Walter "Skipper" Jackson Richards, 76, of Charleston, South Carolina, husband of Susan Bridwell Richards, peacefully left this world, December 19, 2025.

Skipper was born April 10, 1949 in Alapaha, Georgia, son of the late Herman Richards and the late Therma Paulk Richards, and grew up in the neighboring town of Nashville with his three siblings. He pursued an Aeronautical Engineering degree at Auburn University, then a Master’s in Business at the University of Texas. With that preparation, he became an officer in the Air Force, flying C141 cargo planes to nearly every corner of the Earth including missions to the Middle East during Desert Storm. He told stories of flying fallen soldiers from Vietnam to be buried back home with honors and transporting Nixon’s preferred mattress (and other unusual items deemed essential presidential support) to Europe during his many diplomatic trips. Once, he had to fill up the tank of his cargo plane with his own American Express card in South America to assure his crew could leave quickly and safely at the start of a civil war. When he told these sorts of stories, he laughed until tears ran down his face.

He married the love of his life, Susan, in 1985 and they spent two years honeymooning in Okinawa, Japan (they were stationed at Kadena AF base) before settling down in Charleston, South Carolina. For many years, they loved traveling, finding a special connection to Oahu, Hawaii and Hong Kong. And in their later years together, they found joy in the West Ashley forever home they found in 1999 and re-built together, crafting the perfect setting for sitting on the deck to admire a backyard tucked up against the marsh and filled with patches of hydrangeas, a sea of azaleas, and oak trees dripping in Spanish moss. That back yard cradled 40 years of memories built together.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by his daughters, Miranda Lee Egger and Meaghan Ann Jennison; his four grandsons-Tristan, Kody, Truinn, and Christian; sister, Margaret; brother, Jimmy; and his sons-in-law Jay D. Egger and Chris Jennison. He loved his family fiercely and used his brilliant practicality to make sure everyone he loved would be comfortable, supported, and smart- especially when it comes to contributing to 401Ks, updating computer software, and changing the oil in their cars.

He was preceded in death by his parents, his brother Sonny, sister Jackie, and granddaughter Haley. May they all find each other again in a new plane of existence while they watch over us from above. Skipper was a simple, proud man with a humble confidence and an adventurous spirit. That passionate love of life will be missed by many people but none so much as his devoted wife, his loving daughters, and his grandsons. We all will walk this earth carrying a piece of his energy with us in eternal gratitude to have felt his understated, but ever present, love.

Memorials may be made to Tunnel to Towers (site: https://t2t.org/).

Arrangements by J. Henry Stuhr, Inc. West Ashley Chapel.

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