EPCHS Alum In The Spotlight: Dr. Ricardo A. Fernandez, Class Of 1984

EVERGREEN PARK, IL — Dr. Ricardo A. Fernandez has built a distinguished career as a worldwide leader in the physical therapy world, taken thousands of veterans to Washington, D.C. as part of Honor Flight Chicago and other organizations to thank them for their service, met and became friends with a former United States president and has helped countless families in need building houses as a longtime volunteer for Habitat for Habitat for Humanity.

He also regularly teaches physical therapy classes and donates all funds from that endeavor, more than $61,000 to date, to charity. The inspiration to teach has come from many of his instructors throughout life, and he specifically mentions the late Mr. Robert Dartsch, his math teacher when attending Evergreen Park Community High School in the mid 1980s, as one who made a substantial impact.

“Mr. Dartsch made learning math easy and had such a great way of teaching,” Fernandez said. “Math has always been one of my strong points thanks to Mr. Dartsch. I’ve certainly been emulating his teaching style in my own classes.”

As one of 10 children in a family that relocated often, Fernandez attended eight different schools before finding a home at EPCHS, where he spent his junior and senior years as one of the most involved students as a member of the band, wrestling team and track team. In addition to Dartsch, Fernandez remembers the impact left by many others at EPCHS, including then band director Rob Fund and former wrestling coach Mike Kladis.

“The band kept me busy, so I made friends in the band,” Fernandez said. “One of them, Manny Ramos, who was also in wrestling with me, I am still great friends with to this day.”

Upon graduation from EPCHS, Fernandez earned an associate’s degree in science from Moraine Valley Community College, where he was recently inducted into the MVCC Hall of Fame, then a bachelor’s degree in physical therapy from the University of Illinois-Chicago.

It was at Moraine Valley, when Fernandez was working in the school’s fitness center, where he met Dr. Kevin Wilk. Wilk was working as a physical therapist for the Chicago White Sox at the time, so Fernandez saw that as an opportunity to volunteer as a possible path to living out his dream of working with a professional sports franchise, particularly his beloved White Sox.

“I did wind up working with the White Sox physicians, which was my goal, but once I did that I realized I wanted to do more,” he said, still crediting Wilk for helping him find his true passion in physical therapy.

“I am very fortunate to have found physical therapy,” Fernandez said. “It’s something that makes me so happy.”

During his career, Fernandez often worked full-time while advancing his education, eventually earning his master’s degree from the University of Indianapolis and a PhD from Nova Southeastern University.

As a full-time professor at Northwestern University, Fernandez said he completed much of his research there, as they had “the labs and access to the equipment I needed.”

Teaching physical therapy has been particularly rewarding for Fernandez, both in sharing his expertise and in the philanthropic volunteer opportunities it has provided.

Veteran charities have been at the forefront of Fernandez’ volunteer work, specifically VetsRoll, in which he and other volunteers regularly help organize five-day bus rides for veterans to experience Washington, D.C.

“My grandpa was a World War II veteran and he died when I was 13, so I’ve always had an interest in veterans,” Fernandez said, also giving a nod to the Honor Flight Chicago organization that organizes one-day plane trips for veterans from Chicago to Washington, D.C. and back. “I’ve met some amazing people with Honor Flight. It’s a long day, 4 a.m. to 10 p.m. Watching a thousand loved ones there cheering on their heroes is so inspiring.”

“I go as a listener, and am able to use my physical therapy skills to help those who have physical ailments. It’s nice to continue these relationships with people who have served our country so nobly and thank them for their service.”

To date, Fernandez has helped take 2,595 veterans to Washington, D.C. and has a goal for that number to reach 5,000 in the next few years.

Fernandez recently published a collection of poems written by his grandmother, Jeanne Flood, titled “American, Love Stories and Other Poems,” with all proceeds from the effort going to support veterans, service members and their families.

Habitat for Humanity, an organization that helps build houses for people in need, is another charity Fernandez has worked extensively with. Perhaps the organization’s highest profile volunteer, 39th President of the United States Jimmy Carter, is who inspired Fernandez to become involved.

“I met President Carter after I wrote a letter to him and we became friends for 24 years,” Fernandez said. “His last 7 (Habitat for Humanity) builds, I did with him. He worked on builds for 36 years and that inspired me.

“We go to a lot of run down areas and sweat with the homeowners,” Fernandez added, noting the charity’s regular format of having the new homeowner pay for the house but with no interest so long as they put in a certain number of hours of work on the house itself. With a robust group of volunteers, these new homes are generally built in one week.

“(The homeowners) will also learn skills in the process,” Fernandez said. “It’s so enjoyable, especially to see them get the key at the end of the week.”

Philanthropic efforts aside, Fernandez’ role in the field of physical therapy cannot go unnoticed. He’s lectured at schools across the country including in the area at the University of Illinois-Chicago, Northwestern University and Northern Illinois University, among others. He’s written exam questions for the state board exam as a member of the Item Writer and Review Committee of the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy and for the orthopedic specialty exam as a member of the Specialization Academy of Content Experts of the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties. He served for eight years on the Illinois Physical Therapy Licensing and Disciplinary Board with two years as the chairperson, and has presented more than 200 physical therapy related presentations to community-based organizations, OrthoRehab Physical Therapy noted in a previous article highlighting his career.

Now residing in picturesque northern Montana, Fernandez has delivered more than 200 presentations on physical therapy to community-based organizations and has lectured internationally as well, Moraine Valley noted in their recent Hall of Fame presentation. He’s provided pro bono physical therapy abroad as well, including in places like Peru, Ethiopia, Vietnam, Honduras and Nicaragua. Additional recognitions Fernandez has received in the field include being named the Illinois Physical Therapy Association’s Physical Therapist of the Year in 2013 and later earning the association’s Humanitarian Award in 2021.

He looks forward to the possibility of sharing all these experiences and more with the students at EPCHS in an upcoming trip to the Chicagoland area in May.

“I definitely want to see the school,” he said. “Many of my friends have said, ‘you have got to see the school,’ and if there’s a chance to talk to students, anyone who wants to go into physical therapy or volunteer, I would love to help provide inspiration for these students.”

Advice for current EPCHS students
“Learn that anyone can serve others. Get out there, find something you love to do, learn everything you can about that and then serve others. Whatever you like to do, get out there and just do it.”