Patient Stories

Dr. Marks told Richardson that he had an aggressive form of lymphoma, but that the good news was the cancer was isolated and was only located in his chest. If not for the heart attack and surgery, the cancer would not have been found.

Richardson started chemotherapy while continuing with cardiac rehabilitation therapy. On the first day after chemotherapy, Richardson also started a new job.

“I had a conversation with God on the night before my heart surgery that if He brought me through this, then whatever he decided for my life, I would do it.” said Richardson.

A week later, he was offered the position of executive director of Pittsburgh Community Services, Inc. and the way he saw it, “God didn’t get me through heart surgery to take me out with cancer.”

Richardson said he knew he would survive. His cancer is in remission and he is looking forward to his two-year survival mark, in six short months. The experience has forever changed Richardson’s outlook on many things including cancer.

“The time I spent at UPMC Hillman Cancer Center opened my eyes to the extent and sheer magnitude of the people who are affected by cancer,” said Richardson. “It crosses ethnic and economic boundaries and meeting so many who have had it and beat it is overwhelming to me. And knowing that I was being cared for in the best possible place in Pittsburgh with the best doctor was also overwhelming to me.”

Richardson also views his position with Pittsburgh Community Services not as a job, but as his life’s mission. He believes he was awarded the position and it helped to determine his purpose. He has taken his experiences in learning healthier ways of living and cooking and incorporated them into some of the services he offers through the non-profit agency.

“We are providing canned goods to many of our customers,” said Richardson. “And while that’s good, I’ve now taken that further and provided ways to fix it and mix it into healthier food options.”

Richardson is also starting a pilot project with a group of seniors in Oak Hill where they will grow their own vegetables for healthier food options. His hope is to grow that into a sustainable program for others helped by PCSI.

Richardson’s interest in food was also spurred by the owner of one of his favorite restaurants. On that first day of chemo, Ling Robinson, owner of Thai Bistro in Bakery Square in Pittsburgh made a deal with Richardson. She told him that he would become healthier with organic foods and vegetables and that she personally would cook him dinner every night, a promise she has kept.

So, it should come as no surprise that this humble giant of a man believes his heart attack was a true blessing.

“It was a trifecta,” said Richardson. “If I hadn’t had the heart attack then I never would have known about the cancer and I never would have had the best Pittsburgh oncologist, Dr. Marks!”