biography
Sam Richards would later learn in life that he was the embodiment of middle child syndrome, he was the unofficial Jan Brady of the Richards clan. Born on May 1st, 1982, Sam was born in the heart of the south - Savannah, Georgia. His middle class upbringing was what dreams were made of and he was very much part of the average American family. His parents were blue collar, hard working Americans with respectable jobs. His mother held a job as an English teacher and his father was a sports journalist. With what his parents provided for the family, he led a very comfortable existence as far as basic needs went. But Sam had his own trials and tribulations that started early in childhood. Without knowing it, his older brother, Jon, became public enemy number one for a young Sam. Sam thankfully had his younger sister to moan and groan to but that feeling of inadequacy never really went away. If Sam brought home a B+, Jon brought home an A+ and a shiny gold star. If Sam landed a spot on the baseball team, Jon won the regional science fair and was probably going to cure cancer one of these days. His parents stroked his brother's ego a little far too much for his liking, making Sam feel his accomplishments weren't adequate enough.

He may not have had his brother's work ethic but he had a knack for getting into trouble. His thirst for attention meant getting into juvenile trouble while Hollis worked twice as hard to reach the bar that Jon had unintentionally set. Sam may not have been a problem child but his parents were quick to notice that he could maybe channel all of that rambunctious energy into activities that didn't have angry neighbors ringing the doorbell and having Sam sent to his room. Sam's schedule was littered with activities to keep him occupied rather than left to his own troublemaking devices.

Baseball helped inject some much needed structure into Sam's childhood. It had been decided by both of his parents that he needed something to focus all of that rambunctious energy into and sports was the default answer for any young boy. The sport was a success in two ways: it was something that Sam actually maintained an interest in for more than five seconds and his hidden athletic streak seemed to make his parents proud. His love affair with the sport continued into high school where he learned that much to his chagrin, he would actually have to keep up his grades to be able to participate and play on his school's team. Sam's focus at school was more so on social engagements than academics but he realized that if he wanted to have his cake and eat it too that he needed to buckle down. It was trying and a pain in the ass for the teenager but he soon found that if he actually put his mind to his school work that he could flourish - maybe not as well as his eldest brother - but enough to achieve scholastic success and put him on the honor roll. He found during his high school years that he had inherited his mother's love for English and his father's flair for reading, enjoyed his History classes, and that he actually enjoyed his French classes for something other than using the language to score dates. With his eye on the prize, Sam's primary goal for high school was to get into college out of state and away from Georgia. An acceptance letter to San Diego State University was the ticket he needed to move onto what he considered to be greener pastures.

College was where Sam lost his footing. He didn't have the structured environment of home to keep him in line nor did he have any incentive to keep his grades shiny and above average. He fell into the routine of partying and chasing girls as a way of cashing in on his newfound freedom hundreds of miles from the prying eyes of his parents. Unlike his older brother and his younger sister, Sam had virtually no direction in college. The question of what he wanted to do with his life was often went unanswered and had psychology not grabbed his interests, Sam would've been the guy to change his major at least once a semester. It was Sam's ability to be social and curiosity toward people that could've put him on the crash course to being a college drop out but in the end, saved him for his college career. He majored in Psychology and minored in European Studies for his own personal enjoyment. The college student was still as clueless as could be when it came to a career direction and when it came time for graduation, Sam found himself going back to Savannah with that sense of little to no direction in his life.

There were many useful things that Sam could do with a psychology degree but he had no interest at that point in time of pursuing his education on a higher level. At one point, it was even suggested to him to snag a job at a local high school as a school counselor but Sam cringed at the idea of doling out advice to kids that he only had a few years on. Instead he took odd job upon odd job while paying rent to his parents and often being asked why he couldn't have more direction like his more successful, older brother. Sam was past the point of rebelling against his parents and knew better to bite the hand that was keeping a roof above his head and him off of the street. The comments still stung and deflated his ego but it would be his sister that would back him up against his parents and tell them to lay off. The two younger children of the Richards clan grew closer as a result and Sam couldn't have been more grateful. For the next few years, Sam floated from odd job to odd job until he got in contact with an old high school buddy in the same boat as him who wanted someone to join him on his journey to become a paramedic. On a whim, Sam thought that it could be fun and it was a decision well made. The adrenaline rush was something that Sam relished in and it had always helped that he had a strong stomach. Sam was proud of himself and his work. His work saved lives and that was one thing that he had over his older brother that he took a lot of pride in. It was an achievement for Sam when he was able to get his Paramedic's license and to eventually move out of his parents' house (finally) and into an apartment. True to his nature, a routine developed in his life and he found himself growing increasingly complacent and restless.

At first, Sam flirted with the idea of going back to school until he realized that physically going back to school was not in the cards. But Sam wanted to continue his education and actually enjoy learning this time around when he wasn't on shift. In early 2012, Sam started online classes at USC which amused him due to it being his sister's alma mater's rival, in order to get a masters in social work. Slowly but surely, his job as an EMT started to lose its shine as it came time for him to start his field experience requirement for his degree.

Instead of getting a job in Georgia, Sam hightailed it to Huntington Beach for a fresh landscape and admittedly to be closer to his younger sister. He got a job at Del Amo which fulfilled his field experience requirement and continued to take online courses. When he graduated in the Spring of 2014 from USC, he left Del Amo for a job as a social worker in the Cardiac department of HOAG.