Home >> Raymond C. Whitlock III

But we called him Rai.

As far as I know, he did not smoke a day in his life, but cancer went after his lungs, his brain, and his bones and took him away from his family and friends on June 19, 2008.

I don’t think I’ve ever known a more unpretentious and generous creative soul than Rai. He was never in a hurry and he had an openness that allowed his friends to tell him anything. He was always curious about our projects and ideas and would draw out the shyest heart.

Rai was an artist every minute of every day and his mind’s eye was always open. He could see and connect in-congruency by giving value to seemingly unrelated, ordinary objects and situations. He created a piece of art every week for his friends—a vehicle to gather us for a cup of coffee early Friday mornings. My attendance these past 7 years was sparse because of distance and children. But Rai always included me in his invitations.

Back in 2001, I had the opportunity to walk the streets of San Fransisco with Rai and my friends from CTi. I watched him see and caught him and “Charlie” in the photo above while all of us were taking in the city. Yesterday was his funeral and ironically on the cover of his program was his last composition in a cigar box. Old Man Charlie (cancer) took our beloved Rai away. Maybe it was the second hand smoke in his childhood home in Rome or a weak link in his DNA. Ultimately I have to accept that it was just Rai’s time to go home and Jesus took his hand over the threshold of heaven. It’s so hard to say goodbye to my treasure-hunting, soul-searching, garbage-picking friend Rai, who always had his eyes to the ground looking for bits with which to compose. I’m better off just saying, “See ya later.” God has placed artifacts all over heaven’s soil for you to find forever, my friend!

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