Richard Thomas (“Rick”) Colund, age 68, of Nashua, New Hampshire, passed away on October 4, 2025, after a short journey with rapidly progressing cancer. He was surrounded by his wife of 40 years, Jan Colund; his only daughter, Jessi Rennekamp; his son-in-law, Andrew Rennekamp; and his two grandchildren, Liliana Rennekamp (age 6) and Orion Rennekamp (age 4).

Rick was born on April 10, 1957, to Fran and Myrl Haglund in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Rick had two older sisters, RayeAnne and Darla. Following his parents’ divorce and Myrl’s death, Fran married Bob Moran – a man whom Rick came to call “Dad.” Rick was also close with Fran’s siblings and their spouses: Dick Magnuson, Ruth and John Oberg, Dorothy and Hank Telke, and Bob and Helen Magnuson.

As a child, Rick developed an early love for playing and watching sports. Beginning at age 12, he spent parts of five decades of his life playing baseball. He took up running in high school and ran marathons as a young adult.

Rick became a devoted follower of Jesus after being invited to a Bible study during high school. In his senior year, he co-led that Bible study, and he continued to use the very same Bible he purchased in high school for the rest of his life. His faith remained central, and he prioritized participation in church communities. By the grace of God, he continued to grow in his character despite difficulties and missteps, and he came to exhibit Jesus’ words in the Beatitudes (Matthew 5): Those who most deeply experience the kingdom of God are those who are humble, those who hunger and thirst for right relationships with God and others, and those not seeking the power or wealth exalted by society. Importantly, his faith continued to be his source of hope and peace during his final days.

After graduating from Roosevelt High School in 1975, Rick went on to earn his bachelor's degree in social sciences from Northwestern College in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and his master’s degree in counseling from the University of Saint Thomas in Saint Paul, Minnesota. He spent more than 30 years working in the field of mental health and was passionate about helping others achieve mental, emotional, and behavioral growth.

His first job was in a group home, where he worked in a unit for people who were hard of hearing. During this time, he became conversational in American sign language. He kept up with the skill throughout his life, primarily through signing songs during church, which enabled him to connect with individuals in the Deaf community who may otherwise have felt isolated in predominantly hearing settings.

Rick met his wife, Jan, after she put a personal ad in a newspaper seeking a “college-educated, Christian man.” He responded to the ad, hoping to meet a woman who shared his love for God and for intellectual conversation. They got to know each other via phone calls for the first month and immediately connected. On their first date, they shared Rick’s favorite pizza: pepperoni and green olives. Even though it turns out Jan didn’t like those toppings, they still decided to get married. It was less than a year between their first phone call and their wedding day. They combined their last names, Haglund and Colby, into a brand-new last name: Colund. This past May, they celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary. Throughout their marriage, Rick remained a gentleman – opening doors for Jan, giving her backrubs, and holding her hand while going for walks together.

A lifelong dog lover, Rick had a large golden retriever named Caleb (the Hebrew word for “dog”) before getting married. Rick and Jan together added a cat named Emma to the family. Later, they had a standard poodle named Peppy.

Rick and Jan’s only child, Jessi, was born about two years into their marriage. As a family, some of their favorite things to do included visiting the “North Shore” of Lake Superior, taking personality tests like the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, and talking about God, science, politics, or other big ideas.

Rick always showed Jessi how proud he was of her and how much he loved her. She grew up, moved to the Boston area, and married Andrew. When Jessi and Andrew became pregnant with their first child, Rick and Jan decided to move from their familiar Minnesota community to Nashua, New Hampshire, to be closer to their grandchildren. The first time Rick flew on an airplane was from Minneapolis to Boston to look at condos and make other arrangements for the relocation.

Rick quickly established a deep connection with his granddaughter, Liliana, and his grandson, Orion, who was born two years later. As babies and toddlers, they easily fell asleep while being held by Grandpa Rick. As they got older, they loved when Grandpa Rick spun them in a rotating chair, played ball with them, or took them to a nearby playground. Liliana especially liked playing the board game Pretty, Pretty Princess with him (an antique from Jessi’s childhood), and Orion liked playing cars with him.

Throughout his life, Rick loved helping people with practical acts of service, such as with fixing their cars or moving to a new home. For more than a decade, he led an inner healing prayer ministry through a church in Minnesota to help both church and community members work through past pain and traumas.

He loved playing card and board games and was very competitive. Rick, Jan, and Jessi particularly enjoyed cribbage and hearts. After becoming empty-nesters, Rick and Jan regularly played three card games – cribbage, gin, and casino – the same three card games Rick’s mom and step-dad played every day during their retirement.

Rick leaves behind a legacy of love, fun, and faith. Please join us in celebrating his life at a memorial service on Monday, October 27, at 2 p.m. ET. The service will be held at Gate City Church in Nashua, New Hampshire, and will be broadcast virtually for those unable to attend in person.

Send to someone

Share this obituary with others

https://everloved.com/life-of/richard-colund/obituary/

Copy