Raymond J.

Champagne

A private memorial service was held for Raymond Champagne – loving partner, father, grandfather, exoneree, leader, community member, and dear friend – passed away suddenly on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, in a motorcycle accident. He was 67 years old. Ray leaves behind his wife, Mary "Molly" Baldwin, his daughter Mechele Champagne Sholler, his grandchildren, Katelin, Jacqueline, Jacob, and Jordyn, his great grandchildren Keon, Titan, Kalista and Bristol Mae, and sister, Laura Champagne.

A deeply humble, acutely funny, and truly generous person, Ray was a rare joy and an inspiration to those who knew him.

Ray was born in Springfield, Massachusetts. Life was hard and, early on, he was more often on his own than not. In and out of trouble, he hitchhiked across the country several times, and was sent to prison at age 19 where, within a few short years, he was wrongfully convicted for a prison murder he did not commit. In prison, he found his love for reading, taught himself law, became an activist, and began helping one person after another. Respected always for being straightforward, fair, and helpful, he became well-known as "the old guy."

He and Molly fell in love the day they met in the mid-1980s. Over the years, and through many challenges, they found a way to stay connected and help each other. Ray learned to love more than hate and Molly learned more about love. They helped each other become better people.

After his wrongful conviction, Ray spent 41 more years behind bars, relentlessly fighting for his freedom alongside his lawyer and close friend, Lisa Kavanaugh, Director of the CPCS Innocence Program. Throughout his incarceration, Ray maintained an unshakeable sense of gratitude for those he loved and those who loved him. Ray's zeal for learning and his openness and curiosity toward those with different struggles from his made his innate empathy, brilliance, and natural authenticity apparent to anyone who spent time with him.

While in prison, Ray followed an intentional path of education and advocacy work, participating in the Prison Book Program, earning high marks in college-level courses offered through Curry College and Bunker Hill, and serving as an "inside" board member of Prisoner's Legal Services (PLS). Ray continuously partnered with lawyers and community advocates to promote prison reform and litigation efforts and worked with his daughter Mechele to support child development experts studying the impact of parental incarceration. In 2019, Ray was selected to be one of ten prisoners in a Tufts University course studying the literature of confinement, an experience in which he wrote many beautiful essays of self-examination and was deemed by the professor to be "a leader" and "a mentor and teacher for all of us."

Ray came home to Molly, his daughter and sister on February 18, 2020, immediately prior to the onset of the pandemic. Upon his long-deserved exoneration and release from prison, Ray barely left time to celebrate his new life before channeling his energy into civic participation, relishing the privilege to vote, and developing a targeted plan for helping others. Along with fellow exonerees Sean Ellis and Victor Rosario, Ray co-founded The Exoneree Network, a welcoming community to support the practical, emotional, and spiritual reentry needs of exonerees as they work to rebuild their lives in freedom. Each day, Ray committed himself to developing resources and healing spaces for the growing community of people freed from wrongful convictions.

Ray spent the last 30 months of his life in the community, flanked by friends and family who were, and still are, in awe of his hard-earned wisdom, unwavering strength, and compassionate spirit. Several times in the past few months, Ray would say to Molly, "Today, I feel free."

To honor Ray's memory, in lieu of flowers, donations in Ray's honor may be made to the Exoneree Network at https://bit.ly/3uMLscp .

In Honor of Our Dear Friend, Ray Champagne

It is with profound sadness that we share the news that Ray Champagne -- exoneree, leader, community member, loving partner, father, brother, grandfather, and dear friend – passed away suddenly on Tuesday, July 12, in a motorcycle accident. Wise, funny, thoughtful, exceedingly kind, and always honest, Ray made an impact on everyone he met ...

Watch the NEIP tribute video below. Which is very very hard to watch, but incredibly powerful.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQDczXIO_-s

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