Archives West Finding Aid

Richard Dean “Dick” Wallin (1942-2021) was born on April 18, 1942 to Dean Alvin and Pauline Gunderson Wallin. Wallin was a lifelong outdoorsman with a particular passion for rock climbing. In high school, he became involved with the Alpenbock Climbing Club, a group that was founded in the late 1950s in Salt Lake City. The club was formed around rock climbing, skiing, and mountaineering. Wallin was involved in the club’s founding of the Salt Lake County Jeep Patrol Mountain Rescue Team. Through the Alpenbock Club, Wallen met Marilyn Friedland; the two married in 1963 and together had two children. In addition to climbing, Wallin was a musician, playing the guitar and banjo and singing and yodeling in two college bands, the Rovers and the Villagers.

Wallin attended the University of Utah, where he studied medicine; he graduated with his MD in 1968. After graduation, he served in the United States Navy and completed his residency at the Newport, Rhode Island Naval Hospital between 1968 and 1971. After residency, Wallin returned to Utah, where he helped create the St. Marks Hospital Emergency Room Department, where he worked for the entirety of his career. In addition to his work in emergency medicine, Wallin volunteered as a medical consultant and as a deputy sheriff for Salt Lake County Search and Rescue, work that led to him being awarded a 50 Year Medal of Distinction. Dick Wallin died on June 13, 2021.