He has an excellent voice for reading scripture, shows up every month for Kairos and SHP bed builds, wearing fighter pilot sunglasses, a great smile, and wielding a quick wit, but how well do you know Gene Soper? I knew enough to expect lively conversation and of course, a good dose of laughter. I always start with a person’s childhood, learning what they liked to do, and the early experiences that helped them become the person they are today. I learned about a boy who changed schools often, attending 16 different schools in 12 years, a boy who loved to read and learn, a boy who wanted to fly airplanes. I asked about a life lesson that changed him in some way, and he told me about a professor from his college days and a discussion about how many Jews were killed in WWII. He let them argue about the numbers before making the simple statement that they were missing the point because one was too many. Gene realized that learning to think, to question, to examine everything was what a college education was all about. You shouldn’t accept an answer because it is easy or because someone gives it to you, you need to think and learn for yourself. We talked about life as a series of lessons and how sometimes terrible things happen to us that we don’t understand at the time, but when we look back, we can see God was always at work, patiently teaching us to trust him, and bringing us better days and blessings we never expected.
I heard fantastic tales of Gene’s mother, a nurse, stationed at Pearl Harbor during WWII, and I could tell by his stories, she was a significant influence in his life. She was a tough lady with a soft side, a military nurse, but also a faithful member of the Methodist church, and she made sure Gene was there every Sunday. She forced him to wear a suit and tie, much to his dismay, since no one else had to. He told me about hiding from her on Sunday mornings, but she always managed to find him. When Gene was 10, his mom did something that he never forgot. She reached out to a homeless man, asked if he was hungry, and bought him lunch at the restaurant where they were eating after church. She would be happy to see Gene at the grill every month for Kairos, serving up one of John’s Wright’s exclusive recipes.
We talked about action and how working with the homeless has changed him. If you only watch from the sidelines and never participate, you miss so much of what helping others is all about. He told me how Kairos has enabled him to really see people, and the feeling you get from giving of yourself can’t be compared to anything else. It’s not about Sunday service or the act of going to church, but what we do with the things we learn and the actions we take. It’s how we live out our principles and do what we can in the time and space we find ourselves. I asked him for words of wisdom, something life has taught him, and this is what I learned, “You may think you’re doing good, but are you just doing enough to get by? Strive to be better, try harder, and never stop learning.” I couldn’t agree more.