William Springfield

William Lawrence ""Rip"" Springfield, husband, father, photographer, and friend, died June 30th in Madison, Wisconsin.
Rip was a Texan.  He was born, November 21, 1942, into a family of teachers and photographers in Huntsville.  Rip attended the University of Arkansas, where he studied philosophy and was the President of the Methodist Student Organization, fostering First Amendment and Civil Rights.
A disagreement with his country over the Vietnam War led Rip to Bloomington, Indiana and service at the county hospital as a Conscientious Objector.  He made his home in Bloomington for over 30 years.
In 2000, Rip retired from his job at Indiana University and moved to Madison, Wisconsin, where his spouse, Consuelo Lpez Springfield, works.  His daughter, Cristina Springfield, will graduate from the University of Wisconsin this winter with honors.  His stepdaughter, Vanessa Villegas Lpez, is a lawyer in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Rip's black and white photos captured his times with heartbreaking honesty:  The anger of the 60's; the tranquility of an Indiana farm; the contradictions of politicians; the love of his family.
Rip observed the world and recorded his understanding of it in his photographs and in his little spiral notebooks that he kept, always handy, in the breast pocket of his short-sleeved white shirt.  He loved music, preferably played by Bob Dylan.
Rip traveled his life, through his last moments, accompanied by beautiful, smart women and cats of character. 
Rip believed in the happiness of pursuit and found it in fatherhood and the family he built with Consuelo.
He enjoyed many years of warm friendships, including, among others, with the Henegar family of Bloomington, Indiana.
Rip, a stoic Texan to the last, lost his long struggle with Parkinson's Disease.  He never lost his sense of humor or his sweet-tooth.
Rip is survived by his wife, his daughters, his brothers Doug of Huntsville, John of Minneapolis, and Calvert of Texas, his sister Catherine of Pennsylvania, and his cat.
He will be missed.
A celebration of Rip's life will take place on Saturday July 19, 2008 at the Henegar Farm, 6925 S. McCormick Rd. Bloomington, Indiana 47401. For more information, please visit www.cressfuneralservice.com