Richard E. Hetey, 79, previously of Syracuse, New York, recently relocated to Leesburg, VA and passed away on April 7, 2023 following his battle with Parkinson's.  Survived by his loving wife of 54 years Nancy (Tollar) Hetey, children Michael (Victoria) Hetey of Las Vegas, NV, daughter Julianne (Julio) Dominguez of Cincinnati OH, and Sara (David) LaLonde of Leesburg VA; grandsons: Alexander and Christopher Hetey, Nolan and Cole Dominguez, and Wade LaLonde.  Rich is also survived by brothers Steve (Sue Lynne) Hetey, Paul (Diana) Hetey, brother in law Thomas (Diane) Tollar of Buffalo, NY and brother in law Paul (Joan) Tollar of Syracuse, NY and many nieces and nephews. He is predeceased by his parents, Stephen and Frances Hetey and sister Patricia (late John) Kovach of Lackawanna, NY.

Born in Lackawanna NY, Rich attended Baker Victory High School where he became an avid bowler and according to his yearbook, he was planning on a pro bowling career.  He abandoned that for college and graduated from the University of Buffalo School of Pharmacy, and then served in the Army as a Pharmacist at West Point before settling in Syracuse, NY.  After moving to Syracuse, he briefly worked at the Veteran's Administration hospital pharmacy where he met a mentor, who once told him that if your problem can be solved by money it is not a real problem – words to live by that he passed on to his kids.  Rich helped run the pharmacy at Fay's Drugs first store in Fairmount, NY in 1970.  The Fay's drug chain expanded exponentially in New York over the next several decades where he formed lifelong friendships with his co-workers, many of whom we consider family.

Rich enjoyed bowling, golfing, hunting, camping, road trips, music (especially live), his 4 ^th of July Fireworks, a glass of wine (and sometimes two) … and of course laughter.  He always took time to take the kids to concerts creating lifelong music memories including The Who, Springsteen, U2, Pink Floyd, Genesis, and the Moody Blues among many others.  Most of this predated online ticketing involving literal "stand in line" ticketing, and he somehow conned Nancy into waiting in the long lines for hours with an envelope of cash to buy the tickets.  Rich was an avid music lover, and one of his favorites was Harry Chapin and his song "Circle".  However, his love for music spanned many genres from classical to jazz to rock.  Much to Nancy's dismay, he was never afraid to play it loud on his big living room speakers, or occasionally, quietly sneaking into the kids' bedrooms before they awoke to play Van Halen's "Jump" at full blast to wake them up for school.

As for hunting, while he loved deer season, both gun and bow, many deer believe he may have hit more of them with his vehicles than anything else, but he sure enjoyed the time with his friends.  He and the family enjoyed many trips to the Adirondacks, including summer vacations renting cabins on the water, where they had fun boating with friends and family, fishing, canoeing, and of course the many hikes up Bald Mountain.  Many a laugh was had as Rich valiantly tried, unsuccessfully, to learn to water and snow ski.

Rich and Nancy took the kids on many long-distance road trips to see the majority of the National Parks in the US.  Keep in mind, this was before kids were placated by their devices while driving.  To distract the sometimes poorly behaved children in the back of the vehicle (which eventually grew to a van to separate the unruly kids), Rich created the game "bug bingo" by drawing a small 4 square grid on the windshield, and let the kids and Nancy bet on whose square would get the most bugs to land – a real crowd favorite, especially when a larger bug would splatter.

While there were many parties over the years, 4 ^th of July was a true celebration at Rich and Nancy's house, with a big party and commercial grade street-side fireworks orchestrated by Rich.  He made his yearly run to the border of Pennsylvania to mule back the "real" fireworks, risking his freedom, to provide the best fireworks show in the neighborhood!

As a true upstate New Yorker, he was a dedicated fan of the Syracuse Orange Men's basketball being a long-time season ticket holder and of course, was a fan of the Buffalo Bills as well.  He taught his kids to never leave a game before it was over, allowing them to see some fantastic comeback victories and buzzer beater finishes!  While he was able to see the Orangemen win their NCAA college basketball championship, he was still waiting for that elusive Bill's Super Bowl win!

Rich was always ready to share a glass of wine, conversation, and laughter with friends and family.  Anyone who ever had the privilege of spending time with him would quickly realize his wit and dry sarcastic humor was infectious.  He was gifted with the ability to make everyone laugh wherever he went. When he was first blessed with grandchildren, he toiled over what they would call him.  He decided they would have to call him "Grandfather" versus Grandpa or other shorter names.  Rich surmised this would prevent them from asking him by name to change their diapers, as they would not be able to pronounce it properly until well after they were potty trained.

When considering future end-of-life planning in Syracuse, NY many years ago, the funeral home in the community where Rich and Nancy lived was previously a very nice restaurant named Walter Whites, which also housed a historic bar area.  Rich was against having a funeral, but reluctantly agreed if they would allow him to have his funeral in what was the festive bar area so everyone could celebrate and have fun.  Given the passage of time, the funeral home changed ownership to a bank … and when we called the bank to book the bar room for a celebration of life, we were flatly rejected. Therefore, a celebration of life is anticipated at a later date and location TBD.

Parkinsons affects people differently and for Rich it took some time to be diagnosed.  His version of this terrible and incurable disease was the type that very gradually slowed down all of his processes over time, externally and internally.  Eventually it slowed his mind as well, requiring memory care in late 2022, but through it all he kept his sense of humor as best he was able, never complaining.  Rich fought Parkinsons valiantly while we hoped for a cure.  We firmly believe he was able to hold the disease off for as long as he did because of the help of the non-profit "Empower Parkinson Inc.". He attended programs including boxing, pole walking, and others.  Of course, the rigid coaching of Nancy helped tremendously.  She did her best to ensure he never missed a lesson, even when it was by online video during COVID.  We are forever grateful for the friendships and laughter Empower Parkinson Inc. provided along the journey. Rather than flowers in his memory, Rich would like to pay it forward and asks that memorial contributions be made to "Empower Parkinson Inc." so others can try to delay their Parkinson progression, while they too wait for a cure. Donations can be made on their website: empowerparkinson.org or mailed to Empower Parkinson Inc., P.O. Box 353, Tully, NY 13159.