Richard J. Tirman

Richard Joseph Tirman, 82, died Thursday April 25, 2019, at St. Vincent Hospice in Indianapolis, Indiana, following a brief illness. He leaves behind his wife, Debby of 39 years, two sons: Tom and his wife, Amanda, Mike and his wife Anna, and his daughter, Anna and her fiancé, Jared, along with his brother Al and sister-in-law Judy, six grandchildren, Griffin, Kate, Stephanie, Scott, Ben and Amelia along with four great grandchildren. He was also father to Stephanie and Sarah, who preceded him in death. His brother, Mike, also preceded him in death.
Richard was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1936 and lived in Brooklyn and Freeport, Long Island. He is the son of Alvin and Anna Tirman. He graduated from Freeport High School in 1954. That fall, he entered the University of Notre Dame and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in 1960.
He started his career as a Math teacher at West Side Junior High in Elkhart. While teaching, he started his Master’s in Counseling and Guidance at Notre Dame, followed by a Ph.D. in General Psychology at the Illinois Institute of Technology. He is a member of the American Psychological Association and was a member of the Indiana Psychological Association. He is a certified Health Service Provider in the state of Indiana.
After earning his Ph.D., Richard became the staff psychologist for the Alcohol Rehabilitation Program at St. Joseph County Mental Health Center in South Bend. He was an Assistant Professor of Education at Indiana University South Bend, the Director and Psychologist of Counseling and Psychological Services in South Bend, a Faculty Associate at IUPUI and the Assistant Dean/Director of Counseling Services at Butler University, retiring there, after 20 years in June of 2000. After retiring from Butler, he returned to his first profession of teaching math at Marian University, St. Richard’s Episcopal School, and Cathedral High School.
Rich loved life. Helping students was his greatest joy. He wrote a blog about his colorful life growing up in Brooklyn, which can be read on Tumblr under the title, Imperfect Memories. He loved solving New York Times Crossword Puzzles in ink and cherished classical music his father taught him to love at an early age.
His humor and kindness he shared with everyone, especially all the nurses and health professionals he met along the way. His family and wonderful friends will greatly miss him.
Visitation will be held Thursday, May 2, 2019 from 4:00 p.m. -8:00 p.m. at Flanner Buchanan-Washington Park North 2706 Kessler Blvd West Drive Indianapolis, IN 46228. A Celebration of Rich’s Life will be held Friday, May 3, 2019 at 11:00 a.m. at Trinity Episcopal Church 3243 N. Meridian Street, Indianapolis, IN 46208. Memorial contributions may be directed to St. Vincent Hospice or St. Richards School. Please share an online memory or condolence of Rich at www.flannerbuchanan.com.