Ed L. Richmond

Ed Richmond was born in Boston on July 17, 1926, to Herman Richmond and Rhoda (Beggelman) Richmond. He is predeceased by his parents, his sister Midge Nathanson of Newton, and his son Ron Richmond of Concord. He is survived by his devoted wife Lisa (Liss) Richmond, his brother Yale Richmond and his wife Phyllis Gestrin of Washington, D.C., his children Angel (Wendy) Richmond of Winchester, Stephen Richmond and wife Julie Weinstein of Sudbury, William (Billy) Richmond and wife Cher Richmond of Madison, Connecticut, and daughter in law Ha (Nguyen) Richmond of Concord, and his grandchildren Ben, Jordan, Cameron, Ian, Kijana, Dylan, Ethan, Mai and Tal.

Ed graduated from Boston College with Bachelor of Science and Master of Arts degrees, and then from Boston College Law School with a Juris Doctor degree. He enlisted and served in the U.S. Navy during World War II, and was discharged with the rank of Ensign.

Ed practiced law for 40 years, first in Boston at the firms of Bloom, Deutsch & Richmond, and Richmond, Kassler, Feinberg & Feuer, and later as a sole practitioner in Newton Centre. As a lawyer, Ed was passionate about his charitable and pro bono work. He served as chairperson of the Newton Committee for Fair Housing and Equal Rights, chairperson of the Social Action Committee and member of the Board of Trustees of Temple Israel in Boston, director of the Simons-Gutman Charitable Foundation, member of the Executive Board of the Newton Community Peace Center, member of the Board of Governors of the Newton Art Center, and an active member of the Rehabilitation Services Committee.

Ed handled many pro bono legal cases throughout his career, and in perhaps his favorite case he won the unconditional release of an inmate who had previously been charged with committing a serious offense and, without ever having been offered a trial, had been locked up for 36 years in an institution for the insane. Upon securing his release, he walked the man from the courthouse into freedom, and he loved to tell how his client seemed like Rip Van Winkle, amazed by the cars, tall buildings and revealing clothing.

Perhaps his fondest professional memories were of his fourteen years of service as Alderman in the City of Newton. Ed loved politics and he was proud of being an activist. He served on almost every aldermanic committee, including as Chairman of the City’s Finance Committee for eight years, and Chairman of the Education Committee, Public Buildings Committee, and Committee on Cable Communications. He was particularly proud of having drafted and co-sponsored the ordinances which created the City’s Cultural Affairs Commission and Urban Beautification Commission, and numerous land use ordinances that controlled commercial growth in the City.

Graveside service at Chevra Mishnias Cemetery, 19 Washington Street, Woburn on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2016 at 1:00pm. Family and friends may visit at the home of Lisa Liss Richmond on Sunday 3-6 pm. In lieu of flowers, remembrances may be made in Ed’s memory to Southern Poverty Law Center, 400 Washington Ave, Montgomery, AL 36104.