Towards the end of 2015, Lawley lost one of our partners to a courageous battle against cancer, but what we really lost was a friend who embodied everything the Lawley values stand for. On December 8th, 2015, Richard Jack “Rick” Vivacqua passed away from Soft Tissue Sarcoma, a rare cancer that Rick never let impede his lust for life.
Rick served as a partner in Lawley’s Amherst branch after the Vivacqua family business he took over joined Lawley in 2003, but Rick served as a steady pillar for not only the associates he led at Lawley but also for the long-standing relationships he made with his clients across his 35-year career in insurance.
Rick was one of the most loyal and caring individuals many of us had the fortune of knowing. His generosity and moral upbringing were traits he demonstrated both personally but also with the various charities and organizations he interacted with at Lawley. He taught all of us about love and kindness, but most of all about strength, faith, and integrity.
Rick’s legacy will live on through the foundation his family created, the Richard J. Vivacqua Endowment for Sarcoma Research at Roswell Park, supporting others battling this disease.
All of us were positively impacted by Rick through the years we were fortunate to know him.
Thanks for living the Lawley values daily Rick, we miss you.