Bill George and Upsilon President Ethan Martin
On Saturday, November 3, 2012, Dr. Bill George, who is
currently the Coordinator of Education/Publications for the Church of God World
Missions, was tapped by Upsilon. It
may come as a surprise to many that Bill was not already a member of
Upsilon, but that is the case.
In the early 1960s, Bill was a member of the
“Spokes Club,” which some incorrectly thought was involved in the founding of
Upsilon. The Spokes Club ceased to exist sometime in 1961/62.
Before
Upsilon was founded in the Fall of 1962, Bill had left Cleveland to
become a freshman at
the University of Alabama. Two of
Upsilon's four foundering members had attended Spokes Club meetings, however,
that was the extent of the connection between the two clubs.
Bill George receiving a ceremonial Upsilon bucket
Upsilon men and women through the
years have always considered Bill George to be a Upsilon brother, and have
always treated him as such. Bill has been a sponsor on several occasions
through the years. He has had the privilege of seeing several Upsilon men and women
and their children selected by Upsilon. Bill
contributed greatly to the Love Atlanta Run in 1987, the Ceremonial Mace in
2003, and was one of many contributors to the Clocktower and North Gate Arch.
Because of the affection Upsilon has for Dr. George, and because of his
efforts over the years for the club, Upsilon's “110% Award” was named in his honor.
Throughout the weekend, countless well-wishers offered their
congratulations to Dr. George for this honor, which was well-deserved, and
long overdue!!!!
The second person tapped as an “honorary member” was Rev
Mark Williams, the current General Overseer of the Church of God.
Mark Williams receiving his Upsilon Crest
Mark also has an interesting story.
Mark was asked to preach at a special "Chapel Service" for Upsilon
members on Sunday, November 4th, 2012.
At the conclusion of his remarks, current Upsilon Xi President Ethan Martin
surprised him with the acknowledgement that the club would like to tap him and
bestow upon him honorary membership.
Mr. Williams accepted this honor and President Martin handed him a
Upsilon Xi Crest and welcomed him to the club.
After receiving this honor, Mr. Williams gave a few remarks.
Mark Williams speaking at the Upsilon Chapel Service
Mark attended Lee College in the early/mid 1980s and
developed a strong desire to be in the club.
He was a roommate of Jeff Sargent at the time, and Jeff was in Upsilon.
Mark was tapped by Upsilon in 1984. However, a couple months before he was tapped, he had received and
accepted the call of God upon his life to be an Evangelist.
All of his energies at the time were devoted towards preparing to serve God in this
capacity. Thus, he wrote a letter to
the President of Upsilon, stating that he would not be
able to accept Upsilon’s offer and that he would have to decline. Mr.
Williams mentioned that not being a part of Upsilon was perhaps his only regret
from his time at Lee. It was greatly rewarding to
see Upsilon erase this regret, and to accept Mr. Williams into its membership.
While it only took 28 years to finally get a "yes," it was well worth the wait.
Upsilon Xi is proud of both of its new members and offer our
congratulations to both men and their families.
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