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Community Leaders Stand Up For Gerken
Sojourner’s Truth Staff
A number of community
leaders gathered at Ruby’s Kitchen on Reynolds Road on
Wednesday, October 19, to express their support for the
re-election of Lucas County Commissioner Pete Gerken. Gerken,
a Democrat, is running for his fourth term. His opponent is
former Toledo Mayor Mike Bell, a Republican.
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Ruby Butler, Karen Mayfield, Rev. DL Perryman, Rev. Randall
Parker III, Baldemar Velasquez,
Pete Gerken |
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Baldemar Velasquez, the
founder of the Farm Laborers Organizing Committee (FLOC),
explained that he is a long-time friend of the candidate and
has been impressed over the years with the commissioner’s
commitment to the local community. “Pete’s involvement in
the community is unsurpassed,” said Velasquez.
Rev. Randall Parker III,
pastor of Canaan Manifested Word Church and a former
candidate for the Toledo Board of Education, spoke of the
counsel he received from Gerken during his campaign and how
he became aware of how much Gerken “cares for people.”
Gerken, Parker said, “is consistent in everything he does;
people in our neighborhood honor and respect all he does.”
Rev. D.L. Perryman, pastor
of Center of Hope Community Baptist Church, said of Gerken –
“he makes things happen, he has been phenomenal in setting
an agenda for the central city.” Perryman noted that Gerken,
and his fellow commissioners Tina Skeldon Wozniak and Carol
Contrada, had ensured that Lucas County projects, such as
the construction phase of the Huntington Center, included a
sizable commitment to minority inclusion.
Ruby Butler, owner of
Ruby’s Kitchen, also spoke of her support for the
commissioner whom she has known for over 30 years. Butler, a
former auto worker, retired from the factory to become an
entrepreneur. She praised Gerken for the support he has
extended to small businesses during his term in office.
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