Richard “Dick” Pitman, a native of Belgrade, Mont., was a 1957 graduate of Western Montana College with a Bachelor of Science in secondary education with a major in mathematics and a minor in physical education.
He was a four-year basketball letterman and an all-conference selection each season, Pitman was a well-rounded athlete also earning letters in baseball and football.
Pitman was an active member of M-Club. He also showed a sense for business. Pitman and teammate Casey Keltz opened a snack bar for the students. He also played in dance band that played campus dances.
After graduation, he began his teaching and coaching at Absarokee, Mont. After a year, Pitman accepted the positions of head football coach and math instructor at Powell County High School in Deer lodge, Mont.
He later added head boy’s basketball coach to his list of duties. During this same period, Pitman received a master’s degree in mathematics from the University of Montana.
He left education for private business. Pitman oversaw the conversion of the Deer Lodge golf course from sand greens to grass. He was a charter member of the Montana Greenskeeper Association.
Pitman was offered the opportunity to develop and manage the Fairmont Golf Club located between Butte and Anaconda, Mont. He later managed Fairmont Hot Springs resort and condominiums.
In 1980, he returned to coaching as the interim men’s basketball coach at Montana Tech. In addition to coaching, Pitman was also a math instructor.
He passed away May 14, 1990.
