Richard Brandel Obituary

Brandel, Richard Lee October 28, 1940May 30, 2018 Richard Brandel was born and raised on Chicago's south side, the son of Louise C. and Eric J. Brandel.He lived his entire life in Chicago, until retiring in 2005 and moving his residence to Santa Fe, New Mexico. Richard was a graduate of Hirsch High School (1958), Roosevelt University (1964) with a degree in Economics and the Columbia School of Broadcasting (1966).His career in broadcasting began in radio in front of the mike. Then, for more than 40 years thereafter he worked on production matters behind the camera for WFLD-TV in its downtown Chicago facilities. His personal life was enhanced by his long-term relationship with his life partner, Timothy Lee Johnson. It was a loving and supportive relationship that endured for more than 35 years, spanning 23 years together living on Chicago's northside Edgewater community and then, fulfilling Richard's dream retirement, the most recent 12 years in the Santa Fe, NM. Richard was impacted unexpectedly by a rare, incurable disease, amyloidosis, which destroyed his kidney function in a matter of weeks. He died peacefully at his home in the company of his life partner, Tim, and hospice personnel. Richard's parents, Louise and Eric, predeceased him.Richard is survived by his companion, Tim Johnson, Tim's mother and father, Betty and George Joh (Santa Fe), his two brothers, Roland Eric (San Francisco) and Robert John (New York City), and cousins Linda Veglia, Larry and Gary Covich, Ingrid Garlassa and Barbro Ekberg. In addition, Richard leaves behind many friends in Chicago and Santa Fe. A Celebration of Life memorial will be set at a later date. For those who would like to make a donation in Richards' memory, you may consider the Amyloidosis Foundation, the Cancer Foundation of New Mexico or Audubon New Mexico.