Half the Man, Twice the Faith: The Rick Salewske Story

By Cindy Woods

At 538 pounds, Rick Salewske lived a small life that consisted of his job, his house, and his car—and he was very close to no longer fitting into his car. His stomach rubbing on the steering wheel had already worn a threadbare line across his pants. Often ridiculed by total strangers, he felt humiliated and very much alone. Rick had been raised in a traditional Catholic family, but his relationship with God was more of a distant, respectful belief than an up-close and personal experience. He couldn’t fit into a church pew and most definitely not into a confessional booth. What Rick didn’t know was that even then, God was actively pursuing him, even when Rick was not pursuing God at all.

When Rick’s weight cost him a chance at his dream job, God would lead him on a journey that would reach the mountaintops of national television appearances and even the New York Marathon, but his own poor choices would plunge him back down to a valley leading nowhere. It was in that valley that Rick eventually looked up and recognized God’s hand in his life. When he learned to keep his eyes on God, the life God intended him to lead finally came into focus.

His path was not always smooth or straight. But learning to put his full trust in the Lord led Rick to be less than half and more than twice the man he used to be.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Jan 30, 2024
• ISBN: 9798891305489

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Half the Man, Twice the Faith

The Rick Salewske Story

Cindy Woods

ISBN 979-8-89130-547-2 (paperback)

ISBN 979-8-89243-078-4 (hardcover)

ISBN 979-8-89130-548-9 (digital)

Copyright © 2024 by Cindy Woods

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements

Prologue: 2002

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Epilogue

About the Author

For Richard and Allison, who always said I could.

—Cindy

For Mom, Dad, Jim and Johnny: You always showed me so much love, and now you guide me from above.

—Rick

Acknowledgements

Bringing my story to life on the page has long been a dream of mine. I wanted to tell my story not to showcase my successes, but rather to bring to light my challenges, so that others struggling under any kind of weighty issue might find a spark of hope and encouragement that it's never too late to turn your life around. You just need to look to God and to build your village to support you. Here's my amazing village without whom this book could never have happened.

First, to Kelley, Owen, Henry, and Meg, I can never express how much I love you. Everything I do is for you.

To Sharon and Renee for being the best sisters in the world. I'm so lucky to have you.

To Gram and GG: thank you for sharing Kelley with me.

To Dave for being the rock who is always there for me.

To Uncle Chet with love: Go Blue!

Aunt Diane and Uncle Paul, and all my nieces and nephews, thank you for all the fond memories. I love you all so much.

With love to my third sister, Judi.

To Drs. Tyler and Kenneth Cooper, whom I am proud to call my friends. I would not be here—perhaps not even alive—without your kindness and support.

To Milli Cooper, my surrogate mom, who reminds me so much of my own mom, thank you for all the kind words of encouragement in the mornings at Cooper.

To Dick Manke, my surrogate dad and first boss in Texas. Your advice and friendship meant the world to me.

For Sherri, John, and Dan, thanks for being my brothers and sister of the heart.

To my own personal Clarence, Bill C. Thank you for saving my life.

To Graaaaccon for being such an incredible friend.

Gary, Jeff, Lou, and Doris, my friends from early childhood and my first confidantes, through thick and thin you have never left my side, and I thank God for you.

To my 1980 MHS classmates, thank you so much for being my biggest social media supporters, despite our 40-year separation.

Karl, Mark, Stu, and Greg, my Texas best friends and my fishing and poker buddies, you guys bring both fun and calm into my life, and I'm so thankful for your friendship.

To Bernie, Glenn, Karen, and the girls, you were my Texas family, and I'll always remember you that way.

To my friend Texas Sharon—Jim loved you deeply; never doubt that.

To Brook, Tom, and all the Cooper basketball players, I am so proud to call you my friends and so honored by the way you made me one of your own.

To the entire staff and membership of the Cooper Aerobics Center, this book is a monument to your grace, your friendship, your encouragement and your kindness. You saw my dedication and gave me compliments. You saw my discouragement and cheered me on. I was a stranger, and you took me in. You laid the cornerstone of my story. Especially:

Lara: You saw me first; you didn't judge; you taught me well.

Teale: Despite my size, you stepped up to train me, and your guidance turned my life around.

Debi: You began as my second trainer, but you became a cherished friend.

Chad: My third trainer and loudest cheerleader, who bragged about me everywhere.

Sandy: You're an angel.

To Kris, Larry, Lindsey, and Conner, thank you for everything from deep in my heart, where you will always have a place.

Bill Craig, thanks for always talking to me.

Thank you to all the ESD dads who have been so unfailingly kind to me.

Thank you to everyone at ClarkDietrich for your support and friendship.

To Cindy, my author and friend, who showed me God.

And, finally, to Oprah and everyone on the production staff, thank you for putting me on the show, for showing me that I can speak in front of an audience, and most importantly, for validating me.

God bless you all.

Prologue: 2002

Rick! Your segment's up next. Come with me, the showrunner said. Excitement and eager anticipation fueled the adrenaline that had been running through Rick's body all day, and he nearly jumped out of his chair in the green room of the Oprah Winfrey Show to follow the producer, who was already walking away. She walked quickly through a maze of hallways, with Rick close on her heels, and stopped abruptly behind a thin gold curtain.

This is your mark, she told him softly. Stand here until the curtain opens, and then join Oprah on stage. Rick took his mark and heard Oprah begin her introduction of him before a full studio audience and what Rick knew would eventually be a television audience in the millions.

Two years ago, Rick Salewske weighed in at 548 pounds, Rick heard Oprah say.

"Five hundred thirty-eight," he corrected quietly, and then chuckled a little at himself for the ten-pound distinction. As Oprah continued her summary of Rick's story and why he was on the show, his pride and gratitude came to the fore.

I did this! he told himself exultantly. I actually lost three hundred pounds, and now I'm about to be on the Oprah show. How did I get here? How did my world go from my work, my house, and my car—and almost not my car!—to going on stage with one of the most iconic personalities of our time? No sooner had that thought entered his mind than the curtain in front of him parted.

Rick was about to tell millions of viewers how losing three hundred pounds changed his life. But, first, there was the story of how he came to gain over three hundred pounds—and how that also changed his life.

Chapter 1

When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, and I reasoned like a child, but when I became a man, I put away childish things.

—1 Corinthians 13:11

Rick was born on July 7, 1962, in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, as the fourth of five children and the youngest boy. He weighed eleven pounds and eleven ounces at birth, so being a big guy has always been a part of his life. His dad was a mail carrier for the US Postal Service, and his mom was a homemaker and, later, worked as an event coordinator. They couldn't decide on a name for this fourth baby, so two days after his birth, Rick was still Baby Boy Salewske. Finally, a nurse demanded that his parents choose something, so they hastily decided on Richard, Rick's dad's name, and August, Rick's paternal grandfather's name, because Rick's dad didn't want any of his sons to be a junior.

As a young child, Rick had a speech impediment that prevented him from pronouncing r's. As a result, his siblings called him Hawicky in imitation of him. Rick, though, took the nickname as a term of endearment instead of a taunt. When he was four, Rick's parents took him to see a speech specialist at a hospital. They were concerned because Rick was speaking very little or not at all. He pointed to things he wanted rather than asking for them. But, after evaluating Rick, the doctor dismissed their fears. There's nothing wrong with him, the doctor told them. He's just lazy.

While the doctor's comment was blunt, unkind, and, by today's standards, very politically incorrect, he might not have been far off the mark. Rick—the fourth of five children—had plenty of other people who could do his talking for him, so he just let them. Rick took the easy way out, and that might have set in motion a dangerous pattern that would take decades to correct.

From the outside, Rick's childhood looked idyllic—an all-American experience. It was the actual Wonder Years, so he rode bikes with his friends, played in the park, played pickup games of baseball and football, and caught frogs and crawfish in the creek. He had two close friends in the neighborhood, Louis and Jeff, and the three boys had countless adventures together.

When Rick was about twelve years old, he and Jeff were walking on the frozen creek that ran alongside the park near their home. The creek always froze solid in the wintertime, and the neighborhood kids walked on it regularly. On that sunny day, though, a patch of ice had become thin, and when Jeff stepped on it, he immediately crashed into the freezing water on what was a bitterly cold day. Jumping to a more solid patch of ice, Rick used his solid body and strength to begin hauling Jeff back onto solid ground. When Jeff could stand, Rick slung the water off him as best he could and then walked/carried him back to Jeff's house, where his dad took charge. Before Rick left, though, Jeff looked him straight in the eye and, with chattering teeth, said, You saved my life, Rick. The incident would bond them for the rest of their lives.

Rick's speech therapy continued into elementary school, but he had plenty of friends and had become talkative and gregarious. He was smart and actually liked some subjects in school, especially math, but he generally put forth only the minimum effort to pass. He hated chores and probably spent more time and effort trying to get out of them than he would have in just doing them when asked.

Every summer, his family and that of his parents' closest friends rented side-by-side cabins in Northern Michigan for a carefree vacation of swimming, fishing, exploring, and being in the woods. Fishing is still a favorite pastime for Rick, and the smell of bacon and eggs always takes him back to early mornings at the cabin when, after fishing, they would walk back up the dock and smell his mother's cooking through the open windows.

Since the family was often at the cabin on Rick's birthday, his mom would bake him a special banana cake with white frosting, and Little Ricky, as his mother called him, was allowed to lick the beaters and the bowl. It's a cherished memory for Rick because, with everyone pursuing their own interests at the cabin, Rick often felt a little overlooked on his birthday. There were no parties or presents, so that cake and that time with his mom were special.

He was raised in the Catholic faith, his family having been Catholic on both sides for many generations, and came from Czech, Russian, Macedonian, and German roots. Each of the Salewske children was baptized, dutifully made their first Communions, took Catechism classes, and were confirmed in their faith but attended mass sporadically, primarily at Christmas and Easter. Rick had an inkling that he had a deeper spiritual side, but he didn't have the understanding to explore it. His faith was still largely untapped, his prayers were often recited, and his relationship with God was respectful but distant. But God didn't take it personally. He knew His plans for Rick, and He would pursue him relentlessly to bring him God's highest and best. It would take decades of questionable choices, though, before Rick understood that.

Shortly after Rick's parents married, they bought a three-bedroom, one-and-a-half-bath house in Allen Park, where they would live for the next sixty years. They raised all five children there, later adding a family room and another small bathroom and converting the basement into a bedroom. Rick's dad and his friends did most of the renovation work themselves. Dad Richard's mail route was in this same neighborhood, and, as it was a walking route, he knew everyone, and everyone knew him. He heard about all the exploits of everyone's children, including his own, whether he wanted to hear or not, so the Salewske children never got away with much.

Dorothy, Rick's mom, was taught to cook from an early age by her maternal grandmother, and she was a master baker who poured her love and creativity into her passion for kitchen creations. Weeks before Christmas, she would begin baking and freezing cookies to share with family, friends, and every single home on her husband's mail route. She also made her own bread and pizza dough, as well as fresh desserts every night. At the Salewske house, there were always cookies in the cookie jar and goodies in the freezer, making it a favorite hangout of the children's friends. Dinners were 1960s staples like roast, steak, meatloaf, potatoes, and sides of all kinds, and, of course, dessert. Christmas was a huge family affair, with lots of extended family and often friends as well, and an array of decadent homemade sweets.

As her youngest boy, Little Ricky was doted upon by his mother, although he was the opposite of physically little. He was always a big kid, hitting six feet in height early on. But Rick was a sensitive soul, who felt things deeply and was very close to his mother. He was a frequent target of bullies, with his brother Jim often stepping in to be his champion until Rick got big enough to stand up to and even befriend his former tormentors. Jim and his mother both did their best to shield Rick from the worst of his dad's behavior, because under that perfect family veneer lay some not uncommon struggles and secrets.

Though the children didn't recognize it at the time, their dad, Richard, was a functioning alcoholic. He managed his work during the day, but he drank heavily at other times, carrying on the tradition of his own dad, who would sometimes leave Richard alone in a car for hours at a time while he drank in a bar and then drive home drunk with his young son still in the car. Richard joined the army at age seventeen to escape his house, even though it meant spending years fighting in the Korean Conflict. For Richard, war was preferable to living on the battlefield at home. Unfortunately, Richard would repeat some of what his dad modeled for him, succumbing to alcoholism and the harsh treatment of his own children. Richard never resorted to physical violence, but his judgment could be swift and unrelenting, and the way he spoke to his children might be labeled as verbal abuse today, especially with his sons. He left the parenting of his daughters largely to his wife but never encouraged the girls in any endeavors, whether it was sports, other pursuits, or even college, believing that girls were meant to be wives, mothers, and homemakers, so a university education was unnecessary.

Rick found solace and another father figure in his friend Jeff's dad. When things got rough in his own home, Rick would walk the two blocks to Jeff's house, where he was always welcomed. Jeff's family had splintered years before, so it was just Jeff, his dad, and his older sister there. Whenever Rick came through the door, Jeff's dad would say, There's that fine young man! He always referred to Rick as that fine young man. The mantle was a comfort and encouragement to Rick, especially when he felt judged or left out at home, and Jeff's house was a welcome respite from the drama in his own.

Dorothy downplayed her husband's behavior