Individual Details

Death

Obituary - Richard Garnitz - Commerce Official Richard Garnitz, 84 , r etired director of export marketing assistance with the Department o f C ommerce, died of a stroke Oct. 30 at Suburban Hospital in Bethesda. H e w as a Silver Spring resident. Mr. Garnitz worked for the Commerce D e partment from 1962 until he retired in 1981. He then started a consult i ng firm and taught at the college and professional level until his dea t h. He was born in Chicago and grew up in South Bend, Ind. He gradu a ted from Ohio State University and attended Columbia L aw School. He a l so graduated from the State Department's school of advanced internatio n al economics. During World War II, he served in the Army medical s e rvices in the USA. After the war, he worked at his family 's furniture c o mpany in Indiana until 1962, when he moved to Washington as assistant d i rector of the Commerce Department's trade missions program. In 1966, h e s erved in Tokyo as director of the embassy's trade center, and in 196 9, h e became a commercial attache at the embassy in Stockholm and direc tor o f the trade center there. Returning to Washington i n 1972, he w as d eputy director and then director of the Commerce Department's offic e o f international marketing and in 1979 took his final government assi gn ment. He then formed Zucca and Garnitz International Trade Consul t ants, assisting foreign governments' and businesses' investments in U. S . markets. After 1985, he taught real estate continuing education cour s es and international trade basics at Montgomery College and the Profes s ional Development Institute. Mr. Garnitz was given the Commerce De p artment's outstanding achievement awards in 1966, 1973 and 1978 and it s s ilver medal award for meritorious federal service in 1973. Outsi de o f work, he liked to golf, walk, read, attend theater and travel . H e a lso enjoyed gourmet dining. He was a past president of his condomini um b uilding association at Leisure World. Survivors include his wif e o f 59 years, Sydelle Garnitz of Silver Spring; two children, Daniel G ar nitz of Germantown and Joan Harris of Bluemount, Va.; a brother; and a g r andson.

Burial

Address: Parklawn Memorial and Menorah Gardens