Chris Goodrich, renaissance man

CHRISTOPHER Goodrich had an irrepressible zest for life. He would hop out of bed at 6 a.m. eager to begin a day of fresh adventure.

He was a man of many interests, from hunting to gardening to travel to the theater to the opera, to name just a few.

And he took others along with him.

"I had the time of my life with him," said his wife, the former Susan Takiff. "He was full of life."

On Monday, Chris went out to hunt deer on his 10-acre property in Tinicum, Bucks County. When he didn't return by nightfall, his wife became worried.

He was found in the woods he loved, dead of a heart attack. He was 65.

"He was the picture of health," his wife said. "There was no warning."

Christopher Goodrich, who was formerly associated with Earle Palmer Brown Advertising in Philadelphia and who opened his own business, Goodrich Advertising, in 1993, came to Philadelphia by way of England, where he was born, and Australia, where he lived and worked for many years in the advertising field.

After marrying Susan Takiff in 1988, he became a U.S. citizen.

Besides his business and his many other activities, Chris was devoted to humanitarian causes. He enjoyed delivering meals for Manna, which provides free food to homebound AIDS and cancer patients.

"He liked doing person-to-person service," his wife said.

As a consultant and volunteer, he worked on projects with Pearl Buck International, the Philadelphia Boys Choir and the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra, serving on their boards.

His passion for the arts and environmental causes began in Australia, where he started one of the early "Earth Fairs" to call attention to what was then a nascent green movement.

In Adelaide, he worked on the Adelaide Festival of the Arts, started a rugby team in Melbourne, and was head of advertising for the South Australia Opera Company.

Chris was born Feb. 10, 1943, to George Goodrich and Margaret Eberle in Leatherhead, Surrey, England. He moved to Australia in the late '70s where he worked for Ogilvy and Mather Advertising in Melbourne and Adelaide. When he had the opportunity to work in the company's Dallas office, he came to the U.S.

He later wound up in Philadelphia, where he plunged into the local arts and philanthropic scene with his customary enthusiasm.

He served on the boards of the Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts; the Rock School for Dance Education; the Pennsylvania Ballet; International House at Penn, where he was chairman of the board; the World Affairs Council; the International Visitors Center; Morris Arboretum, and Junior Achievement.

He also was on the board of the Center for Contemporary Opera in New York City.

Chris was a passionate gardener, and the garden he created at his Tinicum home was on the Philadelphia Horticultural Society's garden tour. During the season, he would rise at 5 a.m. to work in his garden before going off to work.

He was also a dedicated golfer and was a member of the Lookaway Golf Club in Buckingham, Bucks County, among other clubs. In fact, he played a round of 18 holes last Friday.

Chris and his wife frequently flew to Australia, where his daughters and siblings live. They also traveled throughout Europe, as well as Africa and Egypt.

"He looked forward to the challenge of each new day," his wife said. "He was truly a renaissance man."

Besides his wife, he is survived by two daughters, Amy Henderson and Georgina Goodrich; three brothers, Richard, Robin and Adrian; a sister, Alice, a stepdaughter, Hilary Weiss, and three grandchildren.

Services: A memorial service will be held at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Fox Chase Cancer Center, Manna and the other organizations with which Chris was involved. *