|
`Lord sent us warnings, and I just didn't hear' By MICHAEL FECHTER of The Tampa Tribune SILVER SPRINGS - A couple's encounter with Greater Ministries shatters their retirement plans, but not their faith.
They met on a rural street corner, and an envelope containing $20,000 in $100 bills changed hands.
Pat and Elvin Johnston entrusted their life savings to a stranger that August day in 1998. The man worked with Greater Ministries International, a group based in Tampa that promised to double the couple's nest egg in 16 months.
They were also told that extra profits from their investment would help finance Greater Ministries' good works with the poor and homeless. Their pastor, in Greater Ministries for three years, attested to the church's consistent performance with investments.
``Pastor told me, and I just went and did it,'' Pat Johnston said.
What the pastor didn't know, and the conduit didn't tell, was that Greater Ministries was nearing collapse. A Colorado bank had gone insolvent six weeks earlier, costing the group $18 million in uninsured deposits.
The Johnstons, and hundreds of others like them, never saw a dime of their money.
``That's what really ticked me off,'' Elvin Johnston said. ``He never said anything about it. He could have said they're having problems, maybe you want to wait.''
Calls and letters to find out what was happening met with empty assurances things were about to be fixed.
The Johnstons, who have been married for 48 years, say they've been devastated after trusting their spiritual leader's recommendation.
``It's kind of disgusting,'' Elvin Johnston said, ``losing that kind of money.''
He retired from coal mining in 1986 after an accident wrecked his back and shoulders. The couple sold most of their belongings while fighting for a settlement and moved to Florida.
Their investment with Greater Ministries was supposed to help pay off their Florida home, canopied by 15 giant oak trees, and allow her to quit working at a nearby tackle shop.
Now, they've had to sell their home on North Lake in the Ocala National Forest.
They also planned to set up accounts for their three grown sons and three grandchildren.
The loss, and their naivete in investing at all, gnaws at them. They ruminate over missed warning signs and chances they had to walk away unharmed.
Their street-corner meeting almost fell apart. The contact was late; the Johnstons were in their car, ready to head home, when he showed up. Then he wouldn't take their check, saying the church dealt in cash only.
``The Lord sent us warnings, and I just didn't hear,'' Pat Johnston said.
They wrote a desperate letter to Gov. Jeb Bush two months ago. That led them to a court-appointed receiver and bankruptcy trustee working to return at least a portion of the money lost by thousands of investors like the Johnstons. It could take years, and then wind up being pennies on the dollar.
The Johnstons say they're wiser from the experience, and still committed in their faith despite the fact others took advantage of it.
``If it's to be I don't get my money back, I still won't lose my faith in the Lord,'' Pat Johnston said. ``It's not his fault some people are wicked.''Michael Fechter can be reached at mfechter@tampatrib.comor (813) 259-7621.
<006 . 0004.02> < 00000>