I wanted to share these additional comments I received about Richard:

Hi all,

In 1976, I had a contract to build a trickle collector on a machine shop, and I heard of someone at Goddard College who had actually built one and it worked. This was the first of many meeting between Richard and me, as our solar travels took down many roads. Richard always had a smile and was ready to do something new. He loved Carol and Vermont. A life lived well. — Jim Kirby

I first met Richard when I was working on a solar-powered ice cream cart for Ben & Jerry’s. Richard was my predecessor because he had designed & built a B&J solar van -or bus? perhaps some of you remember? -for the same eccentric client. Around that time, I did a course at Yestermorrow, sponsored by Real Goods, on solar technology. Who else but Richard & Carol were the VT resident solar experts in the early 90s? For the many years since then, I would run into Richard, or seek out his expertise on my atypical, “arty” solar installations. No matter how busy he was, he would always respond as if I was just the person he wanted to hear from, with just the topic he’d given some thought to, so here’s what he’d done several years before, & perhaps I could try this? He was so comfortable with his craft that even my most absurd questions were an amusing opportunity for him to improv. He never said, “No, you can’t do that” or “Why would you want to??” My heart goes out to Carol & to all of us who will miss Richard’s good-natured sense of humor. He was always laughing with us, in a way that was patient, knowledgeable & optimistic. He was a solar pioneer, forging a new way of conceiving energy technology & policy, on a very personal level. I bid him farewell with affection & gratitude. — Amelia Amon

Beautifully put, Amelia, I echo the sentiments that you have expressed. Richard was a consistently caring, loving man with enthusiasm for his craft and compassion for others as a defining characteristic of his interactions. — Bart Bales, PE, MSME

Thanks for posting your notice and remembrance of Richard Gottlieb on the website. He will always be one of the first true pioneers in PV and worked hard to promote the technology . I’m one of those from the second wave and often purchased PV components from him in the early 1980′s. He was the first person to offer compact fluorescent light bulbs in the region and actually crafted 12 VDC fluorescent lighting kits by hand. His installations of PV systems during the MASS PUP ( Photovoltaic Utilization Project) Program during the Dukakis administration were innovative gems.
Always kind and generous with his technical advice he will be missed in our community. — Chris Kilfoyle, Berkshire PV Services