It Happened in Crawford County: A veteran who has saved lives and entertains people, too

Mary Fox
·4 min read
Richard Johnson, an Army veteran, recently went to Washington D.C. on the Honor Flight and was inducted into The Crawford County Veterans Hall of Fame in November.
Richard Johnson, an Army veteran, recently went to Washington D.C. on the Honor Flight and was inducted into The Crawford County Veterans Hall of Fame in November.

Richard “Rich” E. Johnson is a son of Robert and Betty Harris Johnson. Rich has two sisters — Marian and Becky Ray. Dad managed the Isaly's store in Bucyrus, and they lived on the second floor. Isaly's was known for its skyscraper ice cream cones. Rich attended Lincoln school until the family moved to the farm in Holmes Liberty School district. He was in 4-H; his projects were electrical, sheep and woodworking. Richard graduated with the first graduating class at Wynford in 1964.

Because of Richard’s interest in the sciences of mechanical and electrical equipment, the U. S. Army recruited him out of high school into the Army Security Agency for four years. After nine months of telecommunications training at Ft. Devens, Massachusetts, he spent about 18 months in Asmara Ethiopia and 18 months in California to complete his four years. He received a bachelor’s degree in electronics engineering at DeVry University. His first job was at North Electric as a supervisor for CAD/CAM digital electronics logic circuit designs for seven years until they closed.

Rich took a job at Autocall as an assembly supervisor, then manager of quality control and systems engineer for 14 years until they were bought out. About 1988 he took classes to be a nationally registered paramedic. He started working, mostly part time, with Byrd Ambulance as a paramedic and continued on with MedCorp. At the same time, he was also a volunteer firefighter and first responder, starting with Bucyrus Township. When he moved back to his farm, then it was with the Chatfield Fire Department and first responders.

During this time, Richard was also teaching classes on the side on basic life support, heart saver, first aid and CPR. He has been an instructor for 25 years with the American Heart Association as a BLS/HeartSaver instructor in first aid, CPR-AED classes. Rich spent 34 years as a nationally registered paramedic and recalls the time when the call came to help a guy who collapsed in the shower. When they arrived, he was laying on the floor in front of the bathroom door. Richard did a vital signs check and found no response. He performed CPR, started an IV and rushed the man to the hospital where he spent several days in the ICU but miraculously survived the ordeal.

Richard found a job as a CAD design engineer at PECO 11 for 1½ years and then on to Guardian Industries as a CAD engineer. He was then hired into Drypers Engineering Department as a CAD engineer, and then as project engineer, parts room supervisor, and now as project coordinator.

Richard returned to DeVry University while also working at the Keller Graduate School of Management to earn a master's degree in business with a concentration on project management. After four years of study, it was a great moment in 2012 to achieve his lifetime goal.

Richard loves cars and has a membership in the Eliminator’s Car Club with his 1973 original condition Corvette. He also did several road rallies by the seat of his pants, meaning he didn’t have any instrumentation such as stop watches. He also has a 1988 GMC pickup in original condition when he bought it. Both are eligible for car shows. Rich also has a membership in the Sports Car Club of America and loved going to the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington.

Richard became interested in Western square dancing in 1988. It has very structured movements with rounds and squares. As a licensed dance instructor for Roundalab, he could choreograph and cue dance step instructions. He traveled over the state of Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky and West Virginia for local, state and national conventions. Contact him at 419-562-1956 or dancecuerj@gmail.com.

Richard also volunteers for the Bucyrus Little Theatre and has been an actor in several plays. The first was “Annie” and then “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.” His son was in the same play. While performing in “The Great Gatsby” play, Rich had the joy of acting with his daughter.

Richard recently went to Washington D.C. on the Honor Flight and was also honored to be inducted into The Crawford County Veterans Hall of Fame in November. He’s also active at the Scioto United Methodist Church.

Richard’s son Matthew is a licensed massage therapist in Bucyrus; his daughter Melanie works for Rego. Richard appreciates a job well done and values helping others.

Go online for more of Mary Fox’s stories and photos on bucyrustelegraphforum.com. If you are interested in sharing a story, write Mary Fox, 931 Marion Road, Bucyrus, OH 44820 or email littlefoxfactory@columbus.rr.com.

This article originally appeared on Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum: A veteran, paramedic, engineer, dancer and more