Jackie Ramsey…Unsung Hero

In some ways, Jackie appears to be just an ordinary 66 year-old woman. She has her share of health problems, making it on her own without a husband, and bearing the brunt of the choices others have made – people she loves dearly and deeply – her very heart.

But that’s where the ordinary ends and the “unsung hero” begins.

Jackie moved to Romania 16 years ago. Her call? To “love the unlovely.” She does it every day. She does it well.

A few years ago, she found some Gypsies leaving under trash (tarps?) on Christmas Day. Jackie gave gifts and shared Christ with them. Those she led to the Lord began coming to her church. Jackie was encouraged when her pastor and church leadership agreed to meet with her about her ministry. She was hopeful to see how the church could help these new, very poor believers.

To her surprise, they instructed Jackie that she could not bring them to church anymore. “What do I do with them?” she asked. And the male-dominated, Romanian and church culture said, “You start a church for them.”

And so she did. (Gypsies are utterly rejected from Romanians, including the Romanian church culture.)

Jackie now pastors a church of Gypsy outcasts. The children love the kids club; the leaders gather with her to pray for them. Even so, many of these Gypsies continue to thieve, fornicate, and abuse her generosity. Personally, I’d go crazy not seeing more “fruit.” But Jackie chooses to see the good, and continues to love the unlovely.

Jackie’s favorite ministry is Mocrea, a mental institution she visits weekly. Well, when I visited Mocrea with her 2 years ago, “mental institution” is a euphemistic term for the place.  Nonetheless, she loves the residents, provides snacks, drinks, paints the ladies’ nails, lets them cry on her shoulder, and prays for them. One man, placed there by his family because he’s a drunkard, is now free from both the alcohol and the institution, thanks to Jackie’s intervention. That man now accompanies Jackie each week to visit and minister with her there.

If all this wasn’t demanding enough, Jackie is a fulltime ‘mom’ raising the two Romanian-American granddaughters who live with her. The girls, ages 13 and 15, are her joy and delight. They see their “bubba” (affectionate grandma term) going out daily, serving the poor, helping many, and are capturing the same heart.

Jackie has pioneered many other ministries…I could see it might take several people to fill her shoes (once that day comes, but no time soon!). There are some who have already stepped up, heart and soul, to co-labor in her good works: like with abandoned babies and ministering at a juvenile detention center. One such worker is Bogdan, a faithful young man Jackie has mentored since he was 12. Bogdan’s face is always bright and he is a brilliant translator. He feels called to the youth and excels in loving them.

Having said this – it’s not about all the work and ministry that Jackie does – even as it’s incredibly commendable to me because of her age and health issues…

It’s about who she is.

Kind. Merciful. Steady. Faithful. And generous? In case Jackie reads this, I don’t want embarrass her, but think “exponentially outrageous” and you might come close.

At the same time, Jackie is a discreet “spitfire.” You don’t mess with Jackie when it comes to those she loves and righteousness. Sure wish I had her quick wit and wisdom. An example of this was when a resident at Mocrea approached Jackie, saying, “I have 17 demons.” Without missing a beat Jackie retorted, “Well, I don’t want to meet them.” As she asserted her authority in the Holy Spirit, the man pleaded, “Please pray for me. I am tired of this torment.”

It was two years ago, in 2011, when I first met Jackie while leading a mission trip to Arad, Romania with 4 young women.  Just weeks ago, in October, my husband and I were in Arad again. Quite unexpectedly, I found myself laid flat for more than two weeks in Jackie’s home – because I got violently sick. To be in another country, on a couch-bed, fighting an intestinal virus, it’s not usual to feel at home. But with Jackie, I did.  So, of course, I further discover that Jackie served as a primary caregiver for several years in her history.  She, quite naturally, made me feel comfortable in her space. Furthermore, she had the right medical connections to help get me back on my feet.

It is Jackie’s ‘ordinariness’ that makes her not so ordinary – because she just keeps going in the love of Christ. There’s much we can learn from those who keep plodding, and who authentically keep loving the unlovely. Yes, to me, and to so many others, Jackie is an unsung hero.

– Kathy