Raymond Allen Johnson

Raymond Allen Johnson passed away into the arms of the Lord on October 28, 2021.   Raymond was born on March 22, 2016 in Austin, Texas to the parents of Riley Daniel Johnson and Lauren Haley Trail.  Raymond’s love for life started on day 1 to the day he left us. Raymond was always full of so much energy, especially when he played outside, which was something that he always enjoyed.   His best friends were his sister Lacey Grace and his cousin Lucas Johnson, the three of them loved playing together.  Some of Raymond’s favourite things included; power rangers, dinosaurs, Legos, wagon rides, and anything else they could get their hands on.

At the age of two, Raymond was your typical little boy, always experimenting and trying to test the limits of his parent’s patience.  This all changed for Raymond and his family on October 4, 2018, when he was diagnosed with stage 4 hepatoblastoma, a very rare childhood liver cancer that impacts just one in a million children the ages 1-3, around the world each year.  Raymond started chemotherapy at Dell Children Hospital followed by 5 surgeries, one to remove the primary tumor from his liver and the rest were on his lungs.  He rang the bell on June 19^th, 2019, when he finished his chemotherapy, and at that time it looked like Ray was on the home stretch and was finally in remission. Unfortunately, the cancer returned in his lungs and he had to start chemotherapy again.  After another 4 rounds of chemotherapy, Ray was accepted into a clinical trial to test a new cancer treatment approach at Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston. In August of 2020, Ray was infused with modified CAR-T-Cells that were engineered to attack the metastasized cancer within his lungs.   Through all of the treatments, Ray was always strong, always happy, and always found a way to make people smile, even when they were sad.  He was truly one in a million!  In January of 2021, Ray was given 10 rounds of radiation over two weeks to try and help reduce the size of the tumor. In March 2021, Ray’s condition was determined to be terminal, and doctors gave Ray just one month to live.  Despite this devastating news, Ray’s quality of life improved dramatically and he started to regain his strength and once again enjoy his life.  He took a trip with his family to Disneyworld and was part of the Lion King show.  This past summer, Ray got to enjoy a normal boy’s life.  He got to play in the dirt, ride horses, catch fish, and even got to go to kindergarten.  Ray loved the outdoors and spent some of his best days being outdoors with his family.  He truly was a fighter, a warrior, and a hero to everyone.

Ray’s journey inspired so many around the world to believe in miracles and re-discover their faith.   The miracle was that he was with us for so long, always happy, and always smiling. He was a Ray of Light in everyone’s life!

Ray is survived by his parents, Riley Daniel Johnson and Lauren Haley Trail; his sister, Lacey Grace; his grandparents, Suzy Renee Johnson and Dustan Ray Hale; Mark and Mira Johnson; Mark and Linda Trail; great grandparents, Pamela Poole and Mary Johnson; and his Uncle Ches and Aunt Kellany “Yang Yang” Johnson; and his cousin, Lucas Johnson.

Viewing will be on November 2, 2021, from 4-6 pm at Callaway-Jones Funereal Home, 3001 S. Collage Ave., Bryan, Texas 78701.

Memorial service will be on November 3, 2021, at 10 am at Hillcrest Baptist Church, 4220 Boonville Rd., Bryan, Texas 77802.