An eye on the sky and the future: Richard Alvarez readies for retirement

'Pioneer spirit'

At 19 years old, Richard Alvarez didn’t look back when he drove from his childhood home and headed to naval flight school.

He has carried that “look toward the future” mentality over the past five decades, through dedicated military and public service, and a distinguished career in higher education administration.

He credits his family and the United States Marine Corps for the “pioneer spirit” that has well-positioned him as a leader at Radford University and in the New River and Roanoke valleys.

“You always have to be thinking about leadership,” Alvarez said. “If you’re self-centered and self-serving, then you’re never going to be a leader. It’s something you always have to work at and strive to be.”

Later this month, Alvarez will retire from Radford University after almost 10 years as the university’s vice president for Finance and Administration and chief financial officer.

Again, he insisted, “No looking back.”

“I won’t be looking through the rearview mirror,” he said. “I’ll be looking ahead to what my future’s going to be.”

As he starts his next adventure, many, including members of the Radford University Board of Visitors (BOV), are reflecting on Alvarez’s accomplishments. At its May meeting, the Board approved a resolution in honor of Alvarez that recognized him as “above all else, a brave military officer, an admired public servant, and a devoted family man.”

Family values and dedicated military service

Family is a good place to start in explaining Alvarez’s legacy.

Alvarez is a proud seventh-generation Floridian.

His father was a police chief. His mother took care of him and his brother. Both parents were hard-working. Neither earned a high school diploma.

“They grew up in a time when there was nothing wrong with that,” Alvarez explained. “Having said that, my father was the author of the national crime reporting system, which is kind of awesome for a man with an eighth-grade education. He was a graduate of the FBI National Police Academy at Quantico in the 1950s. I have a picture of him shaking hands with J. Edgar Hoover.”

Alvarez demonstrated an interest in aviation at an early age. He started flying when he was 14 years old. His parents didn’t push him to join the military. In fact, his mother wouldn’t even sign the papers.

“But that didn’t stop me. I was determined,” he said.

Alvarez, who earned the rank of lieutenant colonel, joined the Marine Corps in 1965. For 23 years, he served in a broad spectrum of leadership roles, including aviator, flight instructor, district head of officer recruiting, head of the leadership and management department for the United States Marine Corps Command and Staff College, and executive officer of a Marine Corps air base in Japan.

During this span, he was deployed around the world, including two combat tours in Vietnam and Southeast Asia. He flew 255 combat missions in the F-4B Phantom II fighter-attack aircraft. 

Alvarez often serves as the keynote speaker for the university’s annual Veterans Day Ceremony. His motivational messages are filled with stories of heroism, sacrifice, gratitude and advice for students in the university’s Army ROTC program.

Before retiring from military service in 1988, Alvarez requested his superiors find him a job in higher education as his last tour of duty. A position was open at the University of Florida and Virginia Tech. He picked the University of Florida opportunity, as it was just miles from home, he said.

“My superior said, ‘You got it.’ Two weeks later, my orders were to go to Virginia Tech. So goes the military, right?” Alvarez said.