Ray “Speedy” Walker, a former high school basketball star, has faced numerous challenges after a near-fatal tragedy.
In April 2020, he was driving with his mother and aunt to drop flowers on his grandmother’s grave when a dark SUV smashed into their vehicle. Eunique Ebbs, a 45-year-old former school bus driver, lost control of her automobile and smashed into a tree, leaving her son comatose.
He told People, “When I woke up, I was facing the radio and couldn’t move.” “It felt like a dream.
He attempted to wake his mother and his 23-year-old aunt, Shaique Andrews, but they were both unresponsive, and they died shortly after being transported to a nearby hospital.
Walker, who intended to play basketball in college, was diagnosed with significant spinal cord damage and required a wheelchair for mobility. The loss of his mother and aunt exacerbated his predicament.
He went on to say, “It was tough, but I promised myself in the hospital that I would be more positive, smile more, and be grateful that I’m still here.”
A year after the injury, he discovered Split Second Fitness, an adaptive gym developed in 2021 for individuals with brain impairments, spinal cord injuries, and other disabilities. Mark Raymond Jr., a New Orleans local, started the gym after sustaining major arm and hand injuries in a diving accident in 2016 that prevented him from walking.
The center provides well-designed fitness equipment and therapy activities to help clients become physically and emotionally stronger.
Walker, 22, has found fresh hope, saying, “Split Second absolutely transformed my life. I do not think I would have gone this far without them. It has given everyone of us the opportunity to continue living, exercising, and enhancing our quality of life. It’s become a second home to me.”
Walker also received legal aid from Raymond Jr.’s Foundation to better comprehend the complex social security system.
Walker, featured in a 2023 episode of Netflix’s Queer Eye, stated that being crippled requires twice the strength of others. My objective has always been to regain my freedom and live on my own, and Mark’s gym has helped me achieve that. “What they do there is more than just fitness.”
Raymond Jr. added, “Anybody’s life can change in a single second, like mine did. What our organization is truly all about is ‘How can I give you hope? And how can I assist you turn that hope into concrete actions that will lead to a brighter tomorrow?”
Walker now has his own apartment and automobile, thanks to his hard work and the support of Raymond Jr’s gym and charity.