Richard Willich

Is it the truth? Is it fair? Will it improve things?”

Those words were emblazoned on T-shirts worn by many of the 500 guests who attended Richard Willich’s Leaded Tea Party and Labor Day Picnic on Sept. 5 in Nocatee.

They are questions that we might ask ourselves daily, and they form the philosophical foundation for the companies of Ponte Vedra philanthropist and businessman Willich.

Willich is CEO of MDI Holdings, headquartered in Nocatee. He is also a passionate American patriot.

Proud of his 30 years in the Marine Corps (including a stint in Vietnam that earned him a Purple Heart and several Medals of Valor), his background growing up in the tough “Slag Valley” steel mill section of South Chicago, and his years as a running back and captain of the football team in high school and college, Willich had a patriotic message for some young football players from Nease, Ponte Vedra and Pedro Menendez high schools on Labor Day weekend.

“Remember, guys, you wear different colors under the Friday night lights, but when the jerseys come off, you’re all red, white and blue Americans,” he said. Read More…

Already faced with permitting challenges for an outdoor gun range at his Nocatee business property, Richard Willich is having difficulty getting approval for another project there – a boardwalk for a bird park and preserve.

Willich applied to the St. Johns County Development Review Committee last month for a permit to transform 5 acres on his MDI Holdings property into “Old Florida.”

“We want to return it to its natural state,” he said. “We don’t have the permit, but as soon as we get the permit we will start the work.”

If the $200,000 project is approved, pine scrubs on the property west of Ponte Vedra Beach will be cut down to stumps and the roots will be left to decay while native trees and plants are planted in their place. The plan also calls for a boardwalk, a man-made lake and identification signs to identify plant species. Read More…