On a recent trip through the town of Ruth, I drove past Gilbert Carmona’s office. He has had an office there for a while and I did not think it strange to see his van there at such a late hour. What I did notice was a white vinyl sign. As I drove closer I read “Gilbert Talk Taxes” WCAB Sat. 9:00AM.” Wow! Gilbert is going to be on the radio! Why is that such a big deal? Because he is a member of Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF) and they are not supposed to EVEN LISTEN to the radio! Well, how can this be true? I needed to know more. So, I emailed WCAB to verify the program and the time. Sure enough Lou Gilliam sent me back a reply saying the show will be on Saturday mornings 9:00AM to 9:30AM. And get this… it is supposed to be streaming!
Lou even wrote, “Yes we will stream the show. If you do not hear it please call the station. Sometimes the streamer will flip off by itself and unless we are staring at it we miss it. We are on Northland Cable and if the cable is interrupted in any way there goes the streamer. So please call if you do not hear it.”
Well, what do you say about that?Have the rules changed at WOFF? Or does Gilbert “have ahold of God at such a high level he can be trusted to go on the radio and not sin?” Besides Ray Farmer and Christie, his wife, who will be allowed to listen to him and guard him? If there is a call screener, and they are not a member of WOFF, how will they know who has ahold of Jesus and can talk to Gilbert and who does not? Will the commercials during those 30 minutes be other WOFF-member owned companies? Such questions intrigue me.
The opportunity to hear Gilbert on the radio has had me thinking about him and our relationship during my time in WOFF. He was one of the first people I met as I started working for the now defunct Two Mile Properties (TMP) owned by Josh Farmer. Gilbert managed one apartment complex in Gaffney, SC and I managed other one owned by TMP. We would take lunch together sometimes and walk at Limestone College. He was fun to talk to and well, every once in a while we would give to foolishness. Okay, there, I admit it. He always had fun stories to tell as we learned that we grew up watching with some of the same television shows and listening to the same comedians. I admired his bilingual skills and how he seemed to be able to relate to his renters and went out of his way to help some of them.
Somewhere along in that time frame he and his wife would help me and my family with the yard work we needed to do on the house we still owned in Greenville, SC. In October of 2002, we had moved to live with Jeff and Sarah Boyle and not sold our house yet. Gilbert helped us by taking a TMP mower to Greenville on Saturdays and cutting the grass. It did not take long and of course after that we had to all go out and eat. There were times when Gilbert would have us over to his house in for dinner after he got married and moved out of Rusty and Lynn Millwood’s house. He can cook up a storm! During his stay at WOFF, he has worked for Liz Rose at the Café at the Mall and maybe even her other place in Tryon. (I am not 100% sure on that one…)
The years run together, but after Hurricane Katrina, Gilbert spent time in Mississippi working for Belfor® as a project manager. He has many skills in construction including laying tile. I think he even worked for Carlson Farmer before TMP laying tile. If my memory serves me right, he got his degree at Limestone College. I feel sure that was tough to manage while working full time. He also owns another company called “INTERNATIONAL SURFACE FINISHING ACADEMY, LLC” I have no idea what he does with that company.
So, for certain Gilbert is a man of many talents. He has had his times of struggling within WOFF, though. I have written about it here before, but, one time he got up in a service and told Deloris to “Shut-up!” That was not acceptable behavior in Jane’s church. But, he “got prayer” and all was forgiven. He got up one time in a service and expressed his concern about Jane’s BIG DOG being around children. That was a sincere moment. All of these thoughts brought me to the last time I saw Gilbert up close. It was August of 2010 when I posted this sign in Forrest City.
At some point while the sign was up, I pulled into the gas station by Wal-Mart in Forest City. It may have been a Friday night. Low and behold, Christie Carmona started to pull in to the pump next to me. I thought for a moment I would have a chance to say –Hi! Then, a few feet away in his van, Gilbert yelled to Christie- Hey… Hey! He got her attention and motioned for her to get away for the pump! He acted like the pump may blow up at any moment….!!! I saw the look on his face. It was full of terror! Then I understood the pump was not about to blow. Why? He was telling her to get away for me! My presence was causing him great distress. Why was that? We had been such friends in WOFF. Did he not like my sign? Do you think he had been warned to stay away from me? All of those good times we had laughing and talking and working together… down the tubes. For now, I was “an enemy.” Why? At that point, all I was doing was telling my experiences in the group he seemed to love. Why would telling what happened to me cause him such distress? Much of the same things happened to him.
He even used the same sign a few months ago…
No, it goes much deeper than the fact he did not want to be around me. I had left and done what he tried to do several times during my time there. He has had major struggles at times with WOFF and maybe even Jane… I don’t know exactly. But, for now he is “locked-in” and will be using WCAB as a recruiting tool not only for his business, but his voice will be a recruiting tool for Jane Whaley and WOFF. That is why Jane is letting him have a radio show. It would thrill her to no end to have some of his new customers become regular giving members of WOFF.
But, oh, they would no longer be able to listen to the radio, or would they? What a conundrum that would be. You got here by listening to the radio, but, now it is evil and you can’t listen to it any more. Hmmmm… We will list and expound upon all of the WOFF recruiting tools I know about in future posts. There are some new ones Jane is using that were not used when I was inside. And I am sure there are new ones I have yet to learn about.
And with that, let us remember:
“It is never too late to wake up and leave and reclaim your life!” Steve Hassan
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Scripture references are Amplified Version unless otherwise noted. (Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation ) This is post number 455.
What a surprise! Hypocrites! You know, it’s almost comical. They do not believe or celebrate Christmas, yet they spent months making and selling decorative Christmas motif pillows. Anyone besides me remember working until all hours making pillows? They do not believe or celebrate Christmas, yet, they eat Christmas cookies and/or candy. I was there. They don’t believe in watching TV or listening to radio, yet waking up to the TV on in the wee hours in a room with closed doors, was a nightly occurrence. Never mind the radio when driving down the road. This one is the kicker. Eating a decadent desert containing a common liquor. Or maybe, this one is the kicker. Leigh Valentine selling and wearing cosmetics, that were not permitted to be used by the ladies in WOFF. Every old barn needs some paint. I’m not sure about dying hair. Must be okay, otherwise, there would be a lot of heads with black roots. Oh, just one more. How about being as big as the side of a barn? Yes, hypocritical would be an accurate description of what I saw.
Great story! I do have fond memories of Gilbert when I was at WOFF. With such a energetic personality there was never a dull moment when Gilbert was around. One of his talents was making “Chicago” style cheesecakes. I might have given to lust a time or two while eating a piece of Giblert’s cheesecake, but have since repented and found forgiveness in my heart! It was very good cheesecake!
As stated in this article I do agree that it is very interesting indeed that Gilbert would be authorized by WOFF leadership to participate in a radio program. The radio station, WCAB, is a class D AM station with a 1 kilo-watt daytime and a 228 watt nightime signal so most likely, their radio signal doesn’t even get beyond Rutherford County’s borders. Perhaps there is a connection between the station’s owner, Jim Bishop and some of the leadership at WOFF. I don’t know, but I never thought that WOFF leadership would authorize Gilbert or any other member for that matter the liberty to use commerical media, especially since WOFF members can be punished for listening to the radio, watching television or posessing a newspaper. I think John has shared a story or two on this website about what happens when you read a newspaper while a member of WOFF. I’ll never forget an incident that happened to me while I was working at one of the WOFF construction companies. One day I was working at the home of one of Jane Whaley’s Aunts. While working that day, her Aunt who is a very kind lady but obviously doesn’t understand that WOFF members are forbidden from reading newspapers, handed me that days paper. There was an article in the paper about the church that she wanted me to read, so she gave me the paper and told me to keep it. I seem to remember that the article portrayed the church in a postivie light. Not knowing what to say to her, I just folded the paper and put it in my truck when I left her home that day. I never even looked at the paper. Somehow word got back to Jane that her Aunt had given me the newspaper. I believe Jane’s Aunt had told Jane that she had given me the paper. Anyway, before you could say “Jimminey Cricket” I was called to Jane’s office and harshly reprimanded for receivng the paper. Now back to Gilbert’s radio show. John’s article does bring up many interesting questions concerning a member of WOFF utilizing media to promote their occupation. I do know that this day and time many Evangelists are using Short Wave Radio to reach the masses with their gospel message. Perhaps this is a new step forward for WOFF to get their message out to the masses via the airwaves. Having more victims, er I mean members certainly can’t hurt their bottom line! I would be very interested in finding out what he says on the program.
How could I have left THE CHEESECAKE talents? What was I thinking? Thank you, Jon for reminding us all of the delicious culinary delights put out by Gilbert Carmona!
I will post the show from Jan. 4th.
John
Several WOFF companies had advertised on the radio station in the past with Jane’s approval. So, they have made Jim Bishop a “friend” of WOFF, since he will take their advertisements.
Randall,
According to others in the community, he has the respect of many leaders in other churches. It is beyond me what kind of hex JW has on him.
John
Look, my dad might have a great front and know this and that, but remember he was taught everything he knows. Excellent english, cooking, working, etc. he learned all of it through decades of pie in the sky attempts to strike it big. He always moved from one enterprise to the next in an attempt to reconcile the massive mistakes he made as a young man. The funny smiling Gilberto that you all know with the Cheesecakes and impressions is really a man with a dark and loathsome past. I wouldn’t be saying this if I hadn’t heard dozens of stories from both sides of the family and stories lined up from relatives who aren’t even in contact with each other. The details about the cocaine and abuse aren’t relevant, and I mean he did just lose his firstborn, but what I am getting at is that it does not surprise me that he is able to do a radio show 24 hours after his son’s death because he is a ruthless bastard at heart. When I was homeless 4 years ago and asked him to send me some money for food, he yelled at me and hung up. My own father; when George was homeless and asked for food, he yelled at him and hung up.
I know it sounds heartless given the time, but I honestly have absolutely no soft spot in my heart for my father. I am torn up about my mother, I can not imagine how hard she must be taking her son’s death, but for Gilberto, he made his choice to alienate himself from Geo and I the day they announced his engagement. We were never happy with him marrying that lady, and the problems in our family are 100% attributed to her getting married to my dad. It is because of her that I wasn’t able to spend more time with Gil before he died, and there is nothing that will change my mind about that. When HER obituary is posted, my reaction will be entirely different from that of my brothers, and I can guarantee that she will go out with silence, not a word of her name or doings will be mentioned online or any where because she did do nothing but destroy and separate and wreck havoc on a family that was otherwise successful.
Dad, for when your church’s cyber spies begin their daily illegal attack on our privacy and run across this post: Life has been nothing but great for me up here in Chicago. I am now married, a father, successful, and most importantly the happiest I have ever been. If the death of your firstborn is not a wake up call for you to reconsider what you’ve been doing, I do not know what else is. I know why you haven’t called me, and I know you are burying Gilbert before I have an opportunity to curtail any of your endeavors. You guys aren’t these slick operatives pulling off fast ones behind our backs. Your church’s official strategy book is greatly outdated, we all know what you guys are up to and I am going to stop at nothing until real justice has been served.