Rick E. Isom

Rickey Emerald Isom was a name both too little and too big for the 9 1b. 2 oz. baby boy born on August 14, 1946 in the Alameda, California hospital to Lois Helen Carpaneto Isom and Emerald Ruesch Isom. In his teens Rick would say, “just Rick” fit him fine. There were two younger brothers in this family, Greg and Chris. Rick’s maternal Italian grandparents, Angela (Jennie) Lagorio and Frank Joseph Carpaneto also lived in Alameda.​Growing up, Rick and his family lived 20 miles south of Alameda in Hayward, California until his parents built a house in Crow Canyon which is near Castro Valley, California. From 7th grade to 9th grade the family lived there. An interesting and important fact: when Rick was just seven or eight years old he attended summer school and was intrigued by a group of boys he saw playing a game. It was Chess. He learned to play Chess and later on was able to teach and play Chess with his grandsons.​Rick’s paternal grandparents, Ada Ruesch Isom and Andrew “J” Isom, lived in Provo, Utah and on one trip there to visit them, nine year old Rick and his brother eight year old Greg, were both told they would be getting baptized by their grandfather Isom. When they returned to California, the parents would not attend church with them. Instead, they would drive the boys to church and drop them off, leaving the young boys to get adjusted to the church environment without parents there to guide them. Nevertheless, Rick participated in church activities and attained the priesthood office of Teacher.​Then things changed. At age fourteen, when Rick had just begun attending Hayward High School, his free-spirited parents, “Ice” and Lois, moved on an opportunity to purchase the historic Dorrington Hotel, located in the Sierras of Calaveras county, seven miles North of Arnold, California. The family had a small cabin in the area for several years. They moved the family to Dorrington in the winter and Rick spent his first year of high school there and stayed the summer to work in the grocery store and gas station of the hotel complex.​However, as the new city kid, attending high school there was not a good option for Rick as a bully there started fights that others joined in and in one fight, Rick got his front tooth knocked out at age fourteen. Besides, the nearest high school was one and a half hours by bus away rain, snow or shine. So Rick asked his parents if he could go back to Alameda and live with his Italian grandparents during the remaining three years of high school. They agreed and he finished his sophomore, junior and senior years attending Encinal High School very near where the Italian grandparents lived. Rick said, “my Italian grandparents (Nanny & Pappy) were there when I needed them, friendly, loving and good cooks.” He also said, “I had no more trouble at high school, behaved myself, always told them where I would be and helped around the house mowing lawns and doing other things.” He slept in the dark basement then later in the attic which was better. The Italian grandparents loved him and he them. Rick also loved the great Italian cooking, especially the spaghetti. The grandparents had an 80-100 acre vegetable farm in Hayward and brought the produce in to sell in their stall in the Oakland Farmers’ Market. Rick often accompanied his Pappy Carpaneto to the vegetable farm and the stall in Oakland.​In high school, Rick played football, either tackle or guard position. After football season he wrestled, then during track season threw the discus. At Christmas he visited his parents in Dorrington and also worked there during the summers in the hotel complex. At age seventeen, he worked on road construction and made good money for college.​Rick loved to dance and went to all the high school dances but no proms. In his senior year he went with his family to Provo, Utah to visit his Isom grandparents and while there took a tour of B.Y.U. He wrote in his life history: “I realized that as a member I could learn more about the church, get away from parents, grandparents, booze and cigarettes and change my life style.” In 1964, Rick graduated from Encinal High School in Alameda CA.​Again, from his life history Rick wrote: “In late September/October, 1964 I met Guinette Hirschi, my “salvation” somewhere on B.Y.U. campus, maybe at a dance and for sure at the new Y Center Cafeteria where she worked and I often ate dinner. Nine years later, we married in the Oakland, California L.D.S. temple on July 12, 1973. We lived and raised three children: Nicole Mills (Mike), Shannon Parker (Clint) and Sean Jacob Isom in Alameda for fifteen years then moved to the high desert of California for eight years. My favorite job was there in Palmdale as a computer capacity planner working on the then secret dark project, the B-2 Stealth Bomber.” Moves across country for corporate jobs took Rick and Guinette to Colorado Springs CO, Richmond and Falls Church VA and Columbus OH where Rick retired in 2013 before the move to Cottage Grove, MN in December 2017 to be close to daughters, Nicole and Shannon, and their wonderful families. It was a good and important move—the best move. Rick graduated from B.Y.U. with a Humanities major and a Computer Science minor. While he worked full time in San Francisco, for Chevron, he also went to graduate school at Golden Gate University and obtained his M.B.A. in General Management. Rick always informed himself and relaxed through music, novels, art books, libraries, museums, bookstores, walking and the News. He loved highbrow classical music, soft rock music, heavy rock music, Soul and gentle L.D.S. hymns. He loved the gospel of Jesus Christ. And he loved his family and worked hard every day in every job to take care of them. So, thank you, Rick, for being ever faithful and diligent in keeping the commandments, honoring covenants and being a loving father, grandfather, husband and friend. May you rest in Peace. By Guinette Hirschi Isom, wife 12.13.2022​A funeral service for Mr. Isom will be held on Saturday, December 17 at 2:00 PM at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 11900 Manning Ave S, Hastings.​Interment Cottage Grove Cemetery.