On Mar. 1, 2010, at the age of 54, Dr. Richard D. James, husband, father, chiropractor, and friend to many, passed away just after completing one of his longtime goals - diving the Blue Hole off the coast of Belize. Rick was an experienced diver, having achieved the rating of a master diver, and had completed several hundred dives in the past 20 years throughout locations in Florida and the Caribbean islands.
Dr. James a graduate of Logan College, class of August 1978, practiced for 31 years and was well-known on a local, state and national level. He was a very active member of the Missouri State Chiropractors Association and served on the Missouri Board of Chiropractic Examiners; in fact, he had just been elected in January to serve as president of the board for 2010. He was very active with the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners and helped administer the national boards at every opportunity. Improving our profession was one of Rick's personal goals for both our doctors and our patients.
On Thursday, Feb. 25, my wife, Dr. Susan Baker, and I flew with Rick and his wife Diane from St. Louis to the island of Ambergris Cay, Belize. We checked into the Paradise Villas in the island town of San Pedro for what was to be a 10-day trip of a lifetime. For the first three days, we enjoyed the beauty of the island and the ocean. On Feb. 27, Rick and I completed two practice dives to check out our equipment and experience diving the reef that surrounds the island.
On Mar. 1,we were on the dock at 5:30 a.m. to catch the diving boat for the two-hour ride to the Blue Hole. The circular sinkhole is a natural phenomenon nearly 1,000 feet wide and more than 400 feet deep. It is considered one of the top 10 diving spots in the world. We had planned on doing this dive for more than 13 years.
As our wives snorkeled on the surface above the giant hole, Rick and I descended to 138 feet below the surface to explore the great Blue Hole. Due to the depth of the dive, we had to start ascending after just 18 minutes to 15 feet below the surface for the required nine-minute safety decompression stop. Rick then tapped his dive computer and signaled to me that it was time to surface. We safely reached the surface and were on the boat's ladders and were removing our equipment when suddenly, Rick looked over at me on the opposite ladder and then fell back into the water.
He was quickly pulled back into the boat by some of the boat's crew members and CPR was immediately started. There was a New York City emergency room physician on the dive who supervised the effort to revive Rick. My wife and I also participated in the efforts; but after 10 minutes of intense efforts by the doctors, crew and friends, the ER doctor looked at me and said, "He's your friend, it's your call." "Let's do two more minutes," I said. But after almost 14 minutes it was obvious that Rick had passed, and I made the call to stop the CPR.
We had to wait for a week until an autopsy was performed and travel arrangements could be completed to bring Rick back to the U.S. The coroner ruled that the cause of death was "bronchial aspiration due to drowning." A wake was held on Wednesday, Mar. 10, and the funeral took place the following morning at the Friedens United Church of Christ in St. Charles, Mo.
Survivors include his dear wife of 34 years, Diane K. James (nee LeClaire); four sons: Dr. Quinn (Kelly) James, Kirk A. James, Kent R. James, and Garrett D. James; grandchildren Kyle, Gavin and soon-to-arrive Olivia; sisters Donna Howard and Cheri Koenig; and father Donald J. James.
It was impossible to not have a fun time when Rick was present. I know that he will be deeply missed by his family and his many friends. And his passing is a great loss to our profession as well.
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