My Friend Raymond

Documentary filmmaker, Frank Panico had often seen a mysterious 57-year-old handicapped man limping into church using his walker. Without knowing anyone was watching, the downtrodden man would quietly take a seat in the back of the Church.This man's demeanor touched Frank's heart, since it appeared as if he had hit rock bottom. After church, Frank offered the man a ride home. The disheveled stranger gave Mr. Panico a slight smile, and with gratitude, accepted the ride. The stranger introduced himself, "My name is Raymond Matthew Battey, but people sometimes call me Ray".Raymond appeared to always be in excruciating pain, but this never stopped his faithfulness. He would still walk to church, because of his deep love for God. Frank found compassion for Raymond, and felt like there must be an interesting story behind his situation-a story that needs to be told. Raymond became a subject for Frank's next film.Ray spoke slowly and with a slur. Frank knew, if Raymond accepted his proposal to