Raymond went into the hospital on December 14th, 2021 for a liver transplant and was expecting a quick recovery.  He was able to go home on December 22nd in time for Christmas but came down with a fever of 103° and went back in the hospital on December 26th after going to the emergency room.  While in the hospital, he was diagnosed with COVID-19 on top of his body beginning to reject the transplant.  In an effort to save the transplant, Raymond underwent several surgeries with limited success and ended up back in ICU following his kidneys shutting down.  There are potentially several other surgeries on the horizon, but Raymond was deemed not strong enough to proceed and sent home for bed rest until he could be well enough to have another procedure.
Raymond came to The Healing Place in Richmond, VA on July 2, 2010 and began his new life of sobriety and helping others.  He completed the entirety of the program and took on a position of service to those coming behind him until he became an Alumnus #337 on February 3, 2014.  He continued to work with the organization in several different capacities through 2017 and touched the lives of hundreds of men seeking recovery from alcoholism and addiction along the way.  He continued to serve the recovery community as well as The Healing Place, returning to give classes, help in the office, teach the new men how to love themselves.  He would always end his class with the group shouting "I am somebody!" when a lot of us couldn't fathom someone caring about us at all.   For many addicts and alcoholics, Raymond has shown hope where there was none.
Anyone who knows Raymond, knows his smile and his desire to help others.  When asking him to provide the details of his current situation for this post, all he could talk about was how he wanted to get better so he could tell people how dangerous his old way of life was and how his story could be the one someone else needed to hear to make better choices.  
Being unable to work, unable to walk, and unable to make ends meet has not dampened his spirit of caring for others over himself.  He talks of worry of paying the bills and faith that they will be provided for in the same breath.  Raymond has put his everything into the hopeless  ones, and many of us wouldn't have stuck around without the love he brings. Please help take the worry out of the equation and give Raymond the hope back that he gave to so many of us.