wild bill changes hats

A TRIBUTE TO WILLIAM EVANS
by John Arlon Hawke

To contact (Bill) Evans, call (877) 336-7575 or email at bill@nafwb.org.

He no longer terrorizes defensive ends like he did during his collegiate days at Free Will Baptist Bible College, but when Wild Bill Evans changes directions, even at age 65, everybody grabs their chinstraps and braces for impact. The word is out that come August 1, Wild Bill (known these days as a more modest Reverend William Evans) plans to reduce his hat size by half.

The good-natured former fullback who served 13 years as general director of two Free Will Baptist national agencies now only needs enough hat to be the director of the FWB Foundation.

The Show-Me State native closes out his Board of Retirement duties after 15 years with the agency, 12 as general director. He knows he’s fortunate to reach this point in life. 

MIRACLE MAN

Fourteen years ago Bill collided with a deadly opponent called cancer.  He had just settled into his most demanding role when he was diagnosed with stomach cancer and given a 25 percent chance to live. 

Against all odds, Bill beat the Big “C” with excellent medical treatment, a rugged constitution, and sufficient grace to hang on through eight dark months of chemotherapy when the heavens turned to brass and God was silent. 

When Bill’s former cancer doctor saw him recently, he declared, “Mr. Evans, you’re a miracle!”

Bill says, “In 1992 I asked God for 10 more years to complete my work with the Board of Retirement.  At that time, we were managing just over $9 million and my dream was to reach $25 million before I retired.  Today, we manage $30 million.”

FUTURE FOCUS       

With his Board of Retirement years behind him, Bill plans to refocus his energy.  The first thing he will do is print new business cards that identify him exclusively with the FWB Foundation.  He wants to make a difference and believes the time is right to challenge outmoded ideas about giving.

“I want to pour myself into the Foundation for the next three years or so,” Evans says.  “The Board of Retirement is in good hands with the new director, Ray Lewis, my long-time friend and colleague.”

BACK TRAILS

Evans’ easy rapport with Free Will Baptist ministers and laity began in a Missouri deacon’s home—the home of his dad, William Lee Evans.  After attending Southwest Missouri State University in 1958, Bill enrolled at Free Will Baptist Bible College, graduating in May 1962.  He was ordained to preach that same month.

He spent the next 21 years pastoring six Free Will Baptist churches in New Hampshire, Georgia, Kentucky, and Missouri.  During his 12-year Missouri pastoral run, Bill served three years as state moderator, three as assistant moderator, and three as clerk.  He clocked 12 years as an elected member of the Board of Retirement (1970-1982), 10 as chair.

After a seven-year stint with World Literature Crusade and Every Home for Christ ministries, Evans joined the Board of Retirement staff and hit the road promoting the denomination’s retirement plan.

HANGING AROUND

“What I’m most pleased with after 15 years is the acceptance of the retirement program,” Evans says.  “I’m not a polished communicator who speaks with precision.  I communicate by hanging around and answering personal questions that people ask, and sometimes answering the more important unasked questions.”

A driven man, Bill comes to work early and stays late.  He sees himself as a servant of the people, sees his job as a means to help the denomination’s pastors and leaders plan for their later years.  When he’s not in meetings or conferences, Bill teaches the senior adult Sunday School class at Donelson Fellowship FWB Church.

After four decades of heavy lifting, Bill Evans still puts on the pads and lines up alongside younger men every day.  When Wild Bill changes hats in August, you might want to step back a bit in case that new fire in his eyes makes him forget he’s 65.

After more than 20 years in the publishing world, free-lance writer John Arlon Hawke continues to capture the colorful personalities of the individuals about whom he writes. Hawke makes his home in Antioch, TN.