Rick graduated from high school in Homestead, Florida, then served in the US Army in the late 1960s as a helicopter pilot (with service in Vietnam). He is a high-honors graduate of the University of Florida, holds a commercial helicopter pilot license with instrument rating, held a US Coast Guard Captain's license for many years, and is a HAM radio operator (N4MDL).

After returning from Vietnam, he was stationed in Savannah, Georgia where he met and married Barbara Fay Zipperer - the light of his life. They are still happily married after more than 40 years.

Rick worked with an international manufacturing company for 25 years, first in distribution, then in manufacturing. In distribution, he held positions of Sales, Sales Manager, and Vice President of Sales before accepting a position at the corporate offices in Ohio. At the corporate level, he held positions of Product Manager and Sales & Marketing Manager for a Division.

He was enticed to settle in Texas after his parents & most of his brothers & sisters had migrated to Texas over many years. Soon after arriving in Texas, he and his sister, Beetress Buxkemper started the business here in Cedar Park on July 1, 1998.

As a member of the corporate community of Cedar Park, Rick has been an active member of the Cedar Park Chamber of Commerce and the Greater Leander Chamber of Commerce, serving on the Board of Directors at Cedar Park for seven years. Rick is a past Chairman of the Board of the Cedar Park Chamber of Commerce, and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Greater Leander Chamber of Commerce.