Dad To Dad 444 – Rick Corbett of Loganville, GA An Electrical Industry Retiree, Father Of Three, Including One With Hydrocephaly

Transcript:

Rick Corbett: She said, you’ll have to get him in horse therapy. He says, horse therapy? She said, yeah, it’s called hippotherapy. I said, there’s no way he can ride a horse. She said, bring him out there, he’ll ride a horse. And sure enough, they got him out there and he rode a horse and he loved it. And he remembers that horse to this day.

David Hirsch: That’s our guest this week, Rick Corbett, who worked in the electrical industry for two and a half decades before becoming a full time caregiver. Rick has two children, including Richard, 35, who has hydrocephaly, a rare chronic illness. Rick is one of the dads David Hirsch spoke to during the 2026 Special Fathers Network US tour and we’ll hear that discussion on this Special Fathers Network Dad to Dad Podcast.

David Hirsch: Dad to the dad, you’re not on your own. We walk this road together, hard and whole.

David Hirsch: Now say hello to the founder of the Special Fathers Network and host of the Dad to Dad Podcast, David Hirsch.

David Hirsch: Hi, I’m David Hirsch, host of the Special Fathers Network Dad to Dad Podcast. Two brief Messages I’m thrilled to announce our new book, Dads Raising Children with Special Needs and Disabilities. A Guide for 21st Century Dads is now available on Audible, Amazon, Barnes and Noble and other sites. Second, the Special Fathers Network US tour, a month long 50 state 60 plus stop tour took place from May 21 to June 21. Mission accomplished. It was quite a journey with hundreds of new connections which will have a ripple effect for months and years to come. Thank you to the following partners, Gigi’s Playhouses, John’s Crazy Socks, Rotary Club of Chicago and Special Olympics. Thanks also the 60 plus venue hosts which included 12 Special Olympic State Offices and 15 of the 62 Gigi’s playhouses. Special thanks to the RV crew mentioned here. In order of appearance, Zane Kooks, Andrew McDowell, Nelson Raskoon, Charlie Hirsch and Steve Harris. You guys were amazing. And special thanks to all those who offered their prayers and provided financial support. This was clearly a team effort.

Rick Corbett: Through every season, in every stride, great dads are present.

David Hirsch: 247365 now let’s listen into this conversation between Rick Corbett and David Hirsch.

David Hirsch: For the record, we’re here at St. John Newman Church in Lilburn, Georgia and it’s day 18 in stop 37 of the Special Fathers Network US tour, a 30 day 50 state 60 plus stop tour to strengthen the Special Fathers Network and distribute complimentary copies of the new book Dads Raising Children with Special Needs and a guide for 21st Century Dads. I’m very grateful to Scott Sauer, a local Special Fathers Network mentor, father and today’s host, for bringing everyone together. I’m thrilled to be talking today with Rick Corbett of Loganville, Georgia, who worked in the electrical industry for more than 25 years before becoming a full time caregiver. Rick, thank you for doing an interview for the Special Fathers Network Dad to Dad Podcast.

Rick Corbett: Thank you. Dave.

David Hirsch: You and your ex wife, Mary were married for 29 years and the proud parents of two children, Sean, 30, and Richard, 35, who has hydrocephaly, a rare, complex and chronic illness. You’re also a caregiver to Morgan Lawless, who’s 32. Let’s start with some background. Where did you grow up? Tell me something about your family.

Rick Corbett: Well, I grew up in Detroit, Michigan. I have four sisters, one brother. My mom and dad have since passed. I lived in Detroit for 17 years before I left and went off to college. That didn’t go too well, so I left at 18 and came down south.

David Hirsch: Thanks for the background. What did your dad do for a living?

Rick Corbett: He worked for J.L. hudson. It was a department store. He ran different departments and he was mostly in executive stuff.

David Hirsch: Okay. How would you describe your relationship with your dad?

Rick Corbett: Oh, I love my dad. He loved me. He showed love in a strange way, but I knew he loved me. His big way to tell you I love you was by a letter. Every Christmas I got a letter, and in that letter, it outlined the year, what my accomplishments were, how I attained those accomplishments. He was very strict. I was in the Boy Scouts. I had a paper route before I even knew what paper I was. I went to 16 years old. I was going to go get a work job. So he was a typical dad in the 70s. And he taught me a lot.

David Hirsch: We talked about scouting before. Were you an Eagle Scout?

Rick Corbett: I was, yes.

David Hirsch: What was your Eagle Scout project?

Rick Corbett: The elementary school, Roosevelt

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Rick Corbett: Elementary School, which has now been torn down, didn’t have no exit lights. In a building. These days you see exit lights everywhere. So in my school, I went to every class and I made an exit light for it to show the kids how to get out. And I really wanted one of those exit lights for the torch down, but I missed out.

David Hirsch: Okay, well, thanks for sharing. So what were the important takeaways when you think about your dad? Lessons learned?

Rick Corbett: Well, just to give you an example, there’s a island in the middle of Lake Superior called Isle Oil. And you go on one side of that island and you walk across it and then you leave. Well, Halfway through that island, it was very difficult for me because I was small. My dad made me carry 100 pounds, even if the other guy was carrying 50 pounds and he kicked my b*** from one end of that island the other. But I made it. So I learned he loved me and he showed me the way.

David Hirsch: Yeah, well, it sounded like your dad was a little bit of a disciplinarian.

Rick Corbett: Yes.

David Hirsch: And he was teaching at an early age that life is hard.

Rick Corbett: Yes.

David Hirsch: Have to take on some responsibility.

Rick Corbett: Yes.

David Hirsch: And you had a paper route when you were young.

Rick Corbett: As soon as I could get one, I was online to get one. And he made that clear that was going to happen.

David Hirsch: Well, that’s something we share in common. I had a paper route when I was like 9 and 10, just delivering papers, like mostly on the porch, but not always. I remember I would make like 20 cents a subscription or something like that. You’d have to go door to door to get people to try to pay for this, what was basically a free newspaper. But, you know, it teaches you something. When you’re out there in the community,

Rick Corbett: you got to get up in the middle of winter in Detroit and go deliver papers with 6 foot of snow on the ground. It’s tough.

David Hirsch: I’m thinking about other father influencers and I’m wondering what of any influence your grandfathers had.

Rick Corbett: My biological grandfather, he taught me that money grow on trees.

David Hirsch: Money does grow on trees.

Rick Corbett: Money does grow on trees. Believe it or not, every time we go over there, there was a squirrel bank in this tree in the backyard. And we always knew that’s the place to go to as soon as we hit the door. And it was always full of nickels and pennies. This is in the 60s, so we were very excited about it. And unfortunately he passed when I was very young. I do have my father in law, which I was very proud of, to nice friends with.

David Hirsch: Okay. So you mentioned a money tree. And my wife and I joke about this, that when we were younger there must have been a money tree in the backyard. But it seems to have died or gone away. It seems like things are a little bit more challenging today than they used to be. But thanks for sharing. And you mentioned your father in law and I’m wondering what influence he had on you.

Rick Corbett: Well, let me tell you a little story about my father. I left home when I was very young, went down to Georgia and I met a girl Thanksgiving Day. She said, come to the house for Thanksgiving dinner. And I said, I don’t know if I should do that. She said, no, you need to come. So I said, all right. So I go over there and knock on the door. She invites me in. First thing I see on the wall is a picture of a Confederate soldier, and the last name is her last name. I said, oh, I’m from Detroit. This is not going to be good. Well, long story short, he gave me the round around and he said I was an Eagle Scout. And I looked at him in the eye and I said, I’m an Eagle Scout also. He said, you are? I said, I’m a trustworthy, loyal, helpful friend you care to. Courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean reverend. And he looked at me like his eyes were about to bulge out of his head, and he said he was. All right, sit down and have dinner with us. Okay. And that’s what happened.

David Hirsch: Got off to a good start.

Rick Corbett: Great start.

David Hirsch: Yeah.

Rick Corbett: I love it.

David Hirsch: Thank you for sharing that story. So my recollection was you spent most of your professional career in the electrical industry. And then around 2010, things changed. What was it that changed?

Rick Corbett: 2010 was one of the bad times in my life. I got a divorce. It was a very hard thing to put my family through, but in the long run, it was probably the best.

David Hirsch: Okay, well, sorry to hear that, because you were married for better part of 30 years. And if my memory serves me correct, one of your sons, Sean, went to live with Mary.

Rick Corbett: Yes. Shawn. He’s the younger one. He’s less involved, and he went with his mother.

David Hirsch: Okay. And it must have been one of the harder things for you to split your family up and have one of

Rick Corbett: your sons go, I wonder sometimes if it was the right decision. Sometimes I pray about it, and I think it was okay.

David Hirsch: Yeah, well, life has a bunch of challenges, and

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David Hirsch: I don’t envy you to have made that decision about the divorce and then splitting your family up. Do you get to see Sean very often?

Rick Corbett: I see him a few times a year. He’s very involved in Special Olympics Abilities Unlimited in Savannah. They come up to Atlanta for Special Olympics once a year. I don’t miss that at all. I love putting up the stuff on Facebook, him doing his thing. It’s very enjoyable to watch and be a part of.

David Hirsch: Yeah, well, I imagine he’s been involved with Special Olympics because of his lived experience with his sibling.

Rick Corbett: Yes.

David Hirsch: So I’m sort of curious to know, before you had children, did you or Mary have any connection to the disability community or special needs community?

Rick Corbett: Well, another little story. Try to make it quick. When I was in high school, I knew I was going to have special needs kids.

David Hirsch: Seriously?

Rick Corbett: Yes. I was in 10th grade and it was my math class and I was a whiz at it. It was algebra. And the teacher came up to me and he says, I’d like you to help an individual in the class. I said, okay. Well, I found out that he was a special needs guy. He was a little person, and I think he had polio and he had the arm braces to walk. And I helped him. And I always wondered. He was always in the back of my mind. And when I discovered that Richard had his problems, I said, God only knows.

David Hirsch: A little foreshadowing. That’s what I hear you saying. Okay, well, thank you for sharing. So what is Richard’s diagnosis and how did it come about?

Rick Corbett: Well, I can’t pronounce it. It’s short as hpe. Basically, his brain did not divide all the way into two hemispheres, so some of it is still grown together. And it’s called lobar. So that’s the least amount of that type of disease. So another little story. When he was maybe four or five months old, that’s when we all went back to work. And the lady one day called me and just a ruckus. And she says, I cannot watch your son anymore. I said, what’s the matter? She says, there’s something wrong with him. And I was just flabbergasted because, you know, he was a little kid, he was four months old, and sure enough, we took him to the doctor and we went to a specialist and he wrote some eight page big letter word. And that’s how we found out.

David Hirsch: Wow. So you get the sort of hard news that Richard has this diagnosis. I think it’s hydrocephaly.

Rick Corbett: Yes.

David Hirsch: And I’m wondering what your fears were, if you can put yourself back in those shoes.

Rick Corbett: Thirty something years ago, my fears probably were, can I take care of him? You know, how severe is this going to be? You know, I asked a therapist once, I said, I’ve been coming here once a week for six months. What happens if I came every day, 24 hours a day? She looked at me, she says, probably nothing. No more than if you come once a week. Oh. Because I thought that if I came every day, I can make him better. But that’s not reality.

David Hirsch: Well, that’s some meaningful advice that you got early on. Any other advice that comes to mind that you got that helped put the situation in perspective?

Rick Corbett: Well, we always try to do our best with them. We used to ride one in the same category, that same Person that told me about the therapy, she said, you ought to get him in horse therapy. And I said, horse therapy? She said, yeah, it’s called hippotherapy. I said, there’s no way he can ride a horse. She said, bring him out there, he’ll ride a horse. And sure enough, they got him out there and he rode a horse and he loved it. And he remembers that horse to this day. Calls her out all the time. Annie, Annie, Annie. Never forget it.

David Hirsch: Any other therapists that seem to make an impact?

Rick Corbett: I think all of them did in their own special way. You know, some worked with feet, some worked with legs, some worked with heads, some worked with arms. You know, when they’re young like that, you do a lot of different things. It seemed like that’s a lot of what we did. It’s therapy.

David Hirsch: Is he a verbal or non verbal?

Rick Corbett: Well, he’s. He’s probably considered non verbal, but if I had him right here and you would talk to him like you’re talking to me, you’d figure out what he was saying. Yes or no questions. Pretty well. Put a couple words together, you’ll figure it out.

David Hirsch: And how does he get around physically?

Rick Corbett: He’s in a power wheelchair that he operates with his head. I could let him loose in here and he’d go anywhere in here that door would let him. As a matter of fact, he’d probably hit that door over there trying to get out.

David Hirsch: We’ll be back with more of the conversation on the Special Fathers Network Dad to Dad Podcast in just a few moments. But

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David Hirsch: first, this quick message. Please help 21st Century Dads gather research on families raising children with special needs by having them complete the Special Fathers Network Early Intervention Parents survey. A link to the survey can be found in the show notes. As a token of our appreciation, each person, mom or dad, who completes the survey will receive a great dad coin. Thank you. Now back to the conversation.

David Hirsch: So not to focus on the negative, but what have been some of the bigger challenges the last 30 something years?

Rick Corbett: Weight. He doesn’t eat very well, so we got him some nutrition drink stuff that he takes. Now his spasticity was real bad a long time ago, so we got him a baclofen pump which, if you don’t know what that is, that’s a something they put in your stomach right by your navel. It looks like a hockey puck. And they take a. A tube and they put it into a spine. And once every three months at Emory, we’ll fill that hockey puck up with baclofen. And it makes him just relax. If he didn’t own it, wasn’t on that medicine, he’d be like that chair right there. His legs would just be, you know, stuck. Okay, so that’s one thing we do for him, keep him taken care of.

David Hirsch: Yeah. Well, thanks for sharing. So I’m sort of curious to know what impact these challenges have had on his brother, your marriage, or maybe the extended family, for that matter.

Rick Corbett: Well, everybody loves Richard, except maybe Justin. He’s one of our baseball guys. They’re always on the same team together. I think what you said earlier about the gold standard, it’s so true. So true.

David Hirsch: Yeah. So for the benefit of our listening audience who didn’t hear my presentation before we started the podcast, I had said that the gold standard is that you might look back on your experience as a parent and say, I might not have asked for a child with special needs. But knowing everything I know now, I wouldn’t change anything. So I’m thinking about supporting organizations and I’m wondering what comes to mind. Organizations that Richard’s benefited from, your family might have benefited from.

Rick Corbett: Yeah, there’s a few that I’ve been involved in. Fodaks, Friends of Disabled Adults with children. They supply equipment and stuff like that for small charges. Focused family of children under stress. Special needs treats which people the kids work at Grayson Athletic association, where they have special baseball. He’s part of that Abilities Unlimited, that special Olympic stuff. Falcon at high school. For all of you that don’t know Richards called Touchdown Richards from going to all the games. So those are probably the main ones.

David Hirsch: I remember when we talked previously, you mentioned this Touchdown Richard. And the image that I had to mind because my wife went to Notre Dame was Touchdown Jesus. So if you’re in the football stadium at Notre Dame, there’s a building with Jesus and his arms are extended and you see that through the uprights. Is that what we’re talking about?

Rick Corbett: That’s exactly what we’re talking about. The coach at our old high school used to come into their class and bring the football players in there with the uniforms on and hang out with the special needs kids. And it got so exciting for Richard that he just loved it. He thought that was the greatest thing in the world. It was like the Queen England walked in the room when he saw those kids. So I decided to put this little band together for Richard to show his support. And it’s been going on now for 15, 20 years. It’s something that he enjoys. So we, we’re going to keep on Doing this.

David Hirsch: Yeah. That’s fabulous. Thank you for sharing. Did you also mention that he’s been involved with the Tim Tebow Night to Shine program?

Rick Corbett: Wow, what a night, huh? All them people that get to go to that. It’s first time I went maybe five, six years ago, I cried. Cried.

David Hirsch: Yeah. It’s an amazing organization. Team Tebow’s got a big heart and just really a lot of respect for them. So let’s talk about Morgan a little bit. She’s not a biological child of yours. How did she come into your life?

Rick Corbett: Well, Morgan is quite a girl. We first met at school. Joth went at high school. I knew her daddy very well. We got to living together where I would watch her because her grandfather was 80 years old and just couldn’t take care of her anymore. So he needed some help and I helped him.

David Hirsch: So does she live with you now or not?

Rick Corbett: Yes, she currently lives in the house that I’m living in and

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Rick Corbett: I’m in control of her from 5 o’ clock every day till 7 o’ clock the next morning. I’m responsible.

David Hirsch: So what’s her diagnosis?

Rick Corbett: She had a brain bleed when she was young. Young? Young, like that, like just born.

David Hirsch: And what type of challenges does she have on a day to day basis?

Rick Corbett: She physically has a lot of problems. She uses a power wheelchair. She has more anger issues than my sons do. So battling with that sometimes can be a big challenge.

David Hirsch: And what type of interest does she have? What does she like to do?

Rick Corbett: She likes to get out and color. She likes to paint. She likes to go off with her grandfather. She doesn’t have a father, so her grandfather is her fatherly figure. And I kind of run the household so I don’t really know where I stand.

David Hirsch: Okay. So I’m thinking about advice and I’m wondering what advice you would have for those young parents or maybe a young dad like yourself.

Rick Corbett: Well, I can give you a little experience. My nephew has a son who is special needs. He’s kind of on the autistic, but he likes to talk. Like your story the other day about the person that liked to talk.

David Hirsch: Well, Randy Lewis, son who didn’t talk for 10 years and then he couldn’t get him to shut up.

Rick Corbett: He was like that. And we were in Taylor, Michigan and we went to a baseball game and the people playing the baseball game was from all over the world, Vancouver, Canadians and everywhere. And he was talking to everybody in the stands and his dad kept calling him over, come over, get over here, leave them people alone. I said, look, just Relax. So the game, the teams changed, and the next team on our side was Canadians. By the time that game was off, he had a Canadian flag over him. He had pom poms with Canadians, had buttons. All of them must have had more buttons. He fell over so heavily, and I said, see, let him be. If they didn’t like it, they would have said something or done something. But he loved it. It was the greatest thing. He still got it hanging up this day. Yeah.

David Hirsch: Well, it sounds like he’s very outgoing.

Rick Corbett: Yes.

David Hirsch: Right. And he makes friends very easily.

Rick Corbett: Yes.

David Hirsch: Yeah. So I love it. Thank you for sharing. So I’m sort of curious to know, why is it you’ve agreed to be a mentor father as part of the Special Fathers Network?

Rick Corbett: Well, I have lots of experience. You know, these. These kids, they. They give so much as long as the people take it in and then they get more out of it than they other people do. So if I can help a little bit, I’ll try.

David Hirsch: Yeah. Well, we’re thrilled to have you. Thank you for being part of the Special Fathers Network. I’m sort of curious to know if there’s anything else you’d like to say before we wrap up.

Rick Corbett: Well, Scott, thanks for inviting me. I’m a little nervous. You know, I do have lots of challenges in my life, and I wouldn’t give it up for anything. I just hope that one day when I’m not here, Richard still gets the same care and love, so I can help for.

David Hirsch: Yeah. Very powerful. Thank you. So I would like to add. Let’s give a special shout out to Scott Sauer, SFN mentor father, who was also featured in episode number nine. It seems like a million years ago for helping connect us.

Rick Corbett: Way to go, Scott.

David Hirsch: If somebody wants to contact you, what’s the best way to do so, Rick,

Rick Corbett: best way to get a hold of me is if you try to email me. If you have my email address. I get 400 a day, so that’s kind of tough. So always text me. Should I give the number? Sure. All right. 404-578-5259. If I don’t recognize your number, leave a message and I’ll get back with you.

David Hirsch: Yeah, well, it’s very generous of you. Thank you for offering. So, Rick, thank you for your time and many insights. As a reminder, Rick is just one of the dads who’s part of the Special Fathers Network mentoring program for fathers raising a child with special needs. If you’d like to be a mentor father or are seeking advice from a mentor father, with a similar situation to your own, Please go to 21st centurydads.org thank you for listening to the latest episode of the Special Fathers Network Dad to Dad Podcast. I hope you enjoyed the conversation as much as I did. As you probably know, the 21st century dad’s foundation is a 501c3 not for profit organization, which means we need your help to keep our content free to all concerned. Would you please consider making a tax deductible contribution? I would really appreciate your support, Rick. Thanks again.

Rick Corbett: Thanks Davey.

David Hirsch: Dad to the dad.

Rick Corbett: You’re not on your own.

David Hirsch: We walk this road together, hard and

Rick Corbett: home,

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Rick Corbett: And he loves us. He remembers that horse to this day.

David Hirsch: And if you’re a dad looking for help or would like to offer help, we would be honored to have you join our closed Facebook group. Please go to facebook.com groups and search dad to dad. Lastly, we’re always looking to share interesting stories. If you’d like to share your story or know of a compelling story, please send an email to david2stcenturydads.org the dad

David Hirsch: to dad Podcast theme was written and performed by Shane Madden. The show was produced by me, Tom Couch. Tune in again next week for another intriguing conversation on the Special Fathers Network Dad to Dad Podcast.

Rick Corbett: Through every season, in every stride, great dads are present. 247-365-24-7365.

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