Richard Lange, Owner of Lange’s Little Store, Dies at 87
Richard Lange, the longtime owner of the beloved Lange’s Little Store & Delicatessen in Chappaqua, died last Tuesday at White Plains Hospital. He was 87.
Born in Wanna, Germany on Dec. 22,1936, he grew up on his grandparents’ farm and immigrated to the United States in 1956. He married his wife, Christa, on Apr. 19, 1961.
In 1968, Richard, Christa and their daughters, Vicki (Bergstrom) and Heidi settled in Chappaqua where he owned The Little Store, now known as Lange’s Little Store & Deli. Richard and Christa opened Lange’s Deli in Scarsdale in the mid-1970s, and in Bronxville in the 1980s. They returned to their original store in Chappaqua in 1989, where it became a local institution.
Everyone knew Richard in his home community, and whether he was called Rich, Richie or Mr. Lange, he would support a cause, lend a hand or provide a meal without asking any questions and expecting no accolades. His motto was “You need something, I’ll help.”
New Castle Supervisor Victoria Tipp said last week that Lange was a pillar of the community and that his store “was more than a deli.”
“It was a place where people gathered together to see their neighbors and to catch up,” Tipp said. “He was an incredibly welcoming personality and he made his store a really special place. He was kind, caring, so generous, and I know that people have so many stories they could tell about him.”
Lange is survived by his wife, Christa; daughters Vicki Bergstrom and Heidi Lange; granddaughter Madelyn Bergstrom and her fiancée, David Anderson III; the wonderful staff of Lange’s Little Store & Deli; and many, many friends. He was predeceased by his adored son-in-law, Charlie Bergstrom.
He’ll be remembered as a friend to all and a lover of life.
The family extends their heartfelt gratitude to the doctors, nurses and staff at the White Plains Hospital Center for Cancer Care and White Plains Hospital who treated Richard.
In lieu of flowers, donations in his name may be made to the White Plains Hospital Foundation – designation cancer at https://www.wphospital.org/foundation/donate-now or the Horace Greeley Scholarship Fund at www.hgsf.org.
Arrangements were handled by Beecher Flooks Funeral Home in Pleasantville.
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