TAMPA He always threw out the hard questions, the ones that everyone wished they had the courage to ask, but to hear it aloud made you cringe. When it came to research, he was decisive and hard-nosed. But underneath it all, he had a soft heart for the people he studied and the friends he made. Thomas 'Tom' Rich, a pioneer in the creation and establishment of the department of gerontology, now the School of Aging Studies, at the University of South Florida, died April 13. He was 81. Mr. Rich joined USF in 1961 as an assistant professor. He worked his way up, eventually serving as dean of the department of social science at USF before retiring in 1994 and being bestowed the title of emeritus professor. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Florida and a master's degree in public health from the Harvard School of Public Health. His interest was people and he saw a need for more research in the areas of the aging and the elderly. He started the gerontology department in 1967. Today, it is the oldest and among the largest programs in the country. 'He helped develop a whole discipline of gerontology and certainly put USF on the map,' said Edgar Nesman, who was a professor in the social science department at USF when Mr. Rich served as dean. 'He made a real contribution in the early stage of gerontology as a recognized interest.' His research took him to Guatemala where, in the early 1970s, he tackled a literacy project to determine if radio education on health and agriculture could reach a semiliterate audience in rural areas. 'He didn't speak Spanish, but he had a real caring relationship with some of the farm families in the countryside,' Nesman said. 'He was taken as a good friend, a genuine person.' His children accompanied him to Guatemala for the summers, taking road trips throughout the countryside and learning about the culture. At home, they went to parties with their father, who sat around with colleagues discussing their latest projects, what grants they were writing, what courses they were teaching. 'Work was his passion,' said daughter Carol Van Bebber of Lutz. Mr. Rich was witty with a dry sense of humor, good with puns and word play. He always had a book in his hand. He loved all books, from bestsellers to heavy intellectual tomes. A former president of the USF faculty senate, Mr. Rich kept a tidy office. Any papers that came across his desk got immediate attention, the document either filed or tossed. When the university installed computers campuswide, he did not use his, never even tried e-mail. He did everything the old-fashioned way: Everything was dictated. 'He was very farsighted, very decisive,' said Wiley Mangum, another professor who worked with Mr. Rich and remained friends with him well after retirement. 'I always admired his ability to make decisions, and they were generally good ones.' After retiring from USF, Mr. Rich joined the gerontology program at the University of West Georgia, where he stayed for a few years. He retired to Alabama before settling in Mount Dora with his wife, Diane. 'He was a very excellent scholar who was very interested in gerontology, who probably did as much as anyone else in the country,' Mangum said. 'He affected the lives of thousands of students, really. He was good at whatever he did. He was good for the university.' Dong-Phuong Nguyen can be reached at (813) 909-4613 or nguyensptimes.com. . Biography George Thomas 'Tom' Rich Born: Sept. 30, 1928. Died: April 13, 2010. Survivors: Brother Bill Rich; five children; and five grandchildren. 