Help us install a wheelchair ramp for Rich White

Rich White needs our help! Sadly, just two short months after his retirement in 2018 as a Sergeant on the the Massachusetts State Police, Rich was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease at the young age of 58. Rich's condition has progressed, and he now needs a wheelchair ramp installed at his residence, which for complex reasons, is not covered by his health insurance. Rich can walk on level surfaces, but because of the damage Alzheimer’s has done to his vision, he is unable to walk up and down stairs and spends a lot of time in a wheelchair. He has an intense fear of the stairs in his own home and needs to be carried or held up to get in and out of the house. This is not easy, and as a result, Rich is confined to the inside of his home most of the time and is unable to enjoy getting out of the house on a regular basis, even for important things such as doctor appointments.

The Massachusetts State Police Commissioned Officers Association (MSP COA) is organizing this fundraiser, and we have located 2 vendors to perform the work on Rich’s home, but we need some additional help to raise the money necessary to complete the project. We intend to use the funds raised to install a wheelchair ramp and new doorway to Rich's Braintree home. Any additional money raised from this fundraiser will go directly to Rich and his family to use for his care.

About Rich:

Rich proudly served as a police officer in Massachusetts for over 35 years, first with the Milton Police Department and then with the Metropolitan Police (Class #42), which merged with Massachusetts State Police in 1992. Some of his assignments on the MSP were to the Milton and Millbury barracks, and to the Marine Section as a boat captain. Rich was also a member of the Department’s Honor Guard.

For most of his career, Rich was also an EMT and highly accomplished member of the State Police Underwater Recovery Team (Dive Team), where he participated in many challenging rescues and recoveries, including a tragic mission to assist in the recovery of John F. Kennedy Jr. Notably, Rich was also instrumental in the recovery of Jeffrey Curley from the Piscataqua River in Maine. Jeffrey was a 10-year-old boy who had been abducted from his Cambridge neighborhood and horrifically murdered. Rich loved to scuba dive and was a well-liked instructor on the MSP Dive Team, becoming a mentor to many of his fellow troopers. Rich often spoke of his retirement dream of opening a dive shop in a warmer climate.

Alzheimer’s disease has stripped Rich of so much, but through the care of a devoted family, Rich has been able to return to live at home and has been lovingly supported through his illness by his adoring wife, Heidi.

In Heidi’s words: “Rich is in late stages of his Early Onset Alzheimer's, not to be confused with end stages. Rich needs basic care that we all take for granted, like help bathing, changing, teeth brushing and getting up out of bed. But he can walk and feed himself. Although he understands a lot- Rich just can't always find the correct response. I know he knows me and recognizes my face. He never has to be reminded who his Mom is, which totally warms my heart. Every day, Rich surprises me. He is so happy to be home. He laughs a lot! He does cry some too. Considering the circumstances, he is living a happy life. Because I can’t easily get him outside, he spends time on our small deck to be outside. I’m certain if we get a wheelchair ramp installed, I will be able to once again bring Rich outside our home more often, especially to the beach, one of his favorite places.”

Rich’s wife Heidi has been struggling on her own, as she has recently been diagnosed with breast cancer. She has just completed 12 weeks of chemotherapy and will be starting weeks of radiation treatments soon. The stress and difficulty of her own treatments have only added to the stress and difficulty of trying to get Rich out of the house without a wheelchair ramp.

Please help Rich by helping us raise the money necessary to install a ramp and new doorway on his home, so that some of his freedom to go outside his own home can be returned.