (Murray) Mackey. Agnes had emigrated from her native Ireland as a young woman. Richard had a brother, Harry; a half-sister, Grace; and a half-brother, Ray. During high school, he worked at the pro shop at Oakwood Country Club where he was first exposed to the game of golf, which became one of his lifelong passions.
“Rich” didn’t like school much. When he graduated in 1940 from Cleveland Heights High, his teachers were pessimistic about his suitability for higher education. Yet he was highly motivated to avoid the life of a factory worker. He entered The Ohio State University in Columbus, majoring in physical education. He was the first person in his family to attend college.
Dick’s academic career was interrupted in 1943 when he enlisted and was called to active duty with the U.S. Army. He was a forward observer as part of a field artillery battalion in action during World War II in Europe. He took great pride in his military service and came home a more mature and confident man.
Dick returned to OSU in 1946, hoping to find a nice school teacher with a car! He found her–Marjorie Oyer, the love of his life–while attending a health education class. The two were married on June 7, 1947.
Dick completed his Masters at OSU in 1948 and earned his Ed.D at Penn State U. in 1950. After several years of temporary appointments, he accepted a teaching position at Shepherd College in WV, where he started the swimming program, coached football, and served as department chair.
In 1957, the Mackey family moved to Oxford, OH, where Dick had accepted a position as assistant professor in Miami University‘s Health and Physical Education Department. During his 35 years at Miami, Dick taught golf, tennis, adapted physical education, health education methods, research methods for graduate students and a health education workshop for teachers and school nurses. One of his favorite activities was teaching students how to square dance on ice skates.
Dick wrote several books and published nearly 100 articles in various professional journals and golf magazines. His two books on golf and bowling are still in print today. In the 1960s he collaborated with Miami U. athletic trainer Jay Colville to create the Mac-Col golf ball–an all-rubber practice golf ball with “less bounce to the ounce,” sold worldwide. He served as an area consultant to the National Golf Foundation for more than a decade, conducted numerous golf clinics, and from 1983 to 1991 was a teaching professor at Hueston Woods Golf Course. He received a variety of service awards, including those from South West Ohio American Lung Association and the Ohio State Planning Committee for Health Education.
Dick enjoyed playing tennis and golf and rode his bicycle on a daily basis for years. An avid sports fan, he loved attending Miami basketball games with Marge–they had the same seats for 35 years. With Marge, he was an active member of Faith Lutheran Church. He particularly enjoyed Faith’s Praise Band. He learned to play harmonica in the 1950s and loved to share his music with others, passing on his love of music to all three Mackey children. Dick was still entertaining aides at Oxford View Nursing Home with harmonica tunes up until the day before his death. Favorite songs include “Moon River,” “Mr. Bojangles,” “Camptown Races,” and “Shenandoah.”
Dick Mackey was known for his strong sense of personal integrity, his commitment to excellence, his corny jokes, his sense of fairness, and his loving heart. He had a positive impact on many lives–those of his students, colleagues, friends, and family members. He is survived and sorely missed by his wife Marjorie and three children–Jeanne Mackey (and spouse Pattie Postel) of Ann Arbor, MI; Thomas Mackey (and wife Linden) of Berkeley, CA; and David Mackey (and wife Barbara) of West Chester, OH. He also has three grandchildren: Kevin David Mackey, Austin Thomas Mackey, and Tricia Jeanne Mackey.
