FARMINGTON — Richard Marcel Arnold will always be remembered as a loving father and grandfather. Richard resided at Sandy River Rehabilitation Center in Farmington until he passed away peacefully at age 92 on March 10.

Richard lived in Rumford for more than 25 years during which time he worked at the Oxford Paper Mill and Sampson Super Market. In 1977, he moved to South Portland, where he worked for the Maine Youth Center as an accountant. After his retirement, Richard moved to Wilton, to be close to his daughter, Martina Arnold-Burgess.

Richard had two passions, his family and soccer! We all knew this! He was an outstanding soccer player. Richard played soccer as a child in Belgium and England. Then he played professionally for the Chicago Schwaben of the newly organized Professional North American Soccer Football League in 1947. He scored the first two goals and had one assist while playing an exhibition match against an English national team. This is one example of the many world caliber plays Richard performed.

He was a huge fan of Arsenal Football, a soccer team he tried out for and made while serving in the Royal Air Force. However, when he told his wife the good news, she surprised him with tickets to her home country of Canada. Greatly disappointed, Richard sacrificed his team position to best serve the needs of his family. He then moved his family to Canada in 1945, then on to the United States in May 1949.

Richard loved the New England Revolution. He would watch the games then write letters critiquing the games. The team loved hearing from him. They knew him as “RMA.” His letters actually made their way to the team’s bulletin board!

When his grandchildren were old enough, Richard taught them how to play soccer and attended many of their games. Richard suited up with cleats and ran up and down the sidelines cheering them on.

After Richard had written letters for many years, his grandson, Peter, surprised him with a VIP package provided by the New England Revolution team. He was invited to Foxboro, Mass., as a special guest of the team. His biggest thrill was meeting all the players at a pregame dinner. VIP parking, hotel accommodations and seats overlooking the entire field were all part of the package. What a blast he had at 80 years young!

Richard was also a great fan of the Boston Red Sox and the New England Patriots.

Richard was a veteran of World War II serving in the Royal Air Force as a mechanic. He took pride in the fact that his planes always came home. One plane in particular held special memories for Richard. This is because that plane carried General Patton! When General Patton got off his bullet-riddled plane he heard Richard’s accent and asked, “Where are you from?” “Belgium,” Richard replied. General Patton said, “If I’d known that I would have taken you up with me!”

Richard was born in Jemappes, Belgium, on Sept. 29, 1919, the son of Richard and Simone Arnold of Harrogate, England.

He is survived by his son, Richard and wife, Barbara (Knauer) of West Melbourne, Fla., and Madison; grandson, Richard and wife, Kelly and great-grandson, Marshall, of Omaha, Neb.; grandson, Ryan of Farmington; daughter, Mary Lou and husband, Larry Luciano, of Meridian, Miss.; and granddaughter, Lisa (Moore) Meserve of Lancaster, S.C.; great-grandson, Joseph Meserve of Charleston, S.C.; and great-granddaughter, Katelyn (Meserve) Sweeten and husband, Wesley and great-great-granddaughter, Elliot Grace, all of Lexington, S.C.; grandson, Terry Moore and fiancee, Celeste Coughlin, great-granddaughter, Summer Moore, great-great-granddaughter, Hailey Hussey and great-grandson, Dalton, all of Saco; grandson, David and wife, Dawn (Wallace) Moore, great-grandsons, Holden and Brayden of Woodstock, Ga.; grandson, Peter and wife, Bobbie Jo (Ward) Luciano, great-grandsons, Ian and Jack of Gorham; daughter, Martina and husband, David Burgess of Wilton; son-in-law, H. Alan Siegel of Woodbury, Conn.; granddaughter, Sarah Beth (Siegel) Brousseau and husband, Mark, of Seymour, Conn.; and numerous in-laws, nieces and nephews of New Glasgow, NS, Canada and of Dunbar, ON, Canada.

Richard was predeceased by his wife, Mary Marguerite (Ranahan) Arnold; and daughter, Sharyn (Arnold) Siegel.

Those wishing may send condolences for the family at www.adamsmcfarlane.com.