The Commons Community: John Rucker
Connecting the Ohio & Erie Canal Park Community for Success
By: Abigail Bashor
Akron Civic Commons is highlighting the neighbors and partners that make our work in downtown Akron, Ohio & Erie Canal Park, and Summit Lake possible. This week, we’re highlighting John Rucker, a longtime resident of Ohio & Erie Canal Park, computer technician extraordinaire, and a true friend in our Commons Community.
We have all heard of the different ways in which our brains are “wired.” Some of us soar through artistic expression, and others through pragmatic analysis. Some prefer collaboration, and others isolation. Still, many of us are somewhere in between, with our minds and hearts made up of crisscrossing channels. For John Rucker, understanding networks and connections has been his lifelong profession, albeit primarily with computers. Though with the introduction of the Akron Civic Commons project to the Ohio & Erie Canal Park neighborhood, he may be beginning to make the connection between wiring computers for success, and helping to provide public outlets of success for his community as well.
Born and raised in Akron, Rucker joined the army at an early age and returned home after serving to obtain his GED. He attended a trade school program called ASSET at a local community center, of which he says much of the success he’s had in his computer career stemmed. Alongside three other top-performing ASSET students, Rucker had the opportunity to interview for a technician position at International Business Machines Corporation (IBM). Upon securing the job, he spent more than a decade working for IBM in growing capacities. “The first four years I worked for [them], I worked local: Akron, Cleveland, and the surrounding areas. After that, I went out to Michigan and Pennsylvania. And after that, I started to travel out by plane.” Rucker says this period was highly demanding, yet worthwhile in terms of skill development. “Honest to goodness, every two and a half days I was on a plane going somewhere,” he says. “For example, we’d go into Giant Eagle and in two days—one weekend—we’d switch out all the old computer equipment and replace it so that they never missed a beat. It was crazy, but I loved to travel. I met a lot of different people and got really good at what I did.”
Rucker became a laptop specialist soon after and following his leave from IBM in 2003, has been involved in computer work ever since. He has worked for various tech companies, all of which he has grown a fondness for. In initially looking for the right position years ago, Rucker explains that family and respect was key. “I had four kids at the time, and I was a real stickler about taking care of my kids and being for them. With these tech companies, I often received a position of authority because I was in the business for years. If I wasn’t teaching it, I was on top of a project.”
When he’s not configuring hardware or supervising tech-related services, Rucker strives to be an active participant in his neighborhood community of Ohio & Erie Canal Park. Located along the Ohio & Erie Canalway in Akron, this neighborhood is home to residential areas surrounding an underutilized park space. Rucker says he was asked to become more involved in the area by Tom Fuller, who initially introduced him to the project. “I heard about the Akron Civic Commons project through a community meeting held in Ohio & Erie Canal Park. My two big objectives were cleaning the canal and helping the kids.”
Having lived in the area since the early 1970s, Rucker has seen Ohio & Erie Canal Park many transformations throughout the years. “My family was one of the first families to move into Channelwood Village. I saw that canal in its original state, and it was beautiful. What people don’t realize is that this would be a great community to raise a family. It has so much potential. The kids may have a place to play, but they need a place to learn, too. Kids want structure; they want to learn.” One of Rucker’s goals is to help get a computer center going for kids in the area. “There’s a building right off the trail that is perfect for these kids. It’s right at home and it’s got a lot of space. And I have checked into it, to tell you the truth,” he says with glowing excitement.
Rucker’s long history with Ohio & Erie Canal Park lends itself to his understanding of the realities and perceptions of the area that residents are up against. While mistrust and suspicion are two ideas that often impede further progress from taking place, Rucker says that it just takes a bit of convincing. “We need everyone to look at the big picture. We need them all to see the same thing and find ways to get involved. Once you get someone interested, you get them hooked.”
In making efforts to update the park and provide something special for local kids, Rucker believes that Ohio & Erie Canal Park will truly start to see itself flourish. “Initially, people don’t and won’t seem interested. But as soon as they see what’s going on, and once they see, ‘I’m not doing this for me, I’m doing this for us,’ and that it’s something we can enjoy and somewhere where our kids can be safe, people will feel comfortable and secure enough to enjoy the space. It’s the little things that make up a big part of this.”