Hello.

My name is Shyanna, I am the OA for UniFirst 099-South Bend.

We learned the hard news that our team partner is suffering from an illness and his last day was Friday 5/17/2024.

Let me tell you about Rick Burkus. Rick is currently serving our country in the reserves out of Ft. Wayne, IN. He is a husband and a father of an awesome little boy! Rick has been with UniFirst 099 when it was still called Ziker. Since 2017, he has run our VV route. In 2022 he was 099's Employee of the Year! Rick is all the things we all want in a route driver; warm personality, fun, respectful, loyal, passionate, driven, understanding, caring, and overall, a true team player. He is always there to lend a hand, ear or time. He has a way to connect to anyone he speaks to. He is the main breadwinner of the home and with an 8-year-old child.

To respect the privacy of Rick and his family we will not be sharing additional information regarding Rick's illness. We would like to ask all of our UniFirst family to assist us in making sure the Burkus' family have a small safety net for whatever they need at this difficult time.

Even our bravest heroes need a little help sometimes....