It is with deep sadness that the members of the North Coast Fossil Club mourn the passing of longtime member Doris Reich. Doris passed away on Monday, May 1, 2017, at the age of 92. Doris was the beloved wife of the late George Reich.
For the Reich family, their interest in fossils began in 1962 when Doris' son Kurt found a fossil that was later identified by the Cleveland Museum of Natural History as a Devonian fossil fish bone.
Soon, the entire family became keenly interested in fossils. Collecting became a family affair as the family made many trips to the famous limestone quarries in Sylvania, Ohio.
It was in one of the Sylvania quarries that Doris' husband George made an important fossil find. He found a cranial shield from an arthrodire known as Protitanichys. A cast was made of it and it was put on display in the Kirtland Hall of our Cleveland Museum of Natural History.
In 1982, when Dr. Shya Chitaley founded "The Fossil Society" which was made up of fossil collectors and enthusiasts who went on field trips together and held their meetings at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Doris and George enthusiastically joined and became charter members. Doris became the club historian and George served as treasurer for three years. In 1991, Doris and George received the "Member of the Year Award".
An outstanding fossil found by Doris turned out to be a piece of permineralized Callixylon wood from the late Devonian Cleveland Shale. Dr. Shya Chitaley regarded this as an important fossil find and described it in a scientific paper in 2000.
VISITATION: Saturday, May 13, 2017 from 11:30 AM - 12:00 PM at the Sunset Chapel, 6245 Columbia Rd., North Olmsted, OH 44070 where funeral services will commence at 12 PM. Burial to follow in Sunset Memorial Park.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Bethany English Lutheran Church, 15460 Triskett Road, Cleveland, Ohio 44111.