A Cherished Experience on
an American Highway
Recollecting ‘Mike and Cathy Buker’
(Church of God)
Vanam
Jwala Narasimha Rao
The
Hans India (August 9, 2026)
As I am in Houston (Texas), visiting tenth time USA with my wife, I
feel thrilled to recollect Mike and Cathy Bucker of Church of God, who caused me
a cherished experience on the American Highway, twenty-seven Years ago, when we
first visited USA, the memorable August evening on my 51st birthday
in the year 1999. The images remain vivid: a birthday celebration in Cincinnati
(Ohio State), an unexpected vehicle breakdown near Williamstown on USA Interstate
75, the anxiety of being stranded on a busy American highway, and the
reassuring presence of strangers who appeared when hope was fading.
America's interstate highways are impressive
with their engineering, discipline and efficiency. Their design minimizes many
of the risks familiar to Indian travellers, with dedicated shoulders, clearly
marked exits, rest areas and strict traffic enforcement. Yet, that evening also
revealed a different side of such efficiency. On a highway where thousands of
vehicles sped past, we found ourselves surprisingly alone. In a country where
systems function remarkably well, human assistance may not always arrive as
quickly as one expects. India, by contrast, has traditionally depended more on
human interaction than on infrastructure.
This is not a comparison of superiority. If America excels in
systems, India by and large, excels in spontaneous human response. Both have
strengths and limitations. My experience taught me that while efficient
infrastructure can make travel safer and more comfortable, it is human
compassion that gives travelers confidence during moments of uncertainty. American
highways are fascinating in their scale, speed and discipline. Vehicles cruise
through multiple lanes at speeds of 55 to 65 miles an hour, guided by strict
traffic rules and vigilant highway patrols.
Though India's National Highways are developed in recent decades,
the American Interstate system remains distinctive for its design, extensive
facilities and emphasis on safety. It was on one such highway that I
experienced an unforgettable and cherished lesson in human kindness in August 1999. The American Interstate Highway System
is designed for speed, safety and efficiency. They are divided by wide medians,
eliminating head-on collisions. Vehicles move in multiple lanes according to
speed, and lane discipline is strictly observed.
Prominent signs remind drivers to ‘Keep
Right Except to Pass,’ while seat-belt regulations and traffic laws are
rigorously enforced. Unlike many highways in India at that
time, American interstates were equipped with dedicated shoulders for
emergencies, clearly marked exits, regular rest areas, fuel stations,
restaurants, lodging facilities and medical services. A traveller could drive
hundreds of miles with confidence, knowing that facilities were never too far
away. Yet there was another side to this
impressive system.
The highways often passed through long
stretches with little roadside activity. Unlike in India, where villages, shops
and fellow travellers are usually within sight and help often comes informally,
an American highway can leave a stranded motorist feeling surprisingly isolated
despite all its sophisticated infrastructure. It was on such a highway, connecting
Ohio and Kentucky, that I learned how, in moments of difficulty, human kindness
can be more valuable than even the most advanced transportation system.
Despite all its impressive infrastructure,
a vehicle breakdown on an American highway can be a frightening experience, as
I discovered on 8 August 1999, my fifty-first birthday. My daughter Kinnera,
who gave birth to my first grandson, Yashwin Koniki, celebrated the occasion at
her home in Cincinnati. VR Gannamraju and his wife Shailaja, who were living in
Lexington, Kentucky, for barely a year and a half, joined us to greet me. After
the birthday celebrations, Gannamraju and I, and his two children, set out for
Lexington to spend the weekend there. Shailaja stayed back with my daughter.
Gannamraju was driving. About halfway
through the hundred-mile journey on Interstate 75, near Williamstown, our
vehicle developed a mechanical problem and came to a halt. We stepped out and
looked around helplessly. As vehicle after vehicle sped past, no one stopped to
offer assistance or even a lift. With no immediate solution in sight, we pushed
the car onto the shoulder and wondered what to do next. The roar of speeding vehicles
was almost unbearable. Darkness was slowly descending, and before long the
clock struck 8 PM. Our only hope was that a highway patrol vehicle might
eventually come by. With no other option, we decided to walk towards the next
exit.
Just then, we noticed a vehicle stop about
a hundred yards behind us. Later, we learned that another motorist had alerted
them that the luggage strapped to the roof of their car appeared insecure and
might fall off. To us, however, their arrival seemed nothing short of
providential. We approached them and asked whether they had a mobile phone so
that we could inform my son-in-law in Cincinnati about our predicament. Mobile
phones were not yet common by then, and they too did not have one either.
Instead, to our surprise and immense relief, they offered lift to take us to
the next exit.
Their car was already packed with
passengers and luggage, yet Mike and Cathy Buker cheerfully rearranged
themselves to accommodate us. During the journey, they told us that they
believed they had been sent by Jesus Christ to help people in need. Members of
the ‘Church of God’ and deeply committed to their faith, they were travelling
to London, Kentucky, about fifty miles beyond Lexington. We had no words to
express our gratitude. They kindly dropped us at the next exit, nearly ten
miles away, enabling us to seek further assistance.
From there, we telephoned a friend in
Lexington, Sreenivasa Rao, son of Jaganmohan Rao, an Indian Forest Service
officer then serving the Andhra Pradesh Government. Accompanied by his wife
Lavanya, he drove over and took us safely to Lexington. Thus, my fifty-first
birthday came to be celebrated in three places: Cincinnati, a shoulder on
Interstate 75 near Williamstown, and finally Lexington, over rotis,
conversation and a celebratory drink.
What touched us even more was that Mike
and Cathy Buker sent an e-mail the very next day to inquire whether we had
reached our destination safely. Such concern from complete strangers was both
unexpected and heartwarming. As the years turned into decades, we gradually
lost contact, but the memory of their kindness never faded. Recently, while
searching the internet, I came across references to Michael and Cathy Buker, a
respected couple associated with Parkway Ministries Church of God in Corbin,
Kentucky.
I learned that Michael Lee Buker passed
away on August 6, 2023 at the age of seventy, while Cathy continues her
association with the church and its community activities. Whether they are the
very same Mike and Cathy Buker who came to our rescue on Interstate 75 that
August evening remains impossible to establish with complete certainty. Yet the
names, location and church affiliation closely match my recollection, and in my
heart, I would believe that they are indeed the same people.
And if it is correct, this article is a sincere
tribute to two Good Samaritans, Mike and Cathy Buker, whose kindness left an indelible
impression far greater than they could ever have imagined. For them, it could
be a simple gesture, offering help to stranded travellers on busy highways. For
us, it was a moment of reassurance when anxiety was giving way to helplessness.
Nearly three decades have passed, but I still remember their compassion, their humility and their willingness to inconvenience themselves for complete strangers. Roads, vehicles and journeys eventually fade into memory. What endures is the humanity we encounter along the way. Every time I recall my fifty-first birthday, I remember not the highway breakdown, but the kindness of two strangers who stopped when everyone else drove on. (Writer from USA on his 79th Birthday: August 8, 2026).
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