Fulfilling His Purpose (Richmond Times-Dispatch, March 26, 2005) (Excerpt Only) Lincoln “Gene” Akers doesn’t have to tell you that he loves Eli Green. You can see tenderness when he looks at the first grader. Akers is 79, Eli is 6, and for all intents and purposes, the man and boy are father and son. In reality, Akers is Eli’s step-great-grandfather. His stepson’s younger daughter is Eli’s mother. She was single and struggling with personal issues in 1998 when she gave birth to Eli. The boy’s father was in prison, and his mother was living with Akers and his wife, Doris. The retired couple had settled into a satisfying routine in their eastern Henrico County rancher, punctuated by occasional, leisurely vacations. “We took bus tours a lot,” Gene Akers said. “We went to California and every state in between.” Then Eli was born. They were smitten. The fact that the child was biracial never fazed them. “We didn’t even look at him like that,” said Gene Akers (who is white). “He’s God’s child.” Read More from The Reporter »