Today I received an email from a Cincinnati ministry called The Lord's Gym informing me that Jerry Dubose had died. Well, just that body which had been fighting cancer died. The real person who lived in that body has gone to his reward. Jerry was a man of God who worked with street people, addicts, and others who most of us would not want to even come into our church buildings. He led many to a relationship with Jesus and helped them develop and grow in the Lord. He was a real pastor with a real shepherd's heart. He worked in an area of Cincinnati where many are fearful to go to even in the daytime and with people that we would be afraid to meet on the street. The Lord's Gym is part of a ministry called FOCAS (Foundation of Compassionate American Samaritans) which was started by a former General Electric employee named Dick Taylor. Their web site is:
http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs...plate=printart
This is an article which appeared in the Cincinnati newspaper today:
Jerry Dubose turned from crime, drugs to Lord's Gym
'In the end, all of his dreams were fulfilled'
By Peter Bronson
pbronson@enquirer.com
Jerry Dubose had a favorite saying: "Church is only open on Sundays and Wednesday evenings, but the devil works 24/7."
Nobody knew it better than he did. His old life of crime and drug addiction was something he openly shared with thousands of men he touched through his ministry at the Lord's Gym in Over-the-Rhine.
Mr. Dubose, once a promising boxer, won his first bout with cancer last year, but lost his second battle Wednesday. He was 59.
At the Lord's Gym, he was a manager and Bible study leader.
Before that, "He considered himself a professional criminal and had nine penitentiary numbers," said Dick Taylor, founder of FOCAS Ministries and the Lord's Gym.
"Over the next 12 years, Jerry would discover he had a pastor's heart in the body of a tireless fighter. At 5 foot 10 and 165 pounds, there was nobody he would not confront, and he earned the respect of the street. He was courageous and fearless," Taylor said.
Perhaps his greatest bravery was having the courage to talk openly about his past, to share his drug addiction, violence and prison life with other men, so that they could see the change in him and find the courage to change too.
"I could relate to him being from the streets and his transformation from the streets to a righteous man of God," said one of those men, Aaron Jones, of Mount Healthy. "When I met Jerry through Bible study, things started to change in my life."
Jones' story is typical of the countless men touched and changed by Mr. Dubose.
"I was lost in the street life," Jones said. "I was like, whatever, I'm just here to work out. But he told me, 'It's not what Aaron wants, it's what God wants you to do. He has a bigger mission for you.'"
Jones now leads a Bible study at the gym, has a bachelor's degree and is finishing his master's degree in finance while he works as a job counselor at Jobs Plus in Over-the-Rhine.
He credits his "spiritual father," Mr. Dubose - just as Mr. Dubose always gave credit to his spiritual father, Jesus Christ.
"When I met Jerry seven years ago, I met a true man of God who loved the Lord so much, and I'm sure he is rejoicing to be in heaven with Him now," said his wife, Donna. "He imparted in me his wisdom and selflessness. I will love him always."
People who knew Mr. Dubose - which was nearly everyone in Over-the-Rhine - talked about his inspiration, motivation, encouragement and help. He was a role model, a one-on-one counselor, a man who would listen without judging.
He led energetic, powerful Bible studies five days a week at the gym. He helped men with spare cash, finding a job, getting to work, moving. He was always there for others who were hurting, because he had been there himself.
"In the end, all of his dreams were fulfilled," said his close friend and co-worker Bob Clarke. "He found the wife of his dreams, bought his own house and had a chance to go back to preach to men in prison."
"It was just a shock to everybody," said Pastor Robert Dothard who is now leading Mr. Dubose's Bible groups. "He will truly be missed. But we know he is with the Lord."
Friends still remember what Mr. Dubose said the first time he visited the Lord's Gym: "I didn't know the Lord had a gym." He made it his own place - a church that was open six days a week, with a ministry that never quit.
His co-workers chose verses from 2 Timothy to describe Mr. Dubose, including: "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."
Mr. Dubose is survived by his wife, Donna, of Cincinnati; two sons, Jerry L. Williams and David Pankey, both of Cincinnati; two daughters, April Longmire and Jalynn Longmire, both of Cincinnati; asister, Asalene Thatcher, of Meridian, Miss.; and 14 grandchildren.
Visitation is 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday at First Christian Assembly of God, 220 William Howard Taft, with the service following at 1 p.m.
Donations can be made to FOCAS - Foundation of Compassionate American Samaritans - P.O. Box 428760, Cincinnati, OH 45242.
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