Special Request to our Sacred Art Community
Joe Richter, our dear friend and colleague, has been diagnosed with kidney cancer. Please use the form section below to send him your healing thoughts and prayers during this challenging time.
For more than 25 years Joe Richter has been an invaluable part of Sacred Art of Living. His amazing talents have helped create so much of what our healing organization has become. Moreover, everyone who works with Joe appreciates his kind and generous spirit. His recent diagnosis of Stage 3 Kidney Cancer is a shock to our family and to all who love him. He is a candidate for immunotherapy treatments which could lead to a hopeful prognosis. In the meantime, we invite our community to send messages of prayerful support for Joe, his family and our SALC team.
Richard Groves,
Joe’s step dad, work partner and closest friend
Update - Joe’s Cancer Journey - Aug, 11 2025
Hello Dear Friends,
Here it is August already, and it’s time I shared how my healing is coming along. I am happy to say the recent immunotherapy treatment went really smoothly, and my body is responding pretty well to this therapy. With every deployment of the army of chemo-rabbits eating away and dissolving the cancer and thrombus, I can feel the battle within. Every moment of the day. Managing the side effects has been a huge challenge. My team of doctors is encouraged by my progress, and although I have had a few hospital visits for pain management since my last update, God’s blessings outnumber the setbacks. Today is a gift.
We celebrate the smallest of wins here, and every day, I move forward. Slowly, I have been easing into working a few hours a day at the center, when my body is physically able, and it zaps my energy for the remainder of the day. Special thanks to Richard, Tammy, and Fiona for their constant encouragement and patience with me. I know it has to be stressful for them as they continue to juggle the day to day, all while strengthening connections with you and all our friends in our SALC community.
Recently, Kristi and I celebrated our 37th wedding anniversary, and guess how we celebrated – by eating carrot cake, of course! We both come from a long line of love, and I look forward to celebrating many more years ahead. Our son and daughter-in-law have been nesting, getting ready for our grandson’s arrival – only a couple more months.
Over the past few months, many of you have shown up for me and my family, like bright lights that have been brightening our path. We appreciate those who have helped with little chores, sending encouraging notes, cards, letters, poems, prayers, phone messages, texts, calls, visits, and more. We have been especially moved by everyone who lit candles with prayers in the little chapels from all over the country (and abroad), sending us photos, which really bring the prayers to life! Keep praying and sending photos, please. I am praying for you, too. Your tender loving care has rekindled my spirit and helped ease my burden. Thank you.
Hold your friends and family tight and your loved ones close, today is the gift.
God bless from my family to yours,
Joe
Iona’s Chapel Next to the Main Church in Iona Scotland
Votive Candles inside the Iona Chapel in Iona Scotland
UNITED KINGDOM – JUNE 08: Flames of votive candles for prayer inside Iona Abbey ancient monument on Isle of Iona in the Inner Hebrides and Western Isles, Scotland (Photo by Tim Graham/Getty Images)
Shrine of Solanus Casey At Solanus Casey Center in Detroit MI
Saint Peregrine Patron Saint of Cancer At Shrine of Indian River
Cross in the woods Catholic Shrine of Indian River
Please submit your healing thoughts and prayers for Joe using the form below. Please note: all comments will be subject to approval due to security and spam protection and will be published as soon as possible.
You’re in my daily prayers, a list that keeps getting longer the older I get. May God bless and keep you and your family/friends in his infinite comfort and care. May God’s will be done.
Hi Joe! Congratulations to all on the beautiful new baby! May you all be well, be happy, and live with ease! Sharon
Dear Joe, I was thinking of you today and appreciating the lovely website we use for the Anamcara Program. It is so well done. I hope that you are doing ok. and pray that you receive the grace to persevere through these challenging times. Know that you are respected and loved, Beth Frank
Hi Joe, I dont know you, but I arrived onto the Sacred Heart of living website and saw this invitation to share a prayer, and I felt clearly called to participate. I can see a deep joy in your smile and eyes in the photo of you. I feel, from my heart, deep care and compassion for the experience that you are having with the journey that you are on. I send my blessings, my love, my optimism, my hope. Let all the energies of healing be with you. Warmly, Elizabeth
Keeping you in our thoughts and prayers Joe. John and Kate McGreevey
Thank you for your words of wisdom. I see them bunnies taking care of you and love the imagery. I want to thank you for all you have done and let you know I appreciate you. You have always been so helpful at the Anamcara events and your presence quiet and sooo helpful. Prayers, love and energy continue for you and your journey. God continue to bless you and your family.
Dearest Joe, Just dropping by to touch base with you. Holding you in the light of comfort, care and healing, all ways, always. Stay confident in how deeply loved, and appreciated you are. I know God is holding you close and walking each step of this journey by your side. With much love to you and yours, and many, many tight warm hugs, Horti Davis (past student of SALC many courses and tracks, and newbie to Anamcara apprenticeship)
Sending thoughts and prayers for healing and recovery to Joe, his family and the SALC team during this challenging time.
We are sending greetings and best wishes to Joe and his family. You are in our prayers. John and Kate.
HI Joe, just checking in. You continue to be in our hopes and prayers for the best possible outcome. Hope you are feeling well and healing. We love you. Peace and grace. John and Kate McGreevey
Continuing to surround you with care, love, healing and hungry rabbits! May this journey unfold in ways that bring continued excellent care, strength to make the most of the treatment, and the welcoming of support that this kind of “unwelcome gift” seems to usher in. We’ve got our circles holding you in care as well. Many blessings to you, Sue
Hey Joe . Thinking if you often ,sending you lots of healing energy . Remembering with great joy the fun and laughs we had in Dublin and Sligo. Wishing you continued healing back to good health. God bless you .love Mo x
Hello Kristi and Joe, I think you often and wanted to let you know that I called Silent Unity again this evening. They will pray ’round the world 24/7 for 30 days. May you be enveloped in the experience of God’s Peace and Love, and Feel the love and support of all those who are holding space for you both. I join you in visualizing the Chemo Bunnies successfully doing fantastic work of eating those carrots. There must be hundreds of Bunnies by now…they multiply so quickly! Blessings, Anna N
Joe and Kristi: Keeping you and your treatment in my prayers.May God’s light and healing be poured upon you, may you feel the strength of all the prayers surrounding you. Today in my Lectio Divino, we read Matthew 14:22-33. What stood out for me is that the writer uses “immediately” not once, not twice, but three times. “Immediately.” My take away is that Jesus, the Divine, the Sacred, the Christ, comes to me/us “immediately” when we beckon. And its always there. but our awareness is important
Hello Everyone, I would like to thank you for all your kind and supportive words. I wanted to let you know that Kristi and I will be sending out another update soon on my progress. Thank You Joe