Farewell to Talking Book Narrator Ric Furley

Farewell Ric Furley… You Friend, Drummer, Narrator, and All Around Good Human.

July 29, 1962 – October 29, 2025

I first met Ric Furley in 2003 when I was transferred from the Texas Talking Book Program’s Circulation Facility (on Shoal Creek Blvd) to the downtown Audio / Studio department situated inside the State Library building at 1201 Brazos. I was still the Volunteer Coordinator at that point and began working with the studio’s volunteers. One of the first longtime volunteer narrators I met was Ric Furley. I quickly learned what a skilled narrator and committed volunteer he was. I had the pleasure of working with Ric as a volunteer narrator for more or less the entirety of my 21 year tenure as Studio Manager. Unfortunately, health issues forced Ric to cease narrating towards that end of that tenure. But Ric was determined to find a way to continue volunteering in the studio and we worked to fulfill that goal until finally, even that wasn’t possible anymore.

In 2023 we wrote a Proclamation / Resolution honoring his years of service and I spoke of his decades of service at that year’s Volunteer Appreciation Dinner (see photos above). This Resolution was presented at the November 3rd, 2023 TSLAC Commission Meeting and a special video was recorded by the agency’s Director.

Resolution Honoring Volunteer Narrator Ric Furley

Ric reached out to the studio in late 1990 and began volunteering in the Texas Talking Book Program’s Volunteer Recording Studio in February 1991. Over the course of 31 years he contributed over 1,700 hours in various volunteer roles but I suspect the vast majority of those hours were spent narrating the 27 books he voiced, as well as the 360 magazines he also narrated on. You can peruse at least 25 of those titles via the NLS (National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled) online catalog here:

Books Narrated by Ric Furley for the Texas Talking Book Program (digitized and uploaded to BARD)

Besides his contributions as a narrator, he was also a dedicated promoter of the Talking Book Program’s services. Ric was a fan of author Terry Shames’ “Samuel Craddock Mystery” series and eventually narrated half of the books in that series. He also worked to have the author, Terry Shames, visit us in our Austin, Texas studio; see photos below…

That dedication to the Talking Book Program’s mission was also featured in a 2017 NLS Newsletter; you can see an excerpt from that in the screenshot below or click on the link to read the actual PDF of the newsletter: NLS-News-Oct-Dec-2017 (PDF)

Farewell Ric Furley… July 29, 1962 – October 29, 2025

Obituary at Caller Times:

“Richard ‘Ric’ Wentworth Furley, 63, passed away Wednesday, October 29, 2025, after a long illness. Ric was born July 29, 1962 to Walter and Patricia Furley. He was a life-long resident of Austin and Corpus Christi, where he graduated from W.B. Ray High School in 1980 and studied at Del Mar College.

Ric was a talented drummer who loved all kinds of music and he had days where he would play symphony and jazz gigs and then go play four sets in a local rock club. He performed in many cities and even a bit in Europe, and he was proud to have played with more groups than can be listed here.

Ric was always upbeat and happy to see people, he was among the gentlest and kindest to ever walk this earth, and he had an abundance of life-long friends who have remained loyal and loving to the end. Ric touched many lives and will be deeply missed by all those who knew him. The outpouring of love and support has been appreciated.

Ric is survived by his mother, Patricia and he was preceded in death by his father, Walter, and his brother, Jon. A service to celebrate his life will be held in Corpus on Saturday, November 22, 2025, at 2 p.m. at 1st United Methodist Church, 900 S Shoreline Blvd.”