Richard Ray East, 1948-2023

Richard Ray East, 75, died unexpectedly on Sept. 29, 2023, in St. Helena, California. He is survived by his partner and loving wife of 30 years, Carlene Leskar of Clearlake Oaks; sons, John, Joseph and Richard C. East; grandchildren, Madison Burchfield, Caleb East, and Daniel East; stepchildren, Michael Leskar and Tina Leskar; granddaughter, Aziza; and many other family members and friends. He was predeceased by his parents, Raymond and Iva East; his first wife, Pamela; two brothers, John and David; and a son, Daniel.

Born in Berkeley, Richard grew up within sight of the Golden Gate Bridge. As a young man he loved to race cars and ride motorcycles. He loved the ocean and enjoyed fishing and hunting geese and ducks with his dad. Later he shared his love of fishing with his boys. He worked as a welder right out of high school and when he was 24 bought a small welding shop in Santa Rosa. He did steel fabrication work there until his retirement in 2013.

Later in his life, he became an environmental activist and switched from hunting birds to studying them. He was able to identify the birds passing through his property by sight and their flying patterns. Every year he knew when to expect the migrating birds to return.

Richard and his wife, Carlene, bought several acres of land at the foot of a mountain in Clearlake Oaks and together with friends and family built their dream house, a project that took more than five years and remains unfinished because of his penchant for perfection. He could never do a less-than-perfect job. Much of the construction was done after consulting how-to books. The house has many passive features that make it cool in summer and warm in winter with minimal reliance on power from the grid.

After retirement, Richard was continually outside – maintaining the land, gardening, tending to his beloved chickens and pigeons, and finding projects to improve the ranch and protect it from wildfires. He became politically involved, serving as an officer for the Lake County Democratic Club for two years.

A Memorial Service will be held at 4:00 PM on October 21, 2023 at Chapel of the Lakes Mortuary in Lakeport. Memorial donations may be made in his honor to Sierra Club Redwood Chapter Lake Group.