R. DuVal Dickinson, 91, died Sunday, March 10, 2013, at his Spotsylvania County home, "Wilburn."

Born in 1921 at the family home, he was the son of William Streit Dickinson and Christine Duval Dickinson. He attended Chancellor School and graduated from James Monroe High School. DuVal attended George Washington University, University of North Carolina and Virginia Tech before coming home to work on the family farm. He and his father developed a nationally recognized herd of Guernsey cattle.

Later DuVal and his wife, Anne, started their farm equipment business, Dickinson Equipment Inc., which they operated until they transferred it to two of their sons.

DuVal was raised by parents who taught family traditions that good citizens give back to the community where they live. From the time of their marriage in 1946, he served faithfully in Trinity Episcopal Church. He taught Sunday school and was Sunday school superintendent. DuVal served numerous terms on the vestry, numerous terms as senior warden and junior warden and on almost every Trinity commission. In 1975, DuVal made a trip to Tanzania with the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia to seek ways to improve farming there.

From 1948 to 1977, he served on the Tri-County Soil and Water Conservation Commission. From 1964 to 1977, DuVal served as chairman of the Spotsylvania Service Authority to help bring water and sewer services to Spotsylvania, which expanded opportunities for many.

He served on the board of Mary Washington Hospital and its building committee during a major expansion, and he served on the board of Hospice Support Care. DuVal also served as president of the Chamber of Commerce. After joining the Ruritan Club in 1946, DuVal was the charter president of the Chancellor Ruritan Club in 1953 and attended until recently. For nearly 30 years DuVal and Anne delivered Meals on Wheels.