LEWISTON — It was difficult for Richard “Dick” Hebert’s only son, Michael, to talk about the man he looked up to as a father, mentor and business partner. Michael broke down as he described his father who died suddenly Sunday afternoon.

Prominent businessman Richard A. Hebert, 73, of 85 Old Lisbon Road, died shortly after arrival at St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center. He was part owner and president of Hebert Construction Co. until his retirement in 2001.

Michael recalled watching his dad look after his younger siblings, seeing him open his home and heart to strangers, and listening as he made his grandchildren and their friends laugh after a hockey game.

Michael, who is the third generation to run the family business, also remembers his dad working toward his dream of putting the former mill towns on the map by mentoring young business owners eager to make their start in the Twin Cities.

“Not only did he run it, but he did it well,” Michael said of his father being at the helm of the family business. “And he did it well with his hands.”

The younger Hebert said his father was not only a strong businessman, but also a master carpenter who helped build the family business with his own father — literally — brick by brick and nail by nail. Michael said his father ran the construction company for decades with his brother, Dan. Together, the two went from building homes to building hospitals.

Much of the company’s construction centers on commercial medical buildings. One of its most notable recent projects is the new addition to St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center, where Richard served as the long-time president of the hospital’s Board of Directors.

Michael said his dad’s service to St. Mary’s was one of his proudest accomplishments. But then again, according to his son, most people found the elder Hebert to be an honest businessman with a big heart and even bigger ears to truly tune in to the needs of his community.

“He really used to enjoy life. He loved everybody. Loved everything,” said Hebert’s brother-in-law, co-worker and friend, Fern Fournier.

Fournier said that Richard loved the outdoors — whether it was fishing for big ones on Moosehead Lake or growing vegetables in his backyard. Friends like Fournier described him as larger than life — a man who loved to socialize and be around people.

For his son, the memories that will carry his family through the coming weeks will be remembrances of granddad as “Tim the Toolman Taylor.” Michael said the family joke about his father was that his dad had a tool for everything. Sharing the story brought laughter through tears Tuesday evening as the younger Hebert talked about discovering just how close to the truth that statement was after spending the day sorting through a mountain of tools.

But beyond the family fun, Michael said that one of the things he will miss the most was watching his dad interact with his grandchildren. Always at the ready with a story, he said he was always sure to find his dad after a hockey game surrounded by a bunch of kids — his own among them — who were laughing as the older man spun a tale.

Fournier fully agreed.

“He had many stories,” he said. “He had a lot of stories about fishing. He always used to maintain he caught the biggest fish. My joke was, ‘No. You bought it.'”

Richard is survived by his wife, the former Mariette R. Fournier of Lewiston; his son, Michael and wife, Lisa (Costello) of Greene; his grandchildren, his sisters and their families and his brother.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 11 a.m. Thursday at Holy Cross Church on Lisbon Street in Lewiston. Fournier said that the funeral procession from the church will include a large construction crane and all of the company vehicles making a pass by St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center.

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