Richard was a veteran of the U.S. Air Force and the Air Force Band (Airmen of Note). After serving, he continued playing the drums in various big bands throughout the Texas, Oklahoma and Arizona region. He was often a drummer on cruises. When not drumming professionally, he taught in the Dallas area for years.
The inspiration for Rich's quilt square is that he wore a tux whenever drumming professionally, so the basic part of the quilt is to resemble a tux shirt with pearl studs and of course, the black tie.
The picture is to show him doing what he loved best, and is a print of a photo that he autographed to his brother and family.
The drum kit features the U.S. Air Force logo on the base drum, and above it is the Airmen of Note for his time with the USAF Band.
Ultimately, his entire reason for wishing to donate was due to the fact that his cousin's son (my brother) had died while waiting for a lung in 1993. And he wanted to do something to honor him, and to leave a part of himself behind. His desire was granted, and upon his death in 2005, Rich's gorgeous blue eyes were donated so that vision could be given to those in need.
My desire to create this square, being the second cousin, is so that people would remember Rich for his donation and my brother, David, as the reason behind it. In this way, I was also able to assist my great-aunt in her grieving to know that others would remember her eldest son forever.