From: Eyvette Jones
Eyvette@urbanpossibilities.org
Subject: Michael Gray
April 22, 2011

Gone Too Soon

In the trenches of doing this work we met a soldier who became a warrior for our cause. An Air Force veteran gifted with words who was living on LA’s Skid Row,. Michael Douglas Gray was a student in our first class. He joined our “Men Only” Published Writers Program held at a shelter to help men who had been through life’s worst rediscover their beauty, reconnect to their gifts, and write a new chapter in their lives.

When writing teacher extraordinaire Dorothy Randall Gray and I opened the doors to that class, who knew the blessings that would rush in. Michael was chief among them. In him the work took fire. He wrote fearlessly about deep love, great loss, and fatherhood. He was a powerfully eloquent speaker that routinely left us in awe. He was a natural leader who created a strong brotherhood among men who, outside those walls, might have been mortal enemies.

And he wrote and wrote and wrote. There were times he couldn’t afford to eat but he still wrote. About 18 months later, he self-published his first novel Pharmekia and gave us the privilege of seeing what a courageous comeback looks like up close when someone is empowered and their light is turned on. He’d walked through what many could not survive and wrote his way out of it. With pen and in person, he stood bravely to tell the story.

TV interview for Career Day

He attended clothing drives, conferences, events, and meetings big and small to share his story to further our work. He wrote thank-you letters to donors, researched grants, and constantly brainstormed about how to help us reach more men. He was spiritual and unselfish, keenly insightful, and a man of rare honor.

Michael died suddenly of a massive heart attack while in a class, as always searching for greater truth. He was completing his second book, The Journey Home. Although we deeply mourn his loss, we also celebrate the life of this student who became our teacher. The man who showed us that our work was far bigger than we imagined-more powerful than we knew.

Michael Gray speaking at Urban Possibilities Published Writers Program event

Michael loved his family and adored his children.  So here’s a final gift from our favorite wordsmith.  Dedicated to his daughters, he wrote this in that very first class:

As Fathers Rise

I can still see her so clearly
big brown eyes and tiny feet
the light weight of her on my chest
as we both would fall asleep

From the start she was my responsibility
But I knew that I was lacking
many important qualities

Memories of her mother’s tummy
Memories of my daughter and me
Bring joy but now guilt and shame
Keep joy close company

You see I’ve fallen as her father
but the truth seems to be
That it was necessary
to correct my deficiency

Be a strong provider
make her smile and meet her needs
I must first trust in God our Father
to do the same for me

Seek him early each morning
His direction to guide me
With prayer and perseverance
I will keep growing steadily

And I will see her again so clearly
older now, same big brown eyes
that once saw her father fallen
and now has seen her father rise

Contributions are being collected for Michael’s children.

If you would like to honor Michael’s memory with a donation, make your check payable to Genoila Gray (Michael’s mother) and send to Urban Possibilities: 1233 1/2 S. Citrus Los Angeles, CA 90010 and we will forward to the family. If you would like to send condolences, you can mail it to our address or email us with the subject: Michael Gray. Please note your donation will go directly to Michael’s family and is not tax deductible.

 
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