VIDEO: Robert Sarver at a memorial service

“It’s kind of uncomfortable, some of these stories”

BY HENRY ABBOTT

NOTE: This post contains language many will find offensive.

When former United States Filter CEO Richard (Dick) Heckmann passed away last Halloween, after suffering from an ALS-like degenerative condition, many people around the Phoenix Suns were crushed. A larger-than-life figure who had been part of Robert Sarver’s ownership group since 2004, Heckmann loved sitting courtside in an orange Suns jacket and hat. Many team events had been held at the Heckmann house in Rancho Mirage, about halfway between Phoenix and Los Angeles, near Palm Springs.

Because of the COVID lockdown, the Heckmann family didn’t immediately invite people over to remember Dick. It was Saturday, April 17, 2021 when his widow Wendy opened her home to family and friends. Heckmann left a lot of family: he and Wendy had two daughters, Mia and Madison. With his ex-wife Mary, Heckmann raised Tom, Scott, Brock, Todd, and Jessica—who have nine grandchildren between them.

There was a little plexiglass lectern w…