Richard D. Preciado Born August 11, 1939, died September 12, 2017.
Preceeded in death by his parents, Maria and Jesus Preciado.
Survived by his wife, Patricia Preciado; their children, Amanda (Robert) Eshom, Monica (Henry) Granillo, Denise (William) Murphy, and Richard (Julie) Preciado; his daughter, Suzette (Hal) Hart; 13 grandchildren, Michael, Brittanie, Rylan, Daniel, Isabel, Emily, Miranda, Â Breana, Cameron, Ian, Aaron, Lauren, and Logan; and 5 great-grandchildren, Yazmin, Mae, Maddox, Bobby, and Aubrey.
Also survived by his three sisters, Cecilia Gonzales, Margie Preciado, Blanca Weeks and his two brothers, Edmundo Preciado and Charlie Preciado.
Ricardo graduated from Pueblo High School. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy after graduation. He retired after serving 28 years as a Master Chief from the U.S. Naval Seabees.
As a welder by trade, he worked for and retired from Asarco mines. Some years later, he started his own welding business, Richard D. Preciado Welding. He kept the business going until he was 67 years of age, when he officially retired.
Every organization or activity Ricardo was involved in, he gave his all. He loved archery and taught his family the sport. Archery provided an avenue for the family to spend time and vacations. Eventually, Ricardo became the president of the Broken Arrow Bowman Archery Club and helped to build portions and design the archery range now known as Pima County Archery Range.
When his children were younger, he became involved with the U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Program. Here, he supported his children’s involvement while he grew his own. Eventually he served as commander.
His love for the Lord brought him to serve the church. Here, he served as the head usher for the 7 AM Mass at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church for many years. He was also involved with the Knights of Columbus. He served as a fFaithful Navigator, chaired the Italiafest, led the Veteran’s Day flag retirement ceremony for many years, and served as Grand Knight for two separate terms.  In addition to this he was the liaison to the Knights for the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart. He enjoyed helping and organizing help for the Sisters. He was a leader in every way.
Ricardo was also very artistic. Through the years, he enjoyed creating decorative wrought iron work both functional and ornamental. He was also a leather craftsman. He loved creating functional pieces such as belts, wallets, and bags as well as beautiful portraits. His portraits included Native American scenes, portraits, and religious art. In addition to these, Ricardo loved to dance. He could be found at any party with dance music moving to the groove.
In his retirement years, he took up new hobbies. He began gardening and grew many fruits, vegetables, chilies and flowers. He also started cooking. He loved to collect recipes and create dishes using the produce grown from his yard. He was best known for the hot chili he loved; he always had a jar of salsa or a container of chiltepines (very hot ground red chili powder). Cooking for large crowds usually involved his famous margaritas.
There are so many little things Ricardo did for his family and friends on a daily basis; too many to list. He will be greatly missed by all. May we have strength in the knowledge that he has gone home to be with our Creator |