RICHARD MONTGOMERY.
Courtesy photo

By Keri Luiz
Assistant Editor

Benician Richard Montgomery Jr. was “an amazing guy, he was a great friend,” Melani Ciarrocchi said. “Once you got to know him and he was your friend, he never forgot about you.”

She said Montgomery, who died at 42 of a heart attack Dec. 2, 2012, was the kind of person who would always call someone on their birthday, Mother’s Day or Valentine’s Day.

“He never forgot anything like that,” Ciarrocchi said. “He was so sweet and caring that way.”

Now, in Montgomery’s memory, friends and family have organized a “Heart Walk” to benefit the American Heart Association.

Ciarrocchi, who attended high school with Montgomery and whose husband, Tony, was Montgomery’s best friend, loved helping people, and loved kids.

“He didn’t have any kids of his own, but he had a lot of nieces and nephews, and he treated them like they were his own,” she said. “They called him their ‘unka-dunk.’”

Montgomery had been fighting heart disease for a few years before his fatal heart attack. The idea to put the Heart Walk together was, Ciarrocchi said, something that was in the back of everyone’s mind, but she credits Lori Telepak-Compton for getting it started.

The Heart Walk is set for this Saturday, the day after what would have been Montgomery’s 43rd birthday.

The event begins at 7 a.m. with registration. There will be a warm up, and the walk will begin at 8:30.

The walk is about 5 kilometers, or 12 laps around the track at Benicia High School. Proceeds from the event will benefit the American Heart Association.

Ciarrocchi said Montgomery’s friends and family hope to make it an annual event. “The Heart Association was talking about moving the Solano Walk to Benicia and combining them together, so hopefully it will be bigger next year.”

If You Go
The Richard Montgomery Heart Walk will be Saturday at the Benicia High School stadium, 1101 Military West. Registration begins at 7 a.m., opening ceremonies are at 8 a.m., and the walk begins at 8:30 a.m. For information email Lori Telepak-Compton at ltelepak@ymail.com or visit rmjmemorialheartwalk.org.

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