'A motorcycle ministry'

Jackson resident Kevin Wolpers is a devout motorcyclist, one who can date most of his life by the 10 Harley-Davidsons he’s owned, a time line that begins with a 90cc version at the age of 14 or 15 to his current tandem of a 2016 Road King (1,690cc) and 1995 Wide Glide (1,340cc) at the age of 50.

But as much as Wolpers is loyal to the power below him, he’s even more so to the one above.

Wolpers is the president of the Marble Hill, Missouri, Messengers of the Christian Motorcyclists Association (CMA), an organization that has its headquarters in Hatfield, Arkansas, and has 41 chapters in Missouri, according to its website cmausa.org. Wolpers said CMA has 1,000 chapters in the United States and 150,000 members in more than 30 countries.

The organization bucks the stereotype that bikers are a raucous bunch when found in numbers.

“The main thing we like to do is eat,” Wolpers said. “When we go out on rides, we don’t go bar hopping. We usually go from restaurant to ice cream shop, things like that, or just enjoy a little ride.”

President of the Marble Hill Messengers chapter of the Christian Motorcyclists Association, Kevin Wolpers, talks to Vice President Casey Myers on April 23 at Cape County Park South.BEN MATTHEWS

They are more than harmless. They are helpful, good Samaritans in leather, looking out for the riding community in a variety of ways.

“Bike blessings is a big thing that we do,” Wolpers said. “People want us to pray over their bikes and their safety.”

The CMA will hold a blessing today at the Bald Knob Cross in Alto Pass, Illinois, where 3,000 to 5,000 bikers are expected to assemble and bow their heads.

“That’s what they come up there for,” Wolpers said. “To get CMA to pray over their bikes, pray over their safety — primarily — for the riding season. And also if someone has a prayer request, like a family member that needs praying over, we do those as well. Hospital visits, things like that.”

It’s the spirit CMA brings to motorcycle rallies around the country, having established a presence at the nation’s biggest events like the ones at Sturgis, North Dakota, and Daytona Beach, Florida, where hundreds of thousands of bikers migrate annually.

Bike blessings, services, prayers and free water are among the ways they’ll cater to the masses at such events.

Locally, the Marble Hill chapter stays busy throughout the warmer months, riding to the CMA’s Run for the Son fundraiser at Sam A. Baker State Park (May 6), distributing water and Bibles at a booth at Bikers on the Square (June 17) in Perryville, Missouri, and attending and blessing bikes at the upcoming WarChild rally in Chaffee, Missouri.

President Kevin Wolpers poses for a photo with members of the Marble Hill Messengers chapter of the Christian Motorcyclists Association on April 23 at Cape County Park South.BEN MATTHEWS

“It’s not really a motorcycle club or a motorcycle riding group, it’s a motorcycle ministry,” Wolpers said. “We minister to mainly other bikers, but not exclusively. We do minister outside of the bikers.”

Members will visit injured or ill riders in hospitals, sometimes lending both financial and spiritual support. They’re also a lifeline for motorcyclists in need on the road.

“If your bike is down and you’re on the side of the interstate, if they’ve got any kind of cellphone service, they can get on that CMA website, there’s phone numbers they can call somebody. Somebody will come get them,” Wolpers said.

Wolpers said it all started with CMA founder Herb Shreve, a minister from Hatfield who bought a motorcycle back in the mid-1970s in an effort to build a closer relationship with his son. Shreve later attended a rally and thought it might be a good place to minister, but when he asked if he could do a church service on the grounds his request was rebuffed.

“The first year they told him, ‘Absolutely not. They’re here to party. They don’t want to hear that,’” Wolpers said.

He said Shreve then made a request: If he could secure a place nearby to conduct a service nearby, could he ask around to see if anyone would like to attend. He was given permission to proceed, and Wolpers said a strong turnout surprised the rally organizers.

“The people running the rally were so impressed, they allowed him to have a church service there [the next year],” Wolpers said. “It kind of grew from there.”

The local chapter’s start was similar, with former president Eric Ladeau moving from Arkansas and approaching local churches to make announcements at services to gauge interest. He needed a minimum of six members to start a chapter three years ago. Wolpers, who was vice president of a Sikeston chapter that was looking to merge with the one in Poplar Bluff, joined Ladeau’s effort.

Wolpers, a 1984 graduate of Cape Girardeau Central High School, was approached 13 years ago by CMA members while riding a Harley Sportster in the Bikers for Babies fundraiser for the March of Dimes in Cape Girardeau.

“I showed up and this guy was riding a motorcycle identical to mine, only a different color, and he was a CMA guy and he come over and talked to me a little bit and just invited me to a breakfast,” Wolpers said. “He said, ‘We do a breakfast ride once a month, you ought to come ride with us.’”

Members have a variety of occupations. While Wolpers is a plant technician at Proctor & Gamble, others in the Marble Hill chapter include a male nurse, truck driver, juvenile officer and pastor.

Motorcycles and God are the common denominators.

“We like the same things all the other people do,” Wolpers said. “We’re in it for two things. The first one is the Christian part, and the second one is motorcyclist. If we weren’t into motorcycles, we could do something through our church and do ministry, but through the motorcycles, you have a passion for it. So we enjoy the motorcycle races, we enjoy the bike shows, we enjoy the rides, going to motorcycle shops and just looking around, all that stuff. We enjoy all of it. We just don’t do the drinking part, but we enjoy the music, hanging out with people, bike games. We like to watch them.”

Wolpers said those interested do not have to be a member of CMA to join rides or attend the monthly meetings.

“Everyone is welcome to join CMA,” said Wolpers, who said he can be contacted at (573) 382-2187. “You don’t even have to have a motorcycle, really. Mainly it’s a ministry.”

jbreer@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3629