Richard Charles Cauwet
Richard was born in San Francisco on July 23, 1951 and was proud of being a fifth generation San Franciscan. He died unexpectedly after a brief illness on Saturday, June 13, 2009.
Richard grew up and went to school on the San Francisco peninsula. Always bringing a wealth of creative energy to the many things that captured his interest, he worked his way up from cook’s helper to executive chef at the old L’Omelettes Restaurant in south Palo Alto by the tender age of 21. This led to his lifelong love of cooking. Later, he became a concrete mixer driver for Graniterock in Redwood City, where he was distinguished again for his creative energy and developed many close friendships. He retired from Graniterock in 2001.
Richard was always involved in some hobby or project. Early on he became an urban cowboy, keeping and riding his horse, Sundance and helping his friends care for cattle on a ranch in the east bay. He was forever fixing up something at the family cabin on Lake Berryessa, where he and his wife of 29 years, Randell Lencioni Cauwet, spent many happy vacations. There Richard learned to love boating and waterskiing, which led to another of his labors of love, his 1970 Keaton Craft, v-drive speed boat. When he and Randi bought their condominium at Poipu Beach on the island of Kaua’i, Richard threw himself into that project with the same enthusiasm, beautifully remodeling the place. The loss of most of his eyesight in 2001 to a hereditary condition did not slow Richard down in the least. His next great project was to restore his shiny black 1956 Chevy. And all along he was accompanied by the series of Springer Spaniel dogs – his ‘dawgs’ – that lived with him and Randi.
“Sweetness”, as Randi always called him, was preceded in death by his mother, Carol Menary Cauwet; and is survived is also survived by his father, Roy Cauwet, brother Ken and his wife, Nanci, sister Connie Rice and her husband Rob, sister Marianne Dugoni and her husband Mike, brother Stan Cauwet and his wife Marian, father-in-law and mother-in-law, Bob and Isabel Lencioni, brother-in-law Bob Lencioni Jr. and his wife Stephne, by nine nieces and nephews and one grand-niece, for all of whom he will always be “their favorite uncle Richard”.
A Viewing will be held at Crippen and Flynn Woodside Chapel, 400 Woodside Rd. in Redwood City from 5 – 8 pm on Thursday, June 18, 2009. A memorial service will be held St. Bede’s Episcopal Church, 2650 Sand Hill Rd. in Menlo Park at 3:00pm on Thursday, June 25, 2009. Contributions may be made to Vista Center, Palo Alto or the Kaua’i Humane Society.
Crippen & Flynn Woodside Chapel
650-369-4103
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