Richard Ong

The Courage to Rebuild a Life

In August of 2017 at the age of 44, Richard suffered a devastating stroke. During his recovery, he
battled formidable odds with determination and courage. Many of his medical providers predicted his
progress would be minimal. They were surprised. They would also be shocked when he departed a
demoralizing nursing home to live in the community. Richard now lives in his own home. But his life
goals are far from complete. He is a worker and he wants to return to the working world.
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The above video shows Richard’s successful trial of a robotic arm which will allow him to perform the
work that he is most qualified to do. This medical device is very expensive, but for Richard, it is the key
to his greatest hope and most important goal: to restore his life to its greatest possible function.
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Read more of Richard’s truly remarkable life:

Richard came to America with his family from post-war Vietnam. During the war, his father worked for the US CIA. His father hoped that if the family escaped from Vietnam and found their way to Thailand, that they would be granted refugee status to the United States. Their exodus from Vietnam, through Cambodia and into Thailand was harrowing and dangerous. Richard earned the nickname of “Fearless” from his father for his courage at a very young age.

The family waited in a refugee camp in Thailand until they were granted refugee status to the United States. They later settled in the Greater Boston area. Richard went to school and college there and he became an American citizen.

Richard was always very ambitious. By his thirties, he was working several jobs while starting a successful business. He also continued his college education and was working towards a degree in business. But, he was becoming increasingly restless. His hard work and accomplishments were no longer good enough. His life was moving fast and out of control.

In 2010 at the age of 37, Richard was convicted of transporting illegal drugs. His family and friends were shocked. He was silent at first, but later admitted “I was greedy”. In prison, he practiced meditation to bring peace and understanding to his life; a life now missing its former hopes and dreams.

In Richard’s words:

-If you are a young person tempted by easy money, there is no such thing. If you think you
-can manage the risk of getting caught, you are wrong. You will lose your home, your family,
-and everything you have worked for. In this country, you will be able to rebuild your life,
-but you can never recover your youth. You will lose that forever.

In prison, Richard meditated daily and taught classes in meditation to fellow inmates. He learned that “Letting go through meditation” did not come naturally to convicts. But those who stayed with it found peace from the stressors of prison life.

A prison administrator asked Richard to manage a group of inmates to keep the common areas of the prison clean. Soon, the common areas were pristine and antiseptic. The new environment was a resounding success.

When an item of cleaning equipment went missing, Richard would track it down. Once a missing item was traced to a MS13 member, a small man with a face full of tattoos and a menacing grin. He greeted Richard with a stream of blood-curdling curses. Richard responded, “I’ve seen worse than that in Asia”. Retrieving the missing item was not a problem after that.

As Richard’s parole date approached, the prison administrator who oversaw his work crew said, “Richard, I will miss you”.

In August, 2017, at the age of 44, Richard was paroled to a half-way house in Greater Boston. He was preparing to start a job search. One morning, he felt his left arm and leg losing sensation and strength. Then he lost consciousness. He was transported by ambulance to a Boston hospital. His life would never be the same.

Richard’s family medical history includes several family members with blood clots and embolisms which often migrated to the brain, resulting in strokes. Richard’s stroke was devastating. He underwent neurosurgery to decrease pressure on the brain. A portion of his skull was removed and would later be replaced. Following his surgery, he was comatose for 30 days.
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In Richard’s words:
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– I was completely in darkness, nothing existed in this world. Then I heard a very calm and
-compassionate voice calling my name. Something was telling me, ‘This must be God’. I tried to turn
-my head to see who was calling me. I wanted to see his face. But I never did see his face. I felt him
-reaching for my hands, and with his help, I sat up.

Richard eventually went to a Rehabilation Center in the Boston Area. His stroke symptoms were profound. In his therapists’ prior experience, they had never seen stroke symptoms so resistant to treatment. But, Richard was young and highly motivated. It was a daunting task but Richard and his team did not give up. Richard worked tirelessly and gradually, he was able to move again. Richard’s work ethic was extraordinary. His Physical Therapists became his supporters and friends. They were the first non-Asians to join his close group of supporters. Others would follow.

In the Rehab Center, Richard often worked out in the hallways. Nurses stopped by to kid with him and to urge him on with his workout. The facility was not fancy, but it was home to Richard. He was safe and he got along well with patients and staff. He was working very hard and making real progress with his walking. But as a sign of the economic times, the facility was slated to close. When Richard learned the news, he cried.

Richard then moved to a nursing home in a nearby community. The facility was dark and institutional. Within weeks of his arrival, he learned that his therapy services were terminating. “The reason why? “You’ve reached your baseline.” “What does that mean? “You won’t get better either way.” Richard was shocked, but in due time, he realized that the facility was protecting its profit margin. Their decision had nothing to do with him.

Richard’s former Physical Therapist visited him weekly to work with him on his treatment plan and to set new goals as he progressed. He learned to walk independently with a cane. He walked up and down a full flight of stairs. He made very impressive progress with only a few hours of therapy each week and many more hours of working on his own.

It is Richard’s nature to empathise with others. In the nursing home, he saw vulnerable patients in need of medical care going unattended for long periods despite calling for help. Richard often intervened with staff in these cases, but when all else failed, he called 911. All of his calls to 911 resulted in patient admissions to the hospital.

Then Richard had a close call himself. A patient formerly housed in the high security ward of the nursing home was moved to Richard’s room. Richard was sleeping in bed when he awoke to find the roommate holding a fire extinguisher over his head. “What are you doing” he asked. The roommate replied “I’m going to hit you”. Staff arrived very quickly this time. Richard told the charge nurse, “I want him out of my room”. She responded “But he is a nice guy. And I don’t think he is strong enough to lift a fire extinguisher” Richard responded, “Why don’t you take him and the fire extinguisher into your nurses’ station and see what happens?”

Despite the poor conditions in the nursing home, Richard was doing very well due to his own initiative. But personal problems were around the corner. Many of Richard’s family and friends were dedicated to him. But a few relatives drained his remaining assets. Two relatives depleted his 401K and one approached his elderly mother asking for all of her jewelry under the pretext that it would be used to help Richard. Another relative agreed to hold his last remaining savings then refused to return the money. To Richard, these were shocking betrayals.

But also, Richard would face the greatest heartbreak of his life. He lost all contact with his children. He’d had excellent relationships with his children. Now he learned that his phone number was blocked on all phones in their home. The children were told that their father’s stroke was the result of cocaine abuse. Richard has never used drugs. Richard said “I was angry but I couldn’t stay angry because I was sad for my kids” He meditated to find strength. “I hope that one day, my kids will learn the truth about their dad.” Given that Richard’s stroke is a genetic condition, he is worried for his children. “I want my kid’s to get medical attention for this condition so they don’t have to go through what I did. I will always love them.”

Richard’s personal losses changed his perspective. “I need to get out of here.”. He was ready to leave the nursing home to live in the community. He’d heard of a program in Massachusetts that helps nursing home patients to move into their their own apartments with assistance tailored to their needs. Nursing home staff told him “You will never be accepted to that program because you are an ex-convict. Richard pressed on. He interviewed with a nurse from the program. One of his therapists was a reference. He was considered a good candidate and was accepted to the program.

On the day that Richard moved from the nursing home to his new apartment, his phone rang. It was a friend. “Richard, where are you?” “I’m in my home.” “Do you like it?” “I love it!.”