By the family

May 14, 2025: Richard Joseph Ward Jr., age 78, of Old Town Alexandria, Virginia, and Bronxville, New York, passed away on April 11, 2025, after a long illness.

Richard "Dick" was born on March 25, 1947, to Doris and Richard Joseph Ward in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. He graduated from Salesian High School in 1964 and went on to earn a Bachelor of Business Administration from Manhattan College in 1968, where he was a proud member of Delta Sigma Pi fraternity.

Dick began his career at Cowen and Company, LLC, launching a distinguished thirty-three-year tenure on Wall Street as a trader on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. He retired from Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith as Director for Institutional Trading, capping his career with the esteemed honor of ringing the Closing Bell at the NYSE on March 22, 2001.

He was elected a member of the New York Stock Exchange on November 1, 1973. On July 10, 1975, he was appointed Assistant Vice President of Merrill Lynch. He was welcomed into the Merrill Lynch Quarter Century Club on July 1, 2000, recognizing twenty-five years of service.

In 1966, Dick met Maureen Mendres, and they married on October 11, 1969. They lived in Stuyvesant Town in New York City before moving to Bronxville, NY, in 1980, and in 2013, they moved to Alexandria, Virginia.

Dick was predeceased by his parents, Doris and Richard J. Ward; His sister Doris (Ward) Knox, and his brother, John F. Ward. He is survived by his wife Maureen, son Richard J. Ward III (Carolyn) and their daughters Elizabeth Grace “Ellie” and Isabelle Rose “Izzie” of Alexandria, Virginia.

A devoted Catholic, Dick was a parishioner of St. Joseph's Church in Bronxville, NY, and later, The Basilica of Saint Mary in Old Town Alexandria.

He served honorably for six years as a Private in the Brooklyn National Guard. He also served on the Board of Directors of the College of New Rochelle, volunteered with Bronxville Meals-on-Wheels, and was a longtime member of the Bronxville Field Club.

Dick was widely known for his wit, dry humor, and memorable storytelling. He loved his work at the New York Stock Exchange, was a devoted fan of the New York Mets and New York Giants, and enjoyed reading the New York Post every day. One of his favorite destinations was Bermuda, where he and Maureen vacationed more than eighteen times. Relatives and friends may offer condolences to the family at www.demainefuneralhomes.com