Ambassador Richard G. Capen
OBITUARY
On Sunday, September 13, 2026, our beloved husband and father, Dick Capen, went home to the Lord after a brief battle with cancer. A perpetual optimist, Dick’s positive attitude and contagious smile uplifted all who were blessed to know him. He believed deeply in encouraging others, serving his community and country, and, above all, the importance of faith and family. His absence is and will continue to be keenly felt by all who loved him.
Dick was born in Hartford, Connecticut, on July 16, 1934. After receiving a four-year scholarship from the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps, he graduated from Columbia University, Columbia College, in 1956. He served in the United States Navy from 1956 to 1959. He often credited the Navy with much of his success, grateful for the opportunity it gave him to attend college–an achievement that would not have been possible without the Navy’s scholarship. As a result, he believed strongly in the power of education, sponsoring numerous scholarships in the US and abroad.
Dick’s career in public service and the newspaper business spanned more than 50 years. In 1961, Dick joined Copley Newspapers in San Diego where he rose to Vice President. In 1979, he was named a senior executive at Knight Ridder, Inc, then one of the nation’s most respected newspaper groups with headquarters in Miami, Florida. From 1981 to1989, Dick served as publisher of The Miami Herald, the media company’s flagship newspaper. The Herald received five Pulitzer prizes during his stewardship. Dick also wrote a weekly column for the paper and led efforts to launch El Nuevo Herald, now one of the largest Spanish language newspapers in the US. In 1989, Dick was named Vice Chairman of Knight Ridder.
Dick interrupted his newspaper career twice for appointments in the federal government. From 1968 to 1971, he served in the Department of Defense as a key aide to Secretary of Defense, Melvin Laird–first as the principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs and, in 1970, as Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Legislative Affairs. In 1971, he received the Department of Defense’s highest civilian decoration: the Distinguished Service Medal, for his leadership on prisoner of war matters. In 1984, he received the John Jay Award from Columbia College for distinguished professional achievement.
In early 1992, Dick was nominated by President George H.W. Bush as United States Ambassador to Spain where he led efforts to expand the business opportunities and educational exchanges between the US and Spain. Upon his return to California in late 1993, he served as an independent Director of the Carnival Corporation, the American Funds, the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, and as an independent director for a series of mutual funds managed by The Capital Group Companies.
Above all, Dick cherished his friends, his family, and his faith. He had an unwavering ability to recognize the Good Signs in life, choosing to find meaning, purpose, and optimism even in difficult times. That optimism was and continues to be one of the many gifts he shared with those around him. Dick is survived by his wife of 64 years, Joan Lambert Capen. As they often said, they were a perfect match for all eternity. He is also survived by their three children and their spouses–Chris Capen (Jarrod Morgan), Kelly Capen Douglas (J.D.), and Carrie Capen Hasler (James)–and three grandchildren, Courtney and Collin Douglas and Cate Hasler. Dick is now reunited in heaven with his beloved grandson, Owen Christopher Hasler, who passed away in 2007. A memorial service will be held at a later date.