Team Member
Richard Weiss
Vice President
Richard Weiss is the current vice president of The Sullivans Foundation. He served over 23 years in the Navy, starting as a Seaman Apprentice and retiring as a Lieutenant Commander. Following commissioning in the Limited Duty Officer (LDO) program Richard served onboard USS The Sullivans DDG 68 from 1998 to 2001 as the Systems Test Officer (STO) and was onboard for her maiden deployment.
About Richard
Since retiring from the Navy, Richard has worked in the test and evaluation and experimentation fields supporting Navy and DoD technologies. He also is a program manager within his company. He holds a B.A in Management and Administration and an A.S. in Electronics Technology.
Richard is also a genetic genealogist, avid motorcyclist, and devoted ballroom dancer. As an adoptee searching for his birth family, he discovered genetic genealogy. After finding his birth families he became a search angel and later served on the board of directors for DNAAdoption, a non-profit that helps adoptees, donor conceived, birth families, and others with searches and reunions. Richard has leveraged the technical expertise he has learned in the Navy to become a highly regarded expert on the latest generation of Gold Wing's electrical and communications systems as well as an inventor of gadgets for the bikes. He plans and leads destination rides for the groups he is in as well as participates in numerous charity rides. Richard has enjoyed the camaraderie of the ballroom dance community for over twelve years. As a "smoothy" Richard leans toward Waltz, Tango, Foxtrot and Viennese Waltz but has been known to hold his own with cha-cha, rumba, night club two step, east coast and west swing. He has even won a dance competition.
When not supporting The Sullivans Foundation, working on his day job, making genealogical discoveries, riding the roads of SoCal and beyond on his Gold Wing or Harley, or floating across a dance floor, he can be found hanging out with San Diego’s Florida Gator Club.