Our hearts are also incredibly saddened by Ricks passing. Rick was one of a kind, the most talented, fun, kindhearted, loving, and wonderful friend anyone could ever have. I worked with Rick at GM, and he was the most incredibly talented person I had ever met. Paul Ulrich, Ken Tregenza and I were trying to get GM to let us start the GM Mobility Center at the tech center, our mission and focus would be to improve the GM fleet for seniors and people with disabilities. The executives asked me how would you get things designed or built, who would help you come up with these new ideas, etc.? We met with one the UAW managers in the machine shop at research, and he stated he had someone in mind, thought he would be perfect. Man was Rick perfect; we would have had many great ideas that never went anywhere if not for Rick. Rick stated he had never done anything like that before but was willing to try and I will testify I don't think there was anything Rick couldn't do; he could do anything.
We invented several different solutions to help seniors and people with disabilities that were trying to live life to the fullest and Rick was there to help make that happen. One idea was our unoccupied wheelchair/scooter securement device, our first patent together. The device mounted into the existing floor lugs of a GM minivan and could also be mounted in a full-size SUV or other similar vehicle. It was awesome and so was our show car that had the securement device, power sit-n-lift seat base (350 lb capacity, offered as a dealer installed option) and so many other things that Rick would literally draw on the back of his napkin, at lunch, in the research cafeteria, with me almost every day and often would ask me if he could drop the machined part at my desk before he went home, and he often did.
One day Rick took my small dry erase board down at my office and drew a picture of me racing through the research garage in my wheelchair, with a felt tip marker, I still have it today, it was just a doodle for Rick, it was a masterpiece on a small dry erase board to me. I left GM in 2004 after GM decided to close our Mobility Center but Rick and I remained close, he was like a big brother, with great story's, great jokes and an incredible love of life, family, friends and GM. It was one of the honors of my life to get to know, work with, fish with and love Rick, he loved my wife Pam and our family, and everybody loved Rick. I could go on, and on, job well done my friend, I know I will see you again in paradise and until then, rest in peace, God Bless you and your family, love, Gary and Pam Talbot
