Birth date: Jul 10, 1951 Death date: Nov 1, 2020
Richard Soroka, originally from Baldwin, passed peacefully on November 1. Dr. Rick, as he was known, was preceded in death by his loving parents, Walter and Elmira Soroka. He is survived by his brother, Walter C. Soroka (Catherine Read Obituary
Rick was a good friend of mine at Franklin and Marshall College 50 years ago. He was smart, funny, and a warm and caring individual. I learned only today (December 26, 2022) about his 1979 accident and 2020 death. He deserved better, though there is no doubt that the world is a better place as a result of his influence. Rest in peace, my friend.
Rick was the coolest, the hippest. He could be sarcastic, when appropriate, but also tremendously funny. And incredibly intelligent. I knew him during my first year at \"The Famous School of Psychology of Atlanta, Georgia\" as we called it. He was just finishing his dissertation and getting ready to take up a teaching position at the university level. It was a tradition at that time that the grad students would put together a short film of skits, rather Monty Pythonesque, called \"The Beauzeaux Film\" that was shown at the first \"official\" party of the new school year. I was lucky enough to have a role in one of the skits (\"Lassie the Rat\") that year and got to work with Rick on the film. Full of energy and endlessly creative is how I'd describe him. His injury in the accident was a terrible blow to all of us. Whenever he came to Atlanta with his parents afterwards, a group of us would hang out with the Sorokas and catch up with Rick. Although the injury left him with greatly diminished communication ability, we felt that \"the old Rick\" was still there, from the way he would respond to things we said or add a great punch line to a story. He was a good guy. I can still see him in my mind's eye. He will always be missed. John F. Gearing
