Debbie Walsh cannot remember the first time she met volunteer Robert Ramos. But that, she says, merely demonstrates his soft-spoken, unassuming demeanor. When this former prisoner shared his testimony during Operation Starting Line (OSL) in-prison evangelistic events, “men and women listened intently,” says OSL organizer Debbie, “for his story was told in a straightforward, unembellished way.” Once heard, his testimony of drug use, street warfare, and ultimate redemption was not easily forgotten.
When Robert finally walked out of prison in 1992, he at first hesitated to return and minister to others, says his wife, Marilyn. “He was like, ‘I’ve been in prison, why would I want to go back?’” she says. “He fought it for a while, but he felt like the Lord wanted him to share what the Lord had done in him and for him.”
Robert became the leader of prison ministry at his church, Christ Tabernacle in New York, and he also went through Prison Fellowship’s Volunteer-in-Prison training at the prompting of his own Prison Fellowship mentor, Charles Langley.
Once he started, Robert could not stop. As often as he could, he ministered in prisons close to his New York home, and he traveled for days to participate in Operation Starting Line campaigns across the United States. He was marked by his dedication and joy.
“He could really relate to prisoners, and the guys could relate to him,” says Charles. “I could go in there and do a seminar, but the guys really listed to Robert. He had a presence about him.”
“I just know that he just loved going out,” adds Marilyn. “He used to come back rejoicing and told me about everything that would happen. He would come back happy and excited to talk about it. He saw it all as a blessing.”
Undaunted by Illness
When Robert became ill near the end of his life, says Marilyn, “even the hospital couldn’t stop him . . . He would talk to the nurses about the Lord.”
Though Robert was obviously quite ill during the trip, says Debbie, he never complained. Rather, she adds, he maintained to the end his grateful attitude. Whenever anyone asked him, “How are you?” he answered, “I am blessed.”In 2008 Debbie called Robert to tell him that their mutual friend and fellow Operation Starting Line volunteer, Connie Wagner, was ill with liver disease. During that call, Robert said several times, “I sure wish the old OSL family could be together again.” When Connie died in 2009, an OSL program was held at a North Carolina prison in her honor. Robert and Marilyn attended the event, and Robert shared his testimony. Also participating were many other members of the “OSL family” he had longed to see.
Robert dreamed of recovering sufficiently to resume his prison ministry, but he died in March 2010.
At Robert’s funeral in New York, says Charles, even the local gang leaders came to pay their respects at the grave site. Robert’s life had a compelling difference that all who crossed paths with him recognized.
“He was just an ordinary person,” explains Charles. “The difference in him was that he loved the Lord, and he never lost faith—no matter what happened in life.”
By surrendering to God’s intentions for his life, Robert went from the depths of despair to the heights of grace and showed others to walk in the same way.
One winter Robert and Charles returned to a facility where Robert had been incarcerated. They planned to lead a Prison Fellowship seminar together for the inmates. At the gate, they were greeted by a chaplain and some corrections officers who remembered Robert from his days of imprisonment.
One of the corrections officers asked, “Chaplain, is this one of those miracles?”
The chaplain smiled. “This is what Jesus can do.”