Richard L. Childress Sr., 63, died July 20, 1996, in an automobile accident in Seward.

A memorial service is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday at Anchorage Funeral Home with the Rev. Guy Moore officiating. Visitation will take place prior to the service beginning at noon.

Mr. Childress was born Oct. 27, 1932, in North Carolina. He became an Anchorage resident in 1973.

Mr. Childress went into service with the U.S. Air Force in 1954 and retired in 1974. He was employed by Jackson Janitorial from 1974 to 1976. From 1976 to 1996 he was with the civil service and retired on March 31, 1996.

Mr. Childress worked the amnesty box on the Glenn Highway for the Army. Anyone with old ammunition or explosives could drop them off there to be destroyed with no questions asked. His hobbies included fishing, camping, gun collecting, and photography.

His son said, ''He was a loving, caring and giving husband and father. He was a very gentle and strong man, slow to anger and quick to understand. My father had a very good sense of humor and was often asked to write a humorous or special poem for someone who was either retiring or moving away.''

Mr. Childress is survived by his wife, Marjorie Theresa of Anchorage; children, Carolyn Marie Murray of Ashboro, N.C., Richard L. Jr. and Michael D. of Anchorage; his mother, Alma Mahaffey of Greensboro, N.C.; sisters, Gail Rodgers of Ridgeway, Va., and Lucille Bryant of Greensboro, N.C.; and grandchildren, Justin, Jennifer and Jason Murray, and Brittany, Courtnee and Dawn.

Arrangements were by Anchorage Funeral Home.