Randy & Goliath

The story of Randy and Goliath takes a lot of twists and turns including a turn towards tragedy, and yet in the end becomes a story of hope. Randy lived a normal, average kind of life for a long time. He was married and made a living as an over the road truck driver.

Near the end of the marriage, Randy and his wife acquired a Pekinese puppy which they named Goliath. And as puppies tend to do, Goliath became a much loved member of the family, and the importance of this increased as the marriage came to an end.

Because not only was the marriage unraveling, so was Randy's ability to function without substance abuse. He ended up homeless on the street, taking Goliath, now his only link to stability and family, with him.

A couple of years ago, Randy and Goliath found their way to Olympia. They became a familiar sight, the two of them always together. To Randy, Goliath was family, like the son he'd never had. Goliath helped Randy to stay emotionally stable and so became his service dog in addition to his family role.

During this time Randy found the Street Lights ministry and became a regular, and he also

became a regular at the Celebrate Recovery program at Capital Christian Center. He was outspoken about his faith during this time, and was struggling with the issues that were keeping him on the streets.

Now Randy had worked hard to overcome his addictions, and he says that he had made a vow to God that he wouldn't smoke pot anymore. Randy tells us that the night he decided to light up is the same night that he suffered a brain aneurism. His camp partner rushed him to the hospital in critical condition, and he wasn't expected to make it.

A few weeks before, Randy had asked Leanne from Covenant Creatures to please take care of Goliath if anything happened to him. So when his camp partner called her, she took Goliath in, and discovered the dog had severe tooth infections that would have probably killed him if they weren't caught at that time.

And now? Goliath is healthy and living in a foster home. He once again is a service dog, this time to his foster dad who is recovering from back surgery and needs motivation to do a lot of walking.

Randy spent two months in the hospital and is now receiving therapy and care at a state run home. He feels very humbled by his experience, has grown a lot stronger in his faith, and has made progress in learning how to be accountable. Randy believes he has seen God's hand at work in his life, and is thankful for how that working led to a good life for Goliath, and a time of strong personal and spiritual growth for Randy.

Please pray for physical, emotional and spiritual healing for Randy,and also that his relationships with his family will be restored and made whole.

City Gates Ministries