ST. TAMMANY PARISH, LA. 

Obituary for: MAWSON, RICHARD ANTHONY 

Submitted by: Louis Lavedan. 

Source: St. Tammany News

Published on Thursday, July 15, 2010 

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Mawson

Richard Anthony Mawson died peacefully Friday, July 9, 2010, in Covington after 
a four-year battle with brain cancer. 

His father, his mother and her sister Libby were at his side. He was 28 years 
old. Richard was born in New Orleans and attended Metairie Grammar School, St. 
Antony of Padua and St. Francis Xavier schools as well as Pass Christian High 
School, Mississippi, and Matthews High School in Charlotte, N.C., where he moved 
with his father in 1997 and from there to Des Moines, Iowa, in 1999.

Richard was a talented musician who played several musical instruments. He also 
composed and recorded his own music. One of his first songs - "Believe" - 
received a U.S. copyright. Richard was a certified sound engineer and worked for 
several years at Channel 17 Fox News in Des Moines as a master controller. He 
was an enthusiast of heavy metal music, had his own "project" band, and played 
with several bands as a vocalist and guitarist in different cities in the 
midwest and West Coast. Richard is especially remembered as a loving son to his 
parents and family, and as a dear friend to many. He had a wide circle of 
devoted friends, some of whom traveled far to be with him in his last weeks. 
Richard was attracted to the Goth subculture, both in music and attire, and was 
known for his trademark black clothes and lace-up combat boots. He was 
especially fond of cats and preferred to be called "Catman" by his friends. He 
was also well-traveled, having made several extended trips to Chile, England and 
Italy. As a young boy he carefully described and drew a number of electronic 
inventions.

Richard's personality, a unique blend of optimism, humor and eccentricity, made 
him special to everyone he met. Quite uninhibited, he once went walking downtown 
at a busy time with his underwear over his trousers. His antics drew friends to 
him and made them laugh. He had a "Catman vocabulary" and made up new words to 
describe things and situations, which his friends adopted. He had a presence on 
MySpace and Facebook.

Survivors include his mother Donna of Covington; his father, Anthony of Jackson, 
Miss.; and stepsisters Hayley and Olivia Mawson; his grandmother, Ellen Conger 
of Baker; aunts and uncles on his mother's side, including Libby Bellinger, 
Janis Wilson, Jason McCrory, John McCrory, Jeff McCrory and Joseph McCrory; and 
on his father's side, David Mawson, Mary Mawson and Lucy Kinna. He was 
especially close to his Aunt Libby, who played an important role in his care and 
in his development.

A memorial service will be held at St. Michael's Episcopal Church in Mandeville 
at 11 a.m. July 24, followed by a reception. Guests are invited to bring a dish. 
In lieu of flowers, send donations to the National Brain Tumor Society for 
research on brain cancer.

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