toledo blade article

“I have a purpose-driven life,” said Margaret Raker. “I have a bracelet that says, ‘I’m on a mission from God,’ and another bracelet that says, ‘Got purpose?’”

The 46-year-old Temperance, Mich., resident discovered the purpose that is driving her life in August, 2004, when news reports showed the destruction Hurricane Charley wreaked on Florida.

She was going to write a check to a charity or relief organization, which would have been too easy, she said, but God was calling her to do something more.

Ms. Raker took out a home equity loan, bought a barely functioning 1979 recreational vehicle (since junked) for $2,800, and rounded up as much food and supplies as she could from local donors and personally delivered them to Florida storm victims.

“God just laid it on my heart and ever since Hurricane Charley it just grows and grows and grows,” said Ms. Raker, who founded God’s Emergency Response Team, or G.E.R.T., to help storm victims.

Earlier this month, Ms. Raker embarked on her trip to the Gulf Coast since August, this one a mission she called “Christmas for Waveland.”

She drove to Waveland, Miss., one of the cities that were hit the hardest by Hurricane Katrina, and handed out more than 400 toys to smiling youngsters whose homes and daily routines were upended by the Aug. 29 storm.

“We started knocking on doors — there’s kids in the majority of homes — and we’d ask, ‘Hey, do you need some toys?’ The people were very, very happy. We got so many hugs from people,” Ms. Raker said.

She also prayed with the hurricane victims and handed out cards of encouragement and hope, Scripture verses included.

While there are countless church groups and nonprofit agencies helping hurricane victims on a large-scale basis, few can match G.E.R.T. when it comes to personal attention.

“It’s almost like a counseling session at times,” Ms. Raker said. “People are still upset. Everybody has a story. Some swam for their lives, somstood on the roof until they were rescued. One family stayed in a boat for nine hours until the storm was over. Their stories vary but the results are all the same: ‘We lost everything.’”

In preparing for the “Christmas for Waveland” journey, Ms. Raker, a single mother who works two jobs, said she “begged” people in the Toledo area to donate toys.

“I couldn’t do what God has called me to do if everybody else didn’t do their part,” Ms. Raker said. “If they don’t give, then I can’t answer God’s call because basically I’m all self-funded.”

Perhaps she feels so driven because, like the hurricane victims, Ms. Raker has been through some of life’s most difficult storms.

“I know what it’s like to be devastated,” she said. “I lost everything in a home fire — everything I owned. I lost my first son through crib death. I went through bankruptcy and divorce. I know devastation.”

Speaking swiftly and energetically, Ms. Raker said there was one particular section of the Bible, Matthew 25:35-46, that compelled her to help hurricane victims.

In those verses, Jesus talks about feeding the poor and clothing the naked, then says, “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.”

“Most people stop there,” Ms. Raker said, “but if you keep going down to verses 45 and 46, he says, ‘Whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me. Then they will go away to eternal punishment...’ So you’re going to be punished if you don’t do this stuff.”

Ms. Raker said it’s a wonderful feeling to be able to hand supplies to people who are in need, and she has numerous stories about how God has used her and G.E.R.T.

“Whenever I hand out a bottle of water, I feel like I’m handing it out to Jesus,” she said.

Her pastor, the Rev. Nate Elarton of Bedford Christian Community Church, said he’s known Ms. Raker for years and supports her G.E.R.T. ministry.

“Margaret is the real deal,” Mr. Elarton said. “She’s really helping others and sharing the love of Christ. She’s so compassionate and so real.”

The 1,100-mile drive to the Gulf Coast takes Ms. Raker about 2½ days, a slow and tedious trip because her recreational vehicle is in such “pathetic” shape, she says with a laugh. While her mother, sister, and two nieces have accompanied her on trips, Ms. Raker does all the driving.

On one trip home from Mississippi, the ancient RV started shuddering, the engine lost most of its power, and flames were shooting out of the exhaust, Ms. Raker said. Flooring the pedal, the camper barely had enough muscle to make it to the top of the Kentucky mountains.

She pulled off the interstate, called her mechanic in Toledo, and, after trying a few different quick fixes, decided to keep heading north.

“It cost me a million dollars in gas because I was only getting 70 miles per tankful,” she said with a laugh. “It turned out I blew the engine. But we made it through. God always makes sure we do.”

Back home, she replaced the RV with a later model — this one built in 1984 — for $3,000. “We moved up a few years, but the back tires are bald, the water tank leaks — it’s still junk,” she said with another burst of laughter.

But having an RV is essential when traveling to the hurricane-struck areas, she said. Hotels are full and bathroom facilities are scarce.

“When I was there November, Waveland and Bay St. Louis and that area still didn’t have no power at all,” Ms. Raker said. “And the last time we went [in early December], they were just getting power. There are just a few little things open. Jobs are still few. Gas stations are closed. The needs are still great. You can’t just go down to the corner and buy a can of soup. You have to go to Pass Christian, and that’s 27 miles away. ”

She’s not ready to schedule the next Gulf Coast mission, it all depends on how and when support comes in for G.E.R.T., whose tax-exempt status is pending with the Internal Revenue Service.

“The whole purpose is to reach out to others and embrace them with the love Christ has for us,” she said. “You can’t just use words, you have to show it in deeds.”

Information on Margaret Raker and G.E.R.T. is available online at www.gertministries.com.
Contact David Yonke at: dyonke@theblade.com or 419-724-6154.