Judy Graves
15/05/2016

I have known Jim in the streets for almost 20 years. Most of that time he was living outside. But the past couple of years I've been able to move him into a place of his own in a new building.


Pastor Bob Swann at the First Baptist Church befriended Jim. During sober times, Bob would take Jim home to live in his house with his family. And Jim has spent every Christmas and every Easter at the Swann's home.

Jim is Algonquin, born in Sudbury, probably fetal alcohol. was raised in Saskatchewan by grandparents, was in foster care group homes by his teens and did 16 years in prison starting in his early 20's.
Somewhere, Jim has a daughter, now adult.
Jim is 57. We thank God for the miracle he is still alive. He is a warm, loyal, childlike man. He loves and is loved. We figure it took 12 years of Bob coming to the church, of us going into the streets to find him, of feeding him and tending to his wounds before Jim recognized what love is. He asked to be baptized. He loves the church and is loved.

The growth hasn't been all Jim's. When we found him he was violent and threatening. He showed up, demanding at the most inopportune times. Everything we did for him came promptly undone. There were years of no progress. Those years were the time when we learned what love meant. We learned to love Jim as he is. And we learned the cost of loving. We love him in a way we could never have imagined 20 years ago.

Now the years of drinking are catching up with this man we love. He is losing his strength. He has cirrhosis and hepatitis. He has no teeth, and has severe infections. He has little memory for date or time and cannot remember what we told him a few minutes before. We find him drinking beer in the alley, and are glad that he is still alive and enjoying the sunshine, enjoying his beer and his buddies. Jim tells us he is dying.


I've spent a lot of the past few days finding our wandering friend, taking him through the Emergency Department, through Outpatients, through the Lab explaining Jim's needs to the Doctors and the Doctors questions to Jim. We are hoping to get him another year, maybe two.

Doing this is an act of gratitude. So grateful to Jim for his presence in our lives and teaching us agape.

Please pray for Jim,

16/05/16 PS. We now have a week of antibiotics to get into Jim, 2x a day. We are sharing the task of tracking him down and getting the tablets and a cup of water into him. It is like holding mercury in your hand.

Judy