Columbus, OH — Richard Paul Tourangeau, 76, of Scarborough, Maine, died March 3, 2021, with family at his side.

He was born in Westbrook on June 21, 1944, to Roland and Lilly (Hjort). He attended schools in Westbrook leading many teams to victory as a star athlete. He captained his football teams at the quarterback position and captained his baseball teams as a left-handed pitcher and switch hitter.

Always having an affinity for math he attended Boston College, earning his degree at the College of Business Administration. His time spent living in Boston only strengthened his passion for Boston sports teams with a favorite pastime of his to be sitting rinkside for a Bruins game.

Mr. Tourangeau was known for an old-fashioned New England work ethic which he applied to a varied career in business/financial management and small business ownership. An ardent supporter of small and locally owned businesses, he opted to purchase and renovate the New Gloucester Village Store building, originally opened in the 1890s, renaming it the Village Store and retaining the original pot-bellied stove at the center of the market that served as a warm meeting place for locals. The quaint convenience market’s charm became well known through Humpty Dumpty commercials that were filmed on location.

After many years of long hours working through the complexities of business/financial management, he decided to pursue a working retirement career, which started out simply as a life-long passionate hobby, as a Standardbred owner. He had a shared love of horse racing with both of his brothers, one of which, Robert, was a well-known Maine stakes horse breeder in his retirement.

Mr. Tourangeau started out humbly with his 5-year-old mare Fly Junie Fly, which was more of a beloved pet to him than a racehorse. The joke was often made that his horses ate better than he did. Over the years this small hobby turned into a fully operational stable peaking at 33 horses at its highest point.

Although he had many hands to help around the stable he often enjoyed training his horses himself. On any given day you would be able to find him out on the track jogging one of his horses himself. Some of his best memories of the horse racing business would be entering exhibition races as the driver against other owners who wanted to take their turn at the reins.

A man with a soft heart, he treated his animals like family and was known to often keep horses on in his stable that were no longer able to race, just to provide them with a comfortable retirement out to pasture under his caring eye.

In his later years, the business had grown so large that he progressively had to downsize his stable to a manageable point with his final horse being an old stud with a fiery temperament that only he was able to form a bond with. With the final days for this horse expiring the Tourangeau Stables shut their doors for the final time.

Mr. Tourangeau was a kind soul who gave the best hugs. He had a twinkle in his “Paul Newman” blue eyes and a laugh that was comforting to those who were blessed to share time talking with him about the simple things in life. He was as strong as an ox, yet gentle as a lamb. The first in the room to lend a hand without being asked afforded those in his life the opportunity to revel in his old-fashioned chivalry.

He was fortunate to live his life to a point where he was able to see the beautiful family that he grew and watched develop into his pride and joy. His favorite moments in his final years centered around the gratification of knowing that his family was thriving and taking on the challenges of life with a full head of steam. All that you would have to do is talk to any of his friends to hear them recap the exultations of a proud father and grandfather. He will be deeply missed by those who love him dearly. Our hearts are broken with the loss of this beautiful man.

Mr. Tourangeau is survived by his son, Richard Paul (Suzanne) and their daughter, Julianna; daughter, Stacey (Bob) Cardona and their children, Gabriela, Ciara and Isabela; daughter, Laurie and her children Zachary, Leah, Jordan, Kayla and Sophia; great-grandchildren, Ellie, Eva and Ada; and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, Roland and Lilly (Hjort); brothers, Roland “Skip” and Robert; and sister, Susan Driscoll.

A private ceremony for immediate family to spend final moments in a peaceful setting has been arranged.