Richard Carl Bjorklund

A little boy promised to take me to the moon. Instead, he left me the universe.

Remembrance

Richard Carl “Richie/Bojo” Bjorklund is beloved. He was born on September 1 when it was actually Labor Day and the big board on the Jerry Lewis Telethon was everybody’s countdown. He weighed in over 9 lbs. and it was said he could swim before he could walk. That was basically true. We took him to Water Babies classes and when it was finally time to give our baby a little push and let go, he went in over his head—eyes open—and eyes were still open as he popped up for air and paddled to his mother's outstretched arms. He was always a strong swimmer like his dad. He could hold his breath so long, a little boy in pampers had the lifeguards at the local pool on their feet.

When Richie was about four, he was so irresistibly cute that we thought he could have been in commercials. So we took him on a little adventure to Moto Photo. As we walked in, Richie looked around with his usual curiosity and asked if “Mr. Moto” was there to take his picture. After the shoot, we were hungry and stopped at a place called Grandma’s Kitchen. Richie asked the waitress if Grandma was coming out to eat with us. The black-and-white photo from that day — Richie in a sun hat, overall shorts, sandals, blond locks falling into wide eyes, drinking from a Ghostbusters juice box — became the standout. From that shoot, he was chosen as the lead for a children’s bathtub toy commercial, Two in a Tub — an elephant on one side, and with a flip, a little mouse on the other. We still hear the music, see the bubbles, sing the jingle. That image, that memory, with all its innocence is still a window into his buoyant soul, another testament to the immense joy he gave to us.

Richard was so young when he wanted his diver's license that his dad had to earn a license with him. Richie and his dad took a trip with the whole class to Scuba dive in Key Largo. Out in the open water, Richie found the same quiet belonging. On one dive, a great, curious grouper floated beside him — he said it was startling to suddenly face a creature the size of a Volkswagen bug, like a gentle baby elephant drifting in slow motion, the grouper came closer. Richie stilled, palms open, letting the creature set the rhythm. He was never conquering the sea — he was meeting it.

Richie attended the Bridgeport Regional Aquaculture Science and Technology Education Center, a high school program focused on marine studies. He loved the lab coats and being a junior scientist. He was chosen for a student exchange trip to Korea, where the focus was research — including early efforts to cultivate nori (seaweed). It was a formative experience that combined his love of the water with curiosity for science and the wider world.

Most of the childhood heroes he grew into he never grew out of. First Captain Planet, Ninja Turtles, Ghostbusters. Later Wolverine, Rambo, and Worf. More influential than all of these was his brother Christopher. Richard. Loved. Music. He was a prodigy drummer. The drums were his language, his heartbeat. His brother Chris saw Richie’s brilliance and helped him cultivate his talent, and they ran into a bit of fame. Playing alongside his brother Chris, Richie was a star everywhere — in rehearsals, in backyards, and eventually on stage under the lights. The Bjorklund brothers earned a record deal and toured, playing up and down the east coast from Toad’s Place in New Haven all the way to the Lincoln Theatre in Raleigh.

Like his father, Richie espoused to a foundation of strength tempered with kindness. But Richie had his own opinions. He had much to say about charlatans of the world and people who abused their power. He took issue with hypocrites--and even though he omitted himself at times-- he had a sense of moral justice that is rare. His sense of empathy for all creatures was evident in some of the smallest moments. Richie was famous for letting mosquitoes out of the house. Later he was known to take time to talk and listen to homeless people, and he was generous with his money.

Richie's urge to right the wrongs of the world grew and stayed with him. We imagined his love of the ocean would lead to a life like Jaques Cousteau, or a photographer for National Geographic.

Richie shared with us the story of his Naval hero, Carl Brashear, the first Black Diver to serve in the U.S. Navy. Richie’s service in the Navy wasn’t quite as epic, and though many of his missions were a bit of a secret he still had lots to tell. He was given the nickname “Bojo” — one he carried with pride, and one that now carries on with his Navy brothers as well as his family and friends. Richie’s stories as a U.S. Navy Diver were many. He became a hero in the Philippines for salvaging a plane wreck of a national dignitary. When he was stateside, he served in many places including San Diego and Panama City. His work as a diver was vast and varied. It included  experience in Explosive Ordinance Disposal and performing underwater repairs to nuclear subs. His last duty station was in Groton, CT, where he was a Submarine Escape Trainer — teaching classes of submariners how to escape from the depths. Richard worked with NASA and was recruited for a position post-Navy, but that wasn’t meant to be.

As Richie fought and won a few additional years of life from brain cancer he challenged himself in ways we couldn’t help but admire. He tested himself fearlessly. His brain was deteriorating — yet he signed up and went to college on the GI Bill. He wrote a paper on the unmatched brilliance of Carl Sagan. And he built, by hand, a full drum set; he wet and worked the wood for each drum into circles, painted robin’s egg blue.

Richard immersed himself in everything he could find about quantum physics. He took online courses. He had a room in his basement he turned into a library. Of course it had a big TV for video games, but on the shelves you'd find works by David Deutch Alan Turing, Sam Harris, Richard Feynman, and Carl Sagan. He shared his books with his mother. 

Richie’s life was shorter than it should have been, but it was never small.

Since he left us for the stars, he has 2 nephews. His brother and sister named their sons in Richie’s honor. Victoria’s son is Beau and Chris’s boy is Joseph. Their names combine to BOJO — another testament to Richie’s influence in this world and our enduring love for him. Richard’s nephews will grow up singing his songs, playing his drums and telling the stories of heroic Uncle, BOJO. Maybe they too will look out to the ocean and up to stars for new worlds and quantum fields. Richie is with us every time we say his nephews' names, infuse marinate a steak, turn up some funkadellic, with every holiday gag gift we buy for each other and open together, every solar and lunar eclipse, every time the owl visits.

When Rich passed, we struggled to find words to share the news of our loss. Richard's adored baby sister, “Boardgame-Ace, Vicki-toria” said it for all of us--said it so well we had it etched in stone and made into the plaques we hang on our "Richie Trees."

Richard Carl Bjorklund
Sep. 1, 1986 - Nov. 3, 2021
A Supreme Human Being. Loved Beyond this World. And Now That's Where He is.


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Who is more humble? The scientist who looks at the universe with an open mind and accepts whatever the universe has to teach us, or somebody who says everything in this book must be considered the literal truth and never mind the fallibility of all the human beings involved?  --Carl Sagan

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