Hey y'all. It's your boy, House. I really don't like to ask for anything. I will this time, because I'm not asking for myself, I'm asking on behalf of my college best friend, the late Eric Lamar Quander.

As you may or may not know, Eric (Big E.) transitioned on November 4, 2025, while working in his home city of Richmond, VA. Eric was known and loved by many, and I hope your love for him will extend to his family, Alzora and Ashoka, as they deal with the difficult task of saying goodbye. I don't know the extent of your relationship with Eric, or where you may have met him. Most of us met him in high school at Richmond Community or in college at James Madison University. Nonetheless, you knew he was a character and was always doing the most! No one knew Eric as I did. I will not get into our history, but I want you to remember your history with him. How he may have moved you to laughter while in school, or how he touched a part of you with a stunning theatrical performance. However your path crossed with Eric's, I'm sure you still remember that experience. Eric was not shy nor was he quiet. He lit up any room he entered, and he did it with such ease that he would have you eating out of his hands in minutes! The charisma and charm he would exude, folks could not get enough of! He had high hopes for life, and he was always reinventing himself as time dealt him many setbacks and roadblocks. Whether those obstacles were in his career, health, or home, he always managed to greet you with a smile. Eric wore many hats as he navigated to provide better for him and his family. Eric always did what he thought was best for them, all the while looking for even better opportunities to uplift his family. And, on that November 4th night, that's exactly what he was doing; working and chasing his dreams. Being a thespian and chaser of dreams, Eric was not financially where he'd envisioned. Still, he pushed on to do what he could for him and his family. His untimely passing has become a financial burden and nightmare. He was the sole provider for his family, and now without him, they literally have nothing. They really need our help now more than ever before! Eric's widow is now faced with challenges she never knew existed and challenges she never knew she would have to face alone. The time has come for us to reach into our hearts to help Alzora and Ashoka land in a place where they can be safe, where they can be nourished, and a place where they can grow, learn, and love. Life is not fair. Nor do we turn our backs on people who are just victims of their circumstances. Please choose to help them navigate in the right direction as the dynamics of their family have changed forever. I hope that you hear me as I ask you to not turn your back on a mother and child whose life has not been a crystal stair. I hope that you can find it in your heart to donate to this fund as we want to cremate his remains, and give Alzora the financial support she will need to start life anew with her beautiful, intelligent young son. She deserves our support as she begins this solo voyage with a growing young boy in this mean, mean world. Please share this information far and wide, so that we can appropriately and dutifully launch Alzora and Ashoka into the unknown with the tools they will need to be successful. I know we all are going through something, but I hope that you can take a step outside yourselves, and see the picture through someone else's eyes. I hope that you can be a participant in uplifting two souls who need our shoulders to stand on so that they can get their footing. You can be the writer and pen in the closing act of this one-man show. When the house lights come on, please do not let Alzora and Ashoka be standing all alone. Please do not abandon them. It's only with your support that they will be catapulted onward and upward.

Thank you so, so much for your time and attention. Thank you so much for your prayers, and thank you so much for not turning your back on Eric's family. They need you. They need all of us to come together. Please commit and contribute as much as you can to this fund as Eric has taken his last bow and the curtains have closed. Goodnight brotha. Bravo!!

No more drama, no more lights, no more lines. It's time to rest. . .

Regards,

Thomas "House" Houchens