My Purpose For Dying

Born July 15, 1959, in Pittsboro, North Carolina, Ricky Frederick Shore possessed an obscure and positively supernatural destiny suddenly revealed to him toward the end of his short-lived, adult life. The youngest of seven children, raped at age three by his stepfather, and barely escaping a suicide attempt at nineteen, Ricky knew he was uniquely different harboring in himself a raw power of creativity and a wild imagination well ahead of the other boys in the rural south. Wrought by visions of an abusive father trying to kill him and his mother while he was still in the womb, he obsessively sought to seek answers about his purpose for living. Lured to New York City in the late 70’s his broken spirit begins to mend living an openly gay life twirling the nights away at Studio 54. In the 80’s, he moves to Atlanta and launches his career as a professional fashion stylist. Amid his success and the bright lights, champagne, sex and drugs, Ricky tests positive for HIV/AIDS. Jolted by the news of his health status, Ricky becomes active in the national movement to raise awareness and to protest for the need of more government assistance to those living with AIDS. After enduring some of life’s greatest hardships and sitting by the side of friends rapidly dying of AIDS, he travels to Europe on a quest to claim his personal sovereignty, falls in love with his Earth Angel, and begins a deep spiritual journey to a higher level of self-discovery. Before Ricky’s death at age thirty-four, living with his sister, through visions—he sketches out his destiny, telling the story of his purpose for dying—helping them babies with AIDS crossover.