Mr. Allan Crowson has been named director of online and lifetime learning studies at Free Will Baptist Bible College, according to Dr. Greg Ketteman, provost. He replaces Rusty Campbell who accepted a post as director of enrollment services this spring.

 “What a blessing to have Allan Crowson joining our team as director of the online and lifetime learning programs,” Dr. Ketteman said. “He has a unique combination of ministry experience, extensive technological training and experience, and a keen intellect, coupled with a love for Jesus Christ and the mission of Free Will Baptist Bible College.”

Mr. Crowson began his new duties June 14, and will be responsible for developing and managing current online/lifetime learning courses, and will also market and expand the program. He brings almost 20 years of experience as a Free Will Baptist international missionary in Africa and France, in addition to 14 years as a senior manager with Nortel, a telecommunications corporation.

The 58-year-old minister is a 1973 FWBBC graduate. He completed an MBA at Lipscomb University in 2004. A published journalist and photographer, he has written poetry and songs, as well as children’s stories. He is an adult curriculum writer for Randall House.

Ordained in 1975, Crowson has a long history with FWBBC. His father Milton graduated in 1960 and taught at the college. His wife LaRue (1974) and all three children graduated from FWBBC: Timothy (1999), Bethany (2001), and Natalie (2003). His grandfather (mother’s side) attended the 1935 organizational meeting of the National Association of Free Will Baptists that voted to start FWBBC.

Mr. Crowson said, “We’re not starting from ground zero. Thanks to the hard work of Rusty Campbell and Jena Simpson, we already have a strong foundation in place on which to build. My goal is to expand, enhance, and improve it as needed. There’s a growing need among resident and non-resident students for education that’s more than training, for education that creates a desire to learn and then takes that learning back into our local churches.”

Mrs. Amy Walker has been named women’s volleyball coach at Free Will Baptist Bible College, according to Athletic Director Gary Turner. Mrs. Walker, a 2003 Elementary Education graduate at FWBBC, begins her duties with the 2010 fall semester. She currently coaches volleyball at nearby Donelson Christian Academy (DCA) and also teaches Science, Reading, and Math.

Mr. Turner said, “We are fortunate to have Amy Walker on staff. She has a solid volleyball background and understands the mission of FWBBC. She will provide energy and strong leadership for our young women. In five of her six years as head JV coach at DCA, Mrs. Walker’s teams went undefeated in district play and won the district championship three times.“

A native of Topeka, Kansas, Amy Brewer Walker was a four-year member of the Lady Flames basketball team while a student at FWBBC. She served on the Lumen staff three years, and was editor one year. In 2003, she was named “Best All-Around” student and was also named to Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges.

 “I’m excited about returning to my alma mater to coach women’s volleyball,” Mrs. Walker said. “Yes, we have a lot of work ahead of us, but with motivated and disciplined players, I believe we can build a winning tradition at FWBBC.”

Amy and her husband Mike are members of Cofer’s Chapel Free Will Baptist Church in Nashville.

A group of energetic Arkansas teens and their sponsors spent a day “in the stacks” at Welch Library, according to Carol Reid, librarian at Free Will Baptist Bible College. The group showed up June 18 for a reorganization project involving books and current and older periodicals in the historic building.

 “We were delighted to have Pastor Tim Harris and several youth from First Free Will Baptist Church in Conway help us organize, shelve, and relocate numerous periodicals that are such a vital part of the library’s resources during the academic year,” Mrs. Reid said. “Most of the time when volunteer workers come on campus, other essential projects route them to assist with painting or cleaning. This was a pleasant change of pace for us, and we thank the Lord for their labor of love.”

Pastor Harris and his team drove 350 miles from central Arkansas on Thursday, spent the night in campus housing, and stepped into the library early Friday morning ready to assist. They worked under the supervision of Lance Williams, library manager and a 2008 FWBBC graduate from Pocahontas, Arkansas.

 “This is the first time our church youth have been involved in a mission/service project,” Harris said. “And we hope it is the first of many. The church is underwriting the cost for the trip, and we are so pleased to bring the teens to FWBBC.” Pastor Harris and his wife Sheila are both FWBBC graduates—1983 and 1984 respectively.

The work force split into two teams with 14-year-old Zechariah Spears and 18-year-old B.J. McCoy providing the muscle for rearranging books in the stacks, while 17-year-old Cory Harris and 16-year-old Karen Lee did archival work with the library’s periodical collection on the second and third floors.

The four teens shared their future dreams: B.J McCoy has his eye on a 20-year career in the U.S.

 

Ten North Carolina teens and two sponsors spent four muggy June days with temperatures in the mid-90s working on the Free Will Baptist Bible College campus, according to Ernie Thompson, cleaning operations supervisor. The group traveled 650 miles from Washington, NC (First Free Will Baptist Church), to Middle Tennessee on Monday, June 14, and worked all week before returning home Saturday.

 “I was impressed with them,” Mr. Thompson said. “We don’t often get a group this large that can stay and work four days on campus. They were ready to do whatever had to be done—from cleaning to painting to hauling away debris to trimming shrubbery. The team was well supervised and motivated. You could tell that they understood why they were here.”

Darren Walker, team leader and associate youth and children’s pastor, said the seven girls and three boys, ranging from 13 to 17 years old, organized community projects to help raise funds and underwrite expenses for the Tennessee trip.

 “This was the first time for six of our teens to visit Nashville,” said Walker, a 1993 FWBBC graduate in his third year at the church. “We had two goals in mind with this outreach. First, we wanted to teach the teens about hands-on ministry and Christian service. Second, we wanted to acquaint them with FWBBC. It’s working.”

Housed in FWBBC resident halls, the youth group took their noon meals in Cumberland Cafeteria. They went off campus to area restaurants for evening meals, with several night activities planned by sponsors.

Each summer the North Carolina youth group plans a missions trip. Previous excursions include working with a Home Missions church in Pennsylvania, visiting the Free Will Baptist Children’s Home (Greeneville, TN), an international trip to France, and more. Reverend Kevin Woolard pastors First Free Will Baptist Church.

 

Nearly 200 people gathered on the front lawn of Davidson Hall at Free Will Baptist Bible College Saturday afternoon, June 19, for a cookout and a live gospel bluegrass concert as FWBBC hosted a GO10 Walk for the World event. Sporting tennis shoes and bright T-shirts, GO10 walkers pushed through 93-degree temperatures marching the final mile of the day from Nashville’s Centennial Park to the tree-shaded FWBBC campus.

Following the hour-long cookout and fellowship time, everyone moved inside Memorial Auditorium at 4:00 p.m. for a rousing 50-minute program that included three standing ovations.  GO10 project director Joe Wilson told attendees that the 2,500-mile march which started in Glennville, Georgia, in April had 1,000 miles to go, and that the event had already raised $355,000 for International Missions.

A 22-voice Alumni Choir [pictured above], accompanied by a 10-piece orchestra, sang “Go Into All the World,” an anthem recognizing the legacy of Laura Belle Barnard and others in world missions outreach, written and directed by Dr. James Stevens, chairman of the FWBBC Music Department. This marked the first time the song had been sung publicly. As the choir and orchestra crescendoed with high notes and timpani rolls, the congregation in Memorial Auditorium rose in spontaneous ovation.

The program moved quickly to a dramatic presentation, featuring a recitation by Dr. Mary Wisehart, former WNAC executive secretary-treasurer and English professor at FWBBC, who portrayed Laura Belle Barnard describing her decision to become a missionary, her ministry in India, and her years as a missions instructor at FWBBC. The presentation, under the direction of AnnaGee Harris (FWBBC drama director), brought laughter and tears from the audience, and was accompanied by a verbal summary of Free Will Baptist history that climaxed with a second standing ovation.

James Forlines, general director of Free Will Baptist International Missions, thanked FWBBC for hosting the event and recognized Joe Wilson for his leadership in the GO10 project. The third standing ovation came as Forlines described the hard work and commitment that Wilson had given the GO10 Walk for the World celebration.

 “We will not forget,” Forlines promised to all who answer the call to missions. More than 350 missionaries have followed in Laura Belle Barnard’s footsteps. Forlines spoke of Miss Barnard’s dynamic prayer life and her dedication to world missions even after she retired and returned to Georgia.

In his closing remarks, President Matt Pinson reminded the celebration participants: “Free Will Baptist Bible College is committed to the Great Commission. God did use Laura Belle Barnard, and He continues to use people like her today. We thank God for Free Will Baptist International Missions and for the part that FWBBC has played in educating and preparing missionaries to serve around the world.”

By 5:00 p.m. Saturday, the alumni choir was silent, the standing ovations ended, and people returned to their weekend schedules. But early Monday morning on June 21, with the temperature headed toward 96 degrees, Joe Wilson and the GO10 walkers gathered on the FWBBC campus to begin another 30-mile hike. By 7:00 a.m., they were marching west again toward Oklahoma City, one day closer to completing the historic 2,500-mile trek.

                  

Photo: The Alumni Choir sings “Go Into All the World.”

 

Samuel Dean Horne, Jr., has been named the first golf coach in Free Will Baptist Bible College history, according to Gary Turner, athletic director. The 29-year-old South Carolina native will start the new program this fall.

“We are blessed to have Sam Horne on staff,” Mr. Turner said. “He is not only an accomplished golfer, but he is a strong Christian leader. His priorities are in the right place, and he understands what can be done with the golf program here.”

Horne, a 2010 FWBBC graduate, majored in General Christian Ministries with an emphasis in Missions. He led an E-TEAM to Spain in 2006. Prior to attending FWBBC, he served four years in the U.S. Navy as a jet engine technician. He graduated from Nashville State Community College in 2008.

Mr. Horne is a member of the Tennessee Golf Association and Gaylord Springs Golf Links, and is attempting to make the professional golf tour. He has a handicap around one.  

“It is an honor to coach the first golf team at FWBBC,” Horne said. “But more than that, it is an answer to prayer! Golf is not just a game to me. Golf is a talent and gift that can be used in conjunction with our lives as Christians to bring glory to God and further His Kingdom. The golf team at FWBBC will operate on a three-principle foundation: A Disciple, A Scholar, A Player.”
Sam Horne’s wife Monicabeth, a Virginia native, graduated from FWBBC in 2010 with a B.A. degree in Biblical and Ministry Studies.