Richard Douglas Busacca

Richard Douglas Busacca (January 15, 1970 – December 22, 2025) of Boynton Beach, Florida, died unexpectedly at his home.

Born in Staten Island, New York, to Giovanni (John) Battista Busacca and Eileen (Keown) Busacca. Always special even his Baptism was unique as it was the first baptism held as part of the mass at at Holy Family Church. Richard—known to most as Ricky—was raised in Red Oaks Mill, New York where he forged lifelong bonds with his group of friends - a true brotherhood that time and distance never diminished.  

Richard attended Kinry Road Elementary School, Van Wyck Junior High School, and Our Lady of Lourdes High School, where he studied football as passionately as academics. He played football at Lourdes and cherished both the experience and the lifelong friendships he formed there. He attended Marist University, where he became a trailblazer as the first amputee to play Division I football. Richard played nose tackle, linebacker, and backup kicker, and used his prosthetic leg to kick field goals which garnered national attention for his determination and perseverance. Numerous publications featured his remarkable journey. As a senior, the Marist football team went on to win the Division I MAAC Conference title and received the commemorative ring.

Known for his tenacity and his gift with words, Ricky once said he would know he was successful “when nobody cares about my limb difference, when you are no longer treated differently. A lot of people didn’t grasp what I was doing. The whole point of this is trying to be equal.”

After graduating from college, Richard moved to Palm Beach County, Florida, where he continued his love of football by coaching the Boca Jets youth league team and St. Andrew’s High School. Possessing a larger-than-life personality and an unmatched ability to tell a great story, Richard put his talents to work writing advertising copy for Simply the Best magazine before spending the majority of his professional career with Northwestern Mutual. A devoted Notre Dame football fan, Richard could reliably be found on Saturdays enthusiastically shouting, “Go Irish!” at the television.

A true romantic, Ricky reconnected with a high school friend—his “angel in the hallway” —and married Renee Saenz Busacca. He was unabashed in his love and devotion to her and delighted in telling even total strangers the story of how they met. One look at his social media made it clear where his heart belonged.

Richard was a devout Roman Catholic and deeply valued attending Ascension Church, where he also volunteered his time.

Richard was preceded in death by his father, John Busacca. He is survived by his beloved wife, Renee Busacca of Boynton Beach, Florida; his stepchildren, Clay and Sabrina Mongon; his mother, Eileen Busacca of Poughkeepsie, New York; his sister Beth Dziminowicz and her husband Dave of Boynton Beach, Florida; his sister Christine Manning and her husband Patrick of Hopewell Junction, New York; his brother John Busacca and his wife Jeanny of Orlando, Florida; his nieces and nephews Alexandra Vittorini Walsh, Andrew Dziminowicz, Amanda Stephens, Claudia Busacca, and Johnny Busacca; his grandniece Salem Stevens; his grandnephew Dominic Vittorini Walsh; and his brotherhood of friends Christopher Mulvaney, Casey Taft, Steve Monaco and Mike Rooney.

In one article written about his football career as an amputee, Richard was aptly quoted as saying, “Football is like life. You are going to get hit, knocked down—it’s whether or not you get back up.”

Because Richard was deeply loved in both the North and the South, two services will be held to honor his life. A service in Florida will take place on Saturday, January 24, 2026 between 4:00PM - 6:00PM at Glick Family Funeral Home, 3600 N. Federal Highway, Boca Raton,  Florida. A prayer service will commence at 5:00PM.  On February 7th, at 10:00AM, a funeral mass will be held at St. Martin de Porres Church, 118 Cedar Valley Road, Poughkeepsie, NY 12603.

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