Richard A. Krogel - Obituary

eloved Husband, Father, Pap Pap, and Brother, Richard Alan Krogel, of Davidsonville, Maryland passed away Sunday, November 28, 2021, peacefully surrounded by his loving wife and children after a 4-year battle with cancer. Richard was born July 30, 1953, in Wheeling, West Virginia to the late Richard Paul Krogel and Mary Jane Krogel. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer and Information Science in 1998 from the University of Maryland with over 44 years of experience in the field of Information Technology Systems Engineering, Systems Administration, Security, and Maintenance. In his early years at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), he began his career as an Electronic Specialist for the GSFC Network Operations Control Center. His next assignment was to support GSFC Mission Operations as Senior Electronics System Technician where he redesigned a NASCOM line interface, maintained and provided support to three spacecraft control centers. He would later be assigned to his last position at NASA GSFC Spaceflight Tracking and Data Network (STDN) Program as Senior Principal Systems Engineer supporting the Flight Dynamics Facility (FDF). Before he departed from NASA GSFC, he was awarded the NASA First Shuttle Flight Achievement Award, for his contributions to the first Space Transportation System Mission and was honored to view the launch of “Columbia” from Kennedy Space Center, Cocoa Beach, Florida. His career path would take him to the Internal Revenue Service for Northrup Grumman as the Chief Engineer/Architect of the Dite labs for the Modernization Program, an initiative that managed and developed services today such as Tax E-file and IRFOF (Refund Status) systems until he retired in 2017. Rich loved life and lived it to the fullest. He enjoyed living in Harbor Hills and served as the Beaches and Piers and the Yacht Club Commodore for several years where he volunteered his time to help make the community what it is today. He enjoyed the ocean and spent many hours sunbathing, dipping in the ocean, listening to the waves, watching sunrises and sunsets with his black coffee in hand, and occasionally seeing dolphins from his Ocean City condo balcony. When he wasn’t giving his puppy Sammy of 18 years treats, he enjoyed listening to music, researching ways to upgrade his TVs, computers, stereos, or anything that was related to new technology. He enjoyed trips to Costa Rica with his buddies and Friday night barbecues. His greatest accomplishment and joy were his family and being a Pap Pap. He is survived by his wife Claudia; his children Eric, Patrick, and Ashley; sister Victoria Preston; mother-in-law Emma Mendoza; daughter-in-law Ashley Krogel; sister-in-law Adriana Tucker; brother-in-laws Tim Tucker and Walter Preston; niece and nephew Stacey Davis and Benjamin Towsend; his grandsons Austin and Lucas, and many dear friends. A memorial service/celebration of life will be held on December 9, 2021, from 3:00– 7:00 p.m. at the Harbor Hills Yacht Club, 1 Carson Cove, Davidsonville, MD. In lieu of flowers, memorials in Richard's name may be made to the American Cancer Society https://donate3.cancer.org/?campaign=search&gclid=Cj0KCQiA15yNBhDTARIsAGnwe0W_xkxpQnjVTCqW17FsTCaLMtCxocm4PwP-6NCAf9aQV5Zf95pjb2gaAifFEALw_wcB Please take a moment to sign the family's online guestbook by visiting the memories tab on this page.