CWC Alliance News Room

Today we walked in honor of Christopher Wolf and all those lives lost to the opioid epidemic.

By Cammie Wolf Rice

It is with sincere gratitude that today, September 18, 2019, we celebrate the 1-year anniversary of the Christopher Wolf Crusade. When we founded CWC a year ago, we could have never imagined the depths to which our supporters would cover us with love and kindness. Your prayers, kind words, and love have helped us along this journey in more ways than you could ever know.

CWC is bigger than one family, one mother, one story. CWC is a movement. We are a crusade on a mission to change and save lives. We are happy to announce that in our first year, we’ve moved the needle toward our mission in more ways than one. With your love and support we were able to:

Open Christopher’s Hope, the 1st infant NICU unit in Cambodia.

Donated to the CCF Christopher’s Hope Health Clinic (also named in Christopher’s honor), which serves 200 patients daily.

Launched the CWC Youth Certification program with Usher’s New Look and the Boys and Girls Club of Southeastern Michigan. Together we are implementing a peer to peer youth training program to certify youth on opioid prevention and addiction.

Launched our Life Pain Specialist Program in Grady Memorial Hospital (Atlanta)

Built an awareness campaign. Please follow the #WolfCrusade hashtag to see where we’ve been!

Launched a 3-part editorial series from founder Cammie Wolf Rice, entitled “A Mother’s Love.”

As you can see, it’s been quite a journey… and the best part is we’ve only just begun. Christopher, we thank you for driving this ship. With your guidance, we will continue to help people heal. Happy Birthday.

Thank You All.

– Cammie

What could possibly motivate over two dozen teenagers to leave their beds during summer vacation on an early Saturday morning? Big Sean’s DON Weekend at the Boys and Girls Club of Southeastern Michigan. (BGCSM) The festivities kicked off with a presentation by our very own Christoper Wolf Crusaders: students who traveled to Atlanta back in June to learn all about the opioid epidemic. Our crusaders lead a peer to peer ambassador program for students to learn about the opioid epidemic.

The Crusaders are apart of a pilot certification program spearheaded by Cammie Rice and The Christopher Wolf Crusade. The collaboration between CWC, BGCSM, and Usher’s New Look is set to educate youth across the globe on addiction and prevention. More details will be announced later this year.

Our mission is to educate youth about methods of prevention and signs of opioid abuse, beginning with our Crusaders.

Those seven Crusaders led their peers in a series of social experiments and games on Saturday morning, designed to educate them about the methods they brainstormed during their trip to Atlanta. As their peers filed in the room they were offered different colored Mike and Ike candies that — unbeknownst to the students — represented pills with different side effects. In a presentation, they revealed that green candies represented those who overdosed from drug use at a party, yellow represented those who became addicted to opioids through a doctors prescription, red represented those who experimented with drugs and became addicted, and so on.

Two students who indulged in the candies, 11th grade Jai’lee and college freshman Shannon, said they were “sick” that they fell into the trap.

“I’m just rolling with the punches,” Shannon said as she downed a handful of pink candies. “It’ll be fine.”

However, her face quickly sobered as Rice shared real life statistics about opioid addiction.

“Opioid addiction is your generations epidemic,” said Rice.

She went on to point out the messages endorsing opioid use in music. The seven student ambassadors led a game of musical chairs where students had to point out the lyrics that referenced drug use.

Roy Ridgle, 19, participated in the game and said the activity helped him become more focused on the things he digests.

“[Lyrics] usually go in one ear and out the other,” said Ridgle. “[I] will pay attention to lyrics more.”

At BGCSEM students get a safe space to explore their interests, talents, and become informed about social issues in a fun environment. Consider a youth or adult membership today!

ABRIANA WALTON

By Cammie Wolf Rice

As I reflect on the events that have occurred since my dear Christopher’s passing, I am overwhelmed with an array of emotions. To say that my steps have been ordered is an understatement. I know, without doubt that I am indeed in divine alignment with God’s plan.

a·lign·ment

the act of aligning or state of being aligned

especially : the proper positioning or state of adjustment of parts in relation to each other

Since Christopher’s physical departure from this earth, his spirit has been at work, facilitating the divine alignment of the many pieces of puzzle that make up our story. You may remember in the second installment of my A Mother’s Love series, I talked about the Calmette Hospital in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, and the wonderful doctors and staff there who cared for Christopher’s body immediately after his passing. Little did I know at the time, the Calmette Hospital would become such an integral part in Christopher’s legacy. But, that’s exactly what alignment is all about.

I recently traveled to Cambodia to celebrate 15 years of The Cambodia Children’s Fund. I currently serve as a member of the CCF US’ Board of Directors. As you can imagine, I travel to Cambodia often, but this trip was especially special. It was on this trip that I was able to see alignment in action.

When my son, Christopher passed away on February 26, 2016, my friends, Emory physicians Dr. Jenny and Dr. Dawn were there traveling with us from the States. It was Dr. Jenny who lovingly performed CPR on Christopher for an hour until the paramedics arrived. At his viewing that night, I told her that we’d met for a reason, and as life would have it – every day I continue to learn how huge that reason truly was. In A Mothers Love Part II, I explained how amazed I was to learn that exactly 3 years to the date of Christopher’s death, my friends Dr. Jenny and Dr. Dawn would return to Cambodia to conduct a leadership, training, and mentoring program for doctors and nurses at Calmette Hospital.

As if that isn’t mind-blowing enough, while on this recent trip to Cambodia, I was able to revisit the Calmette Hospital for the ribbon cutting ceremony of their NICU Unit, Christopher’s Hope. How beautiful is it to know that precious babies will be nurtured, loved, and saved in a unit in honor of the greatest giver of love I’ve ever known: Christopher. Talk about breathtaking. We wanted to do something special to thank Dr. Ra, at Calmette for taking such special care of Christopher. We are grateful that to have been able to contribute to their cause, supporting them as they have so graciously supported our family and the legacy of our son.

As amazing as that is, the story doesn’t stop there. While in Cambodia, I visited the health clinic (also named) Christopher’s Hope – that serves patients in Cambodia, and employs 28 people and counting. After my son passed, we asked for donations in lieu of flowers for Christopher’s funeral. Our loving family and friends contributed over $200K, which directly benefited the clinic that CCF’s CEO, Scott Neeson, named in Christopher’s honor. This amazing clinic services the CCF children and their families, as they see close to 200 patients daily. We have been blessed to assist in numerous renovations including the remodeling and addition of equipment including a tele-medicine service with Emory! My son’s legacy is literally helping people heal, which was one of his life’s passions.

I am thrilled to see the progress we’ve made within the Christopher Wolf Crusade in such a short time, and I know that the strides will only continue to grow larger. The calls, texts, messages, posts, and support I’ve received from you all since our launch is unmatched. I’m so very grateful for the crusaders that are present, and the ones that are to come. While I do none of this for recognition, I was completely shocked and honored to learn that I’d be receiving a Medal of Honor from Her Royal Highness Princess Samdech Sisowath Pongneary Monipong of Cambodia herself. The ceremony was absolutely beautiful, and a memory I will hold near and dear to my heart forever.

The best part of it all is that I know deep down that that was Christopher’s doing as well. It’s as if he’s making sure I know that he’s with me, cheering me along as I work to ensure that his legacy never dies… and it won’t. Because a Mother’s Love is never-ending and true. And a MOM always gets it done.

By Cammie Wolf Rice

Ever since I began to share my story, I’ve received such an outpouring of love, support, and genuine advice from family, friends, strangers, and more. I cannot express in words how grateful I am to have such loving people in my world. Every text, call, post, and prayer has touched my soul in ways that I could’ve never imagined. For that, I thank you. All of you.

I’ve learned that there is a silver lining with everything. I’m blessed to know that even in grief, I am able to share the wonder and power of God with everyone I meet.

Tragedy in and of itself is an excruciating, unwanted disruption to reality. It destroys life as you know it and leaves you with many questions. Perhaps the most unanswered of these is simply, “why?” When tragedy leads to extraordinary events it becomes an unexplainable phenomenon that no one but God himself can take credit for.

The events that have taken place since my sweet Christopher left this world have been nothing short of miraculous. I’ve learned that while it all may seem unexplainable to me, it is a reflection of how God works. He truly does work in supernatural ways.

Christopher passed away during a Mission’s trip to Cambodia. I serve on the advisory board of Emory Global Health Institute, so Dr. Jenny and Dr. Dawn two Atlanta based doctors traveled with us. On the morning that I found my Christopher, Dr. Jenny stood by our sides – performing CPR on his lifeless body for an hour before the paramedics arrived. Deep down I’m sure she knew he was gone, but I know she did that for me.

Later on, as I panicked about what would happen to my son’s body in such a foreign land, the CEO of Calmette Hospital appeared in the doorway. Seeing that I’d just met with him a few days prior, I was relieved to see him. He assured my husband and I and that they’d take good care of him, and they kept their word. Later that night the hospital set up a viewing in a beautiful tent to honor Christopher. As I walked away from the tent, I hugged Dr. Jenny and told her that I knew we’d met for a greater purpose. I just didn’t know what that purpose was…. But a bond was formed that day.

My Christopher was a devout Catholic… the only one in our family. So imagine my shock when exactly 6 months after his passing I was presented with an opportunity to meet the Pope. I know that this was not a coincidence, but an act of God – letting me know that Christopher was indeed safe with Him. But it didn’t stop there. Normally, meetings with the Pope go a little something like this – you stand in a long line and are greeted from afar. Not this time. On that day, the Pope decided that he wanted to greet and bless each person individually. He even blessed the Saint Christopher medallion than I’d recently purchased. I can’t express the joy I felt, knowing that Christopher was watching all of this from above. I know it warmed his heart, as it did mine.

Since then Dr. Jenny and I have continued to work together. Just last month I spoke with her as she and Dr. Dawn prepared to return to Cambodia. She was headed there to conduct a leadership, training, and mentoring program for doctors and nurses at Calmette Hospital – the same hospital that took care of Christopher’s body after he passed.

“When does the training begin?” I asked Dr. Jenny … to which she replied, “February 26th.”

February 26, 2016 was the day Christopher took his last breath on this side of heaven. But as you can see, God is seeing to it that the life he lived will continue to serve purpose here on Earth. Calmette Hospital is opening a NICU unit called Christopher’s Hope. My family and I will travel to Cambodia in May for the ribbon cutting ceremony and grand opening of the unit. Though my pain is real, so are the hand’s of God. I can never doubt the fact that both He and my Christopher are with me, each and every step of the way… and the extraordinary events continue to happen.

By Cammie Wolf Rice

Life has a way of placing us on paths we never imagined… forcing us to wrestle with giants we were never prepared to fight. I am in that phase of life right now. Facing the future with real purpose. My sweet Christopher is with me. I feel him. I hear him… each and every day.

I was the one who discovered him. On the bathroom floor. My eldest son. My Christopher. Dead. In the aftermath, I was sucked into a black hole of shock, horror and grief that, honestly, I didn’t know if I could survive. But I did survive. Joining a distinctly American sorority – a mother who has lost a child to opioid addiction. Opioids? Addiction? My Christopher? My most important learning experience over the last 20 years is that this didn’t have to happen.

Christopher’s passion was helping people heal. He did so his entire life, with his warm personality, loving aura, and infectious smile. As a kid, Christopher was an avid leader. Inquisitive and intellectual, his pre-occupations always seemed to revolve around solving people’s problems. There was just this natural instinct for helping others. As he grew older, this sensitivity settled into something more profound. His warmth, his smile, his freely given hugs. Even in the briefest encounters with him, people would leave feeling better about themselves or their situation. He was a man who reached out and connected. His passion and mission continue on although his physical presence has moved on. I am certain without a shadow of doubt, that even now… his spirit lives.

Christopher was strong, but for many years, he fought a courageous battle with Ulcerative Colitis (UC). UC is an inflammatory bowel disease in which the immune system attacks the colon. This horrific condition causes chronic abdominal pain, diarrhea, bleeding and weight loss. It weakens bones and ravages the immune system. Having this disease leads to a life full of painful and potentially humiliating experiences, and a dependency on medications with unpredictable effectiveness. The medication that was prescribed to deal with his acute physical pain, became the very real demon he’d go to war with until his passing.

Colon removal surgery lead to a 70-day hospital stay, which included a morphine drip. Think about that. An underweight, 17-year-old minor, saddled with a chronic disease, was prescribed one of the strongest narcotics on the planet – for 70 days. This was followed by four successive 90-day regimens of Oxycontin, a relatively new drug at that time. At no point, did any of his doctors discuss the pain management plan with me. Nor did they express caution or concern about the potential for dependency. It will surprise no one reading this to learn that after the prescriptions ran out, Christopher like many others turned to the streets to manage his own pain. Anyone who knew Christopher would never have predicted this. In the face of crippling pain, even the strongest can grow dependent. Over the next decade, we went through wrenching rehab, recovery, then relapse. He worked hard in the programs. SO HARD… and never lost his belief that he could beat this. Rehab Counselors would tell me that Christopher spent much of his time helping fellow addicts. An empathetic ear, an encouraging word, a freely given hug.

What sets Christopher’s story apart and made his struggle even more difficult was the UC. A flare up would send him to an Emergency Room. And based on what is considered the normal course of treatment in American hospitals today — given opiates to deal with the physical pain. Our family encircled him with unwavering support and unconditional love. Because it’s Christopher. Because we could not imagine life without him. I could not imagine life without him. How could we ever stop believing in him and his capacity to defeat this? What I want everyone reading this to know and remember, is that Christopher fought this. He fought with everything in him until his body could no longer house the pain. His last words to me were, “Thank you, Mom, for always taking care of me. I love you.” I find solace in knowing that Christopher felt my love for him every day and knows now that I will continue to take care of him and his legacy, as he does me.

While Christopher’s journey on this earth has ended, his life’s mission of helping others continues. I’m in the passenger seat and he’s driving. Together we will do everything we can do to help prevent opioid addiction. It feels like a crusade, because it is. Christopher’s legacy, like so many others affected by addiction, deserves our boldest actions. This requires a movement. I founded Christopher Wolf Crusade without an MD or PhD after my name, but I do have the love and passion that comes with being a MOM.