RICK GOLDSBERRY

1956 - 2016

I believe in you; you can do it. Words of encouragement paramedic students regularly heard from Rick Goldsberry of Brawley, who entered eternal life on Thursday, December 1, 2016, after a brief and unexpected illness. He is reunited with his father Eugene, his stepfather Richard Perry, and niece Kateland. Ricks spirit is carried on by his mother Martha, his four sisters Tish (James) Smith, Jackie Johns, Tony Witcomb, and Jamie (Mike) Realmuto. Saul Rodriguez who he loved like a son, four grandchildren, along with many loved nieces, nephews, numerous lifelong friends, and his beloved four-legged companion- Lexi. Rick began touching lives in the Imperial Valley in 1979 as a full-time paramedic with Gold Cross Ambulance, after completing his paramedic training at the University of California Medical Center in San Diego. He was committed to education and encouraged those around him to pursue further training. Rick believed so intently, he put his own needs aside to pay for others education. Rick went on to attend the nursing program at Imperial Valley College and graduated from the University of Phoenix with a Bachelors degree in Nursing. He worked as a registered nurse in both Emergency Departments of El Centro Regional Medical Center and Pioneers Memorial Hospital. He later stepped into the Director of Education for Pioneers Memorial Hospital, developing training programs for all levels of healthcare providers in Imperial County as well as the general public. Rick remained committed to the emergency medical services program and assumed the role of the Program Director and Lead Instructor for the Imperial Valley Colleges Paramedic Program. Over the last thirty-seven years, Rick has remained ever so committed to providing emergency medicine in the Imperial Valley. During this time he was recognized by the following: 1991 ALS Provider of the Year, 2001 Imperial Valley Man of the Year, 2008 PMH Employee of the Year, In January 2010 Rick was recognized as the Imperial County Medical Reserve Corps Volunteer of the Year following his efforts during the 2009 H1N1 Mass Vaccination Campaign, 2016 Medal of Merit and related Resolution Posthumously Honoring him for his outstanding commitment to the communities of Imperial County. His passion for medicine and his lifelong gift of teaching others saved countless lives in Imperial Valley and around the world. While volunteering for International Relief Teams, a nonprofit humanitarian organization, Rick has had multiple foreign deployments and taught advanced medical training classes in Lithuania and Latvia and has provided medical care in austere conditions following devastating earthquakes in Kobe, Japan and Port au Prince, Haiti. There is no way to measure the number of lives he had a hand in saving and the number of people he touched in his time on this earth. He truly loved teaching and his students meant the world to him, in fact to many he was their rock and confidant. Education was not just textbook for him, the value in giving one compassion and respect was paramount. Rick had a true conviction in teaching CPR to people of all ages. He was a natural educator and seized every opportunity to teach a student or another nurse a technique that would help them in the future, even in his last days, he took a moment to show an ICU nurse a unique method for a medication drip, a lesson that will stay with her always. He was well known for sayings like: Thats the way the mop flops; It is always something; Dont be a quitter; Dont cry, Paramedics dont cry; Well, whats a heart rhythm?; I believe in you; You can do it; Oh really? You want the size 11 anal dilator then? His voice will echo those words in our hearts as we carry on the foundation of selflessness and compassion for others. He was an inspiration to all. A celebration of his life and legacy will be held on Saturday, December 10, 2017, at 12 PM at Imperial Valley College where Rick was the Paramedic Program Director. The family asks that you make a contribution in Ricks honor to the American Red Cross International Relief Fund, San Diego Chapter or Doctors without Borders. The family is grateful to the staff at Pioneer Memorial Hospital who provided him exceptional care during his time there. Rest in peace our beloved Rick until we meet again.