Rick was a former B-52 pilot and commercial pilot who was diagnosed in 2003. He died in 2005. He had a great laugh, a warrior spirit, and a gentle soul. Rick was proud to serve in the Air Force, a fulfillment of a life-long dream. But it was his role as Father to our two Daughters and a Husband to me that meant the most to him. He would have loved his four Grandsons! He fought against bulbar-onset ALS with everything he had until two months before his passing, when it just wasn't possible to fight any more. Even now, he has slipped the surly bonds of earth, and touched the face of God.