Good Design

Black and white profile portrait of Rick. He wears a light-colored blazer and white shirt. He gazes downward with a kind smile.

The creative act
of becoming

From a young age, Rick was a gifted communicator and unyielding creative. It was in his DNA, and he spent his life telling stories. But this Celebration of Life exhibit is not about output. It’s about process.

Rick never tired of the creative process. He lined every design decision, big or small, with intentionality and found immense satisfaction in wrestling a concept to life, especially alongside good people. He followed this thread his entire life, resulting in an unconventional career and choices that shaped him into the person he was always meant to be: a good design.

This exhibit is our love letter to Rick, the creative process that powered him, and his openness to being transformed throughout his life. Rick believed that there was a good design behind every person, it was just a matter of having the courage to uncover it.

We hope this exhibit inspires you to embrace your own creative act of becoming and to find the people who bring out the good design in you. Thank you for being one of those people for Rick.

Aly, Lyanne, and Linda

Map

  1. Young Life

    Photos, illustrations for friends and publications, and storytelling from Cherry Lane, Alhambra High, and USC.

  2. Career Reflections

    Recorded in 2024, Rick reflects on the three defining chapters of his career: architecture, agency, and startup.

  3. Architecture

    Designs from Rick’s days in architecture, as well as his transition to city work, entitlement, and public art.

  4. Media Portfolio

    Physical and digital artifacts from nearly 30 years of running his cross-media design studio.

  5. Nudj Health Tribute

    Recorded tributes and memories of Rick from the team behind the health startup Rick co-founded in 2021 and continued to serve till his passing.

  6. Family Life

    Photos and artifacts from Rick’s personal life, and tributes from family and friends.

The life of
Rick Abe

Black and white photo of one kid seated on a bike, another kid on the handle bars, and two other kiddos peeking out from either side. The kid on the handle bars holds their hands up next to the sides of her head, slightly sticking out her tongue with a grin.

As told by Linda and Paul

Richard Akihiko Abe was born on November 21, 1957, the second son of Paul Yozo and Ida Sumiko Abe. As a child, he was affectionately called “Ricky,” a name that suited his bright spirit and playful nature. As he grew older, he became known simply as Rick.

Rick spent his early years in a close-knit neighborhood in Huntington, Long Island, New York. The Abe family was the only Japanese family in the area, but Rick quickly formed deep, lasting friendships that would stay with him throughout his life. From a young age, he showed a natural talent for art. He loved drawing Snoopy and other Peanuts characters. His easygoing charm, quick wit, and humor made people feel comfortable around him.

Rick as a happy little boy. He is outside, running around in a field of grass. His giant open smile beams with joy.
Dad holding Rick in his arms. Mom stands by their side, hands on hips, looking over at her family with a loving smile.

When Rick was seven, his father passed away after a heart attack, a profound loss that shaped his early life. In 1972, Rick, his older brother Paul, and their mother Ida moved to California to be closer to family, beginning a new chapter together.

Rick attended Alhambra High School, where he quickly found his place. He made new friends, excelled academically, and became an accomplished gymnast.

Rick in a full split on the gymnasium floor while holding his arms straight out to his sides, chest out. He gazes forward with confidence and focus. The back of an old envelope with a 'from the desk of Rick Abe' handwritten script at the top. There is an illustration just below the flap of a cartoon man, teeth gritted and eyes closed. His arms are stretched out and holding on tightly to sets of block letters that say CAL. on the left and N.Y. on the right. A handwritten letter from Rick to his friend Anne sharing that he made it to Los Angeles and some initial feelings.

He went on to USC’s School of Architecture, where he graduated in 1981. Rick loved his years at USC. He drove an orange Datsun 210, learned to ski and play the guitar, and continued sketching whenever he could. He became known for the whimsical Christmas cards he created each year.

Rick launched his architectural career with two respected Los Angeles–area firms: Togawa & Smith and Barasch Architects & Associates. At Togawa & Smith, he developed a mentoring relationship and lifelong friendship with Glenn Togawa.

In 1989, Rick met Linda at a Bible study group. Despite her vow never to date an architect (her professor had once warned the class that architects had one of the highest divorce rates), Rick’s handsome smile, sharp style, and smooth dance moves won her over. One evening after Bible study, the group went dancing, and Rick caught her attention.

When Linda mentioned she wanted to go skiing on a weekday, Rick was the only one who could join. He took the day off from Barasch Architects, and the two spent the full day together at Big Bear, talking on the two-hour drive each way. After a sunny day on the slopes, Rick asked her out over dinner at Northwoods Inn in San Gabriel. They fell in love quickly, leading to Rick calling all the women he had been casually dating to tell them he was now in an exclusive relationship with Linda. Less than six months later—just weeks after Linda graduated—he proposed.

They married at Lake Avenue Church, Rick’s first major church design project. Although the 1,500-seat sanctuary dwarfed their guest list of 250, Rick worked closely with the florist to create an intimate, memorable setting that reflected his own design of the space. After a honeymoon in Hawaii and a second reception in Linda’s hometown of Seattle, they settled in Long Beach, California.

Their small 900-square-foot fixer-upper sat on a quiet street lined with century-old pine trees and was located between Linda’s job in Irvine designing master-planned communities and Rick’s new Pasadena-based architectural practice.

Rick began designing a remodel for their home, though those plans temporarily paused when their daughter Lyanne was born just nine months after the wedding. Linda took a year off work, and when she returned, the couple devised a “two ships passing in the night” schedule to ensure Lyanne could stay home with a parent: Linda worked from 5 a.m. to 1 p.m., and Rick worked afternoons and evenings.

After only 15 months of parenting, Linda became pregnant again—much to their surprise. With a second baby coming, Rick accelerated the home remodel. He moved quickly through permitting, hired a contractor friend, and by the time their second daughter, Alyson, was born, the remodel was nearly com- plete. It was exactly the home Rick had envisioned for their family.

Life revolved around family, their community at Evergreen Baptist Church—where Rick served as moderator for six years and Linda taught Sunday school—and their growing professional careers. But coming out of the 1990 recession, Rick’s architectural practice struggled. To provide stability for his young family, he took a position as City Architect for the City of Alhambra, where he remained for five years. During that time, he expanded into media work, writing and producing a public television spotlight segment for the city. This experience sparked a new passion for media and computer technology.

Early Media Portfolio logo on wall lit by stark lighting. Rick is silhouetted in the foreground. Rick and Austin surrounded by fancy lighting equipment stand behind a video camera on a tripod discussing the shot. Above them is a boom mic just out of frame.

As the economy recovered, Rick felt ready for a change. He left the city and founded his own company, Media Portfolio, combining his design, media, and communication talents. Because of the strong relationships he had built, the City of Alhambra continued to contract with him for more years to run its Design Review Board, giving him the stability to grow his business.

Rick ran Media Portfolio for nearly 30 years with clients and projects spanning a diverse range of industries. He deeply valued his employees, many of whom stayed with him for years. His experience running Media Portfolio shaped him not only as a creative, but as a servant leader and mentor.

In 2004, Rick and Linda moved their family back to Linda’s hometown of Seattle, so she and the girls could spend more time with her aging father. Though the move placed them miles away from the business Rick had built in Pasadena, he was committed to keeping it running. Every other week, for over twenty years, he boarded the two and a half hour flight to Burbank, balancing his professional responsibilities in California with genuine, present fatherhood and partnership in Seattle.

The distance never weakened Rick and Linda’s bond. If anything, it strengthened their marriage. Their daily phone calls when they were apart became their ritual, a grounding thread woven through years of travel, work, and family life.

Rick dons a stunning blue suit and Lyanne wears a flowing white wedding dress. They link arms as they walk into the garden for Austin and Lyanne's wedding.

When the COVID-19 pandemic struck in 2020, the world slowed down, and so did they. Those years brought a renewed appreciation for health, home, and the unshakeable closeness of family. Their daughter Lyanne had been planning a summer wedding, but when the venue closed and gatherings were restricted, the celebration shifted to something smaller and unexpectedly magical. At home on Mercer Island, Rick spent days transforming the outdoor courtyard, cleaning, preparing, and stringing sparkling lights until the space glowed. On the wedding day, he proudly walked Lyanne through the patio doors and into the arms of her future husband, Austin Chang.

Aly is wearing a beautiful wedding dress. Ryan is decked out in a gray suit. They are facing one another, Rick behind them officiating the ceremony. Aly holds Ryan's face while he holds her hips as they prepare to share a celebratory kiss.

The next year, with the world still cautiously reopening, Alyson and Ryan Mulligan chose a small “still-in-quarantine” ceremony in Joshua Tree, California. The Abe and Mulligan families gathered under the desert sky for a day of poolside fun and pizza, followed by an intimate evening wedding. Rick officiated the ceremony himself, offering a heartfelt blessing as the couple began their life together. In just two years, he had experienced the bittersweet joy of letting go of his cherished daughters and the happiness of welcoming two sons into the family.

Rick walks with his family on the beach in Maui.

As the pandemic waned, Rick and Linda entered their new “empty nest” chapter. With their daughters grown and married, they embraced a season of exploration — traveling more often, discovering new restaurants, and seeking out local coffee shops and bakeries wherever they went. Around this time, Rick co-founded Nudj Health, a lifestyle medicine company on a mission to help people reverse chronic disease, another meaningful step in his lifelong journey of building and creating. He served as Chief Creative Officer to Nudj Health until his final days.

In February 2025, Rick was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He underwent extensive chemotherapy and chemoradiation, culminating in a difficult and risky surgery. Despite the physically grueling year, he found deep meaning in connecting intentionally with family and friends.

Rick passed away on March 5, 2026, from sudden complications following the surgery that removed the last of his cancer. He died cancer-free.

Rick’s faith in God served as his constant north star, supported by his marriage, his daughters, his extended family, and the friend and faith communities he served. Even when life presented challenges, Rick consistently returned to the people and values he loved most: his family – Linda, Lyanne, Alyson, Austin, Ryan, Baily, and their beloved dogs – and a life of service.

Rick left this world at peace, knowing he had become the good design he was meant to be. His legacy, and his hope for those who knew and loved him, is that we do the same: step into the lives we were created to live.