Richard M. Chilton

Richard M. Chilton, age 89, passed away on Friday, June 10, 2022, at his home in Genoa City, WI surrounded by his family. Richard McClelland Chilton was born on February 10, 1933, the son of the late Fred M. and Lydia (Roberts) Chilton. On December 9, 1967, he was united in marriage to Danielle Ferrari and made their home in Bloomfield Township. In the early 1950’s, Richard enlisted in the U.S. Army, where he served with the 11th Airborne Division in Korea. He subsequently then served with the Special Forces Green Beret in the Army National Guard. Returning from Korea, he worked as a Carpenter with the Racine Local Union by day and, by night, as a Musician, singing with “Rich Chilton and the Kountry Kings”. During his time as a musician, he played with many well-known Country and Western Stars (Charlie Pride, The Statler Brothers, etc.) After almost a decade of playing Honky Tonks, he turned down a Nashville contract and put away his guitar to focus on his family and pursue his life-long dream of owning a farm. During his 50+ years in Genoa City, his outgoing personality led him to many doorsteps. He was well known in the community and was often referred to as “The Historian” because of his passion for history. This passion led him down 2 paths that consumed the last 30 years of his life. On 1997, he discovered the abandoned Episcopal (Pioneer) Cemetery overgrown with weeds and trees. After clearing the overgrowth, he discovered a place rich in the history of Bloomfield. This led him down a path to find out what other history Bloomfield had to offer. For over 20 years he knocked on countless doors, gathering over a thousand photos with stories about the people who settled in Bloomfield. During that period, he also started researching the military history of his favorite uncle who died at Anzio, Italy during WWII. This led him to the doorstep of Garlin Conner, First Lieutenant, 3rd Infantry Division. During that visit, he saw his many medals and read stories of his bravery-leading him to a 23-year journey to have him awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. In June 2018, Richard was invited to and attended the White House and Pentagon ceremonies awarding the Medal of Honor posthumously to Garlin’s widow, Pauline by President Trump. Richard also enjoyed going to local schools to discuss his military service and, once again answered the Call to Duty serving in Israel during Operational Desert Shield. Richard is survived by: His wife, Danielle; 7 children. Faith L. Chilton, Green Valley, AZ; Richard Lee (Andrea Carpenter) Chilton, Ponte Vedra Beach, FL; Peter Chilton, Beach Park, IL; Liane (Charles) Meyer, Green Valley, AZ; Caren Hust, Tuscon, AZ; Mylene (Greg Maish) Tonyon, Twin Lakes, WI; Mark Chilton, Genoa City, WI; 17 grandchildren, 12 great grandchildren and 1 great great grandchild; 1 sister Phyllis Berry of Las Vegas, NV. Richard was preceded in death by his sister, Dolores Arvesen and, his brothers-in-law, Edwin Arvesen and Louis Berry. Funeral services will be held from 1:00PM Thursday, June 16, 2022 at the Haase-Lockwood and Associates Funeral Home, 113 Freeman St. Genoa City, WI with {Pastor Cheri Tuccy officiating. Interment with Military Honors will be at Hillside Cemetery. The Chilton Family will receive friends from 11:00AM until the time of services at the Funeral Home. The service will be followed by a celebration at the Family Farm, N1958 Hafs Road, Genoa City.