Richard Bloch
Encyclopedia
Richard Adolf Bloch was an American entrepreneur, and philanthropist best known for starting the H&R Block
tax preparation and personal finance company with his older brother Henry
in 1955. His personal battle with cancer led him to invest in helping others fight and overcome the disease.
high schools. He sold his business to an Iowa
college to use as a print course teaching model.
When he was 16, he entered the Wharton School of Finance
(part of the University of Pennsylvania
). In college Bloch was a member of Zeta Beta Tau
, the campus' Jewish fraternity. The youngest member of his class, he received a Bachelor of Science degree in economics in 1945. He helped pay his college expenses by purchasing used cars, repairing them and selling them for a profit.
business. Around the same time, his brothers Henry and Leon launched the United Business Co. bookkeeping business. His brothers asked him to come aboard as an accountant.
Bloch left the business for about a year in 1953 to become a retail jewelry efficiency expert. While stranded on a San Francisco business trip, he realized his family in Kansas City was a top priority and returned. Soon after, Leon left the bookkeeping business to pursue a career as an attorney.
In 1955, Henry and Richard Bloch renamed the business H&R Block, changing the spelling to avoid mispronunciation, and focused on tax preparation services. While Henry managed the company in Kansas City, Richard concentrated on nationwide expansion. By 1969, he shifted his efforts overseas while Henry took charge of the company's domestic business.
in Houston, Texas. After two years of aggressive therapy, he was in remission. By 1980, he was focusing his energies on funding cancer research, and in 1982 he sold his interest in H&R Block.
. Ronald Reagan
appointed him to a six-year term with the National Cancer Advisory Board in 1982. He was a member of the President's Circle of the National Academy of Sciences
, the Institute of Medicine
, and the National Institutes of Health
Office of Alternative Medicine
. He also received the 1994 American Society of Clinical Oncology
's Public Service Award and the 1995 Layman's Award from the Society of Surgical Oncology.
H&R Block
H&R Block is a tax preparation company in the United States, claiming more than 22 million customers worldwide, with offices in Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom. The Kansas City-based company also offers banking, personal finance and business consulting services.Founded in 1955 by brothers...
tax preparation and personal finance company with his older brother Henry
Henry W. Bloch
Henry Wollman Bloch is the co-founder and the chairman emeritus of H&R Block.Henry and his brother, Richard Bloch, founded H&R Block in 1955 in Kansas City, Missouri.-Personal life:Bloch was born in Kansas City...
in 1955. His personal battle with cancer led him to invest in helping others fight and overcome the disease.
Early life
In the 4th grade, Bloch found a hand press in his uncle's attic and began his first business as a printer. By the time he was 12, he had three automatic presses and was providing printing services to several Kansas CityKansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
high schools. He sold his business to an Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
college to use as a print course teaching model.
When he was 16, he entered the Wharton School of Finance
Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania
The Wharton School is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, an Ivy League university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Wharton was the world’s first collegiate business school and the first business school in the United States...
(part of the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
). In college Bloch was a member of Zeta Beta Tau
Zeta Beta Tau
Zeta Beta Tau was founded in 1898 as the nation's first Jewish fraternity, although it is no longer sectarian. Today the merged Zeta Beta Tau Brotherhood is one of the largest, numbering over 140,000 initiated Brothers, and over 90 chapter locations.-Founding:The Zeta Beta Tau fraternity was...
, the campus' Jewish fraternity. The youngest member of his class, he received a Bachelor of Science degree in economics in 1945. He helped pay his college expenses by purchasing used cars, repairing them and selling them for a profit.
Founding H. & R. Block
Bloch returned to Kansas City after graduating, married his wife, Annette, and began working in the municipal bondMunicipal bond
A municipal bond is a bond issued by a city or other local government, or their agencies. Potential issuers of municipal bonds includes cities, counties, redevelopment agencies, special-purpose districts, school districts, public utility districts, publicly owned airports and seaports, and any...
business. Around the same time, his brothers Henry and Leon launched the United Business Co. bookkeeping business. His brothers asked him to come aboard as an accountant.
Bloch left the business for about a year in 1953 to become a retail jewelry efficiency expert. While stranded on a San Francisco business trip, he realized his family in Kansas City was a top priority and returned. Soon after, Leon left the bookkeeping business to pursue a career as an attorney.
In 1955, Henry and Richard Bloch renamed the business H&R Block, changing the spelling to avoid mispronunciation, and focused on tax preparation services. While Henry managed the company in Kansas City, Richard concentrated on nationwide expansion. By 1969, he shifted his efforts overseas while Henry took charge of the company's domestic business.
Lung cancer
Bloch was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer in 1978, and told he had three months to live. He refused to accept the prognosis, and sought treatment at the M.D. Anderson CenterThe University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center is one of the nation's original three comprehensive cancer centers established by the National Cancer Act of 1971. It is both a degree-granting academic institution and a cancer treatment and research center located at the Texas Medical Center in...
in Houston, Texas. After two years of aggressive therapy, he was in remission. By 1980, he was focusing his energies on funding cancer research, and in 1982 he sold his interest in H&R Block.
Post cancer
Richard and Annette Bloch founded the Cancer Hotline in 1980 to educate newly diagnosed cancer patients, and their friends and families about available treatment resources. Later, they founded the R. A. Bloch Cancer Management Center and the R. A. Bloch Cancer Support Center at the University of Missouri–Kansas CityUniversity of Missouri–Kansas City
The University of Missouri–Kansas City is a public university located in Kansas City, Missouri, USA. It is a branch of the University of Missouri System. Its main campus is in Kansas City's Rockhill neighborhood east of the Country Club Plaza...
. Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
appointed him to a six-year term with the National Cancer Advisory Board in 1982. He was a member of the President's Circle of the National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
, the Institute of Medicine
Institute of Medicine
The Institute of Medicine is a not-for-profit, non-governmental American organization founded in 1970, under the congressional charter of the National Academy of Sciences...
, and the National Institutes of Health
National Institutes of Health
The National Institutes of Health are an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and are the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and health-related research. Its science and engineering counterpart is the National Science Foundation...
Office of Alternative Medicine
U.S. National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine
The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine , formerly the Office of Alternative Medicine , is a United States government agency dedicated to exploring complementary and alternative medicine healing practices in the context of rigorous science, in training complementary and...
. He also received the 1994 American Society of Clinical Oncology
American Society of Clinical Oncology
The American Society of Clinical Oncology is the world's leading professional organization representing physicians of all oncology subspecialties who care for people with cancer. Founded in 1964 by Drs...
's Public Service Award and the 1995 Layman's Award from the Society of Surgical Oncology.
Death
Bloch died of heart failure on July 21, 2004 at the age of 78. He was survived by his wife, Annette, daughters Linda Lyon, Barbara Stanny and Nancy Linsely and ten grandchildren.Quote
"There is no such thing as false hope for a cancer patient. Hope is as unique with each individual as a fingerprintFingerprintA fingerprint in its narrow sense is an impression left by the friction ridges of a human finger. In a wider use of the term, fingerprints are the traces of an impression from the friction ridges of any part of a human hand. A print from the foot can also leave an impression of friction ridges...
. For some it is the hope to make a complete recovery. But it might also be the hope to die peacefully; the hope to live until a specific event happens; the hope to live with disease; the hope to have their doctor with them when needed; the hope to enjoy today."
Books co-written with his wife
- Cancer… There's Hope (1981) ISBN 039912814X
- Guide for Cancer Supporters: Step-by-step Ways to Help a Relative or Friend Fight Cancer (1992) ISBN 990151925X
- Fighting Cancer A Step-by-Step Guide to Helping Yourself Fight Cancer (1998) ISBN 1199121657