S*0882 Resolution, By Allen
 A SENATE RESOLUTION TO CONGRATULATE REVEREND DR. GRADY BUTLER FOR HIS
 OUTSTANDING CAREER AS A MINISTER OF THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST AND HIS MANY
 SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTIONS AND TO CELEBRATE THE MILESTONE OF HIS EIGHTIETH
 BIRTHDAY WITH HIS FAMILY AND FRIENDS.

   06/16/15  Senate Introduced and adopted (Senate Journal-page 16)

TO CONGRATULATE REVEREND DR. GRADY BUTLER FOR HIS OUTSTANDING CAREER AS A MINISTER OF THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST AND HIS MANY SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTIONS AND TO CELEBRATE THE MILESTONE OF HIS EIGHTIETH BIRTHDAY WITH HIS FAMILY AND FRIENDS.

Whereas, the members of the South Carolina Senate are grateful for the many exceptional accomplishments of Reverend Dr. Grady Butler, a native of Greenville, during his eight decades; and

Whereas, after graduating from Sterling High School in Greenville, Grady Butler earned a bachelor of science degree from Tuskegee University in Alabama in 1959, where he was president of the renowned Tuskegee choir and honored with induction into Who's Who Among Students in American Colleges and Universities; and

Whereas, he participated in Civil Rights demonstrations in Montgomery and Tuskegee, Alabama, and Atlanta, Georgia, and in October 1960, he was arrested while trying to eat at a restaurant in Rich's of Atlanta and spent several days in the Fulton County jail as a cellmate of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.; and

Whereas, Reverend Butler earned a bachelor of divinity in 1962, a master of divinity in 1971, and a doctorate in ministry in 1979, all from the Interdenominational Theological Center (ITC), Morehouse School of Religion in Atlanta; and

Whereas, he served as the assistant to the pastor for West Hunter Street Baptist Church in Atlanta from 1962 to 1969, and from 1962 to 1965, he also served part time as the pastor of Jubilee Baptist Church in Taylors; and

Whereas, from 1969 to 1981, Reverend Butler served as the senior pastor of St. Stephen Missionary Baptist Church in Atlanta, while serving as the vice president of the Atlanta-Tuskegee Club from 1968 to 1975, as the assistant director and instructor of field education at ITC from 1971 to 1975, and as an instructor of religion and philosophy at Morehouse College from 1978 to 1981; and

Whereas, he was the dean of students at Morehouse College from 1981 to 1983, and served as associate pastor of Salem Baptist Church in Atlanta from 1983 to 1986; and

Whereas, in 1986, Reverend Butler became the pastor of Mount Olive Baptist Church in Tuskegee, Alabama, where he served until 1993, and then he returned to his hometown and served on the faculty of Greenville Technical College, as an adjunct professor at Furman University, and as a substitute teacher in the Greenville school system; and

Whereas, he has served as the senior pastor of Nicholtown Presbyterian Church in Greenville and, since 2000, as a trustee on the Greenville County School Board; and

Whereas, the members of the South Carolina Senate appreciate the significant contributions that Reverend Grady Butler has made to his church and to his community and congratulate him upon reaching his birthday of four score years. Now, therefore,

Be it resolved by the Senate:

That the members of the South Carolina Senate, by this resolution, congratulate Reverend Dr. Grady Butler for his outstanding career as a minister of the Gospel of Christ and celebrate the milestone of his eightieth birthday with his family and friends.

Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be forwarded to Reverend Dr. Grady Butler.