Rev. Billy Graham Dies At 99: Evangelist Got His Start In Wheaton

WHEATON, IL — Renowned evangelist and Wheaton College graduate Billy Graham died early Wednesday at the age of 99. The seeds of Graham's lifelong ministry took root during his time in Wheaton. Graham attended Wheaton College in 1943 as an anthropology student, but quickly found his calling in ministry when he became a pastor for the first time at United Gospel Tabernacle in Wheaton.

At Wheaton College, Graham met and fell in love with Ruth Bell, who later became his wife. Acknowledging his formative time in Wheaton, Graham once said, "The years that Ruth and I spent at Wheaton College were among the most important of our lives."

What started in a small Wheaton Church became a lifelong ministry that reached more than 200 million people and earned Graham the moniker of "America's Pastor." His bright white hair and deep, resonant voice, tinged with a southern accent, became familiar to people in nearly every country throughout the world.

Graham founded the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association in Minneapolis in 1950. The association, which eventually relocated to Graham's hometown of Charlotte, North Carolina, produced dozens of radio programs, television shows, films, publications, and Christian Outreach programs that touched millions of people.

Although his ministry was never embraced in the city as strongly as it was elsewhere around the country, Graham did draw large crowds to the rallies he held in Chicago over the years. His three-week crusade in July of 1962 at Soldier Field attracted around 800,000 people, and a crowd of 116,000 turned out during a single day of the event despite the summer heat at the time, the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Nearly a decade later, a 1971 rally at McCormick Place drew 30,000, the report stated. But that event was memorable to Graham for another reason. He wrote in his 1997 autobiography, "Just As I Am," that 300 to 400 "Satan worshippers" rushed the stage during the rally, the report added.

Graham also visited Chicago during one of its most contentious times, the 1968 Democratic National Convention. He spoke out against the riots that erupted around the convention, and he condemned the violence and what he called the "disobedience to law in a free country," according to the Sun-Times.

Several U.S. Presidents reached out to Graham for guidance during their time in office, including Dwight D. Eisenhower, Lyndon B. Johnson, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama. During the Civil Rights Movement, Graham formed a friendship with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and stood staunchly against segregation, famously admonishing white Americans, "We have been proud and thought we were better than any other race, any other people. Ladies and gentlemen, we are going to stumble into hell because of our pride."

Graham's Christian outreach programs continue throughout the world and at Wheaton College, which is home to the Billy Graham Center. Wheaton College President Dr. Philip Ryken said in a statement, "The Wheaton College family worldwide grieves his death with members of the Graham family and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association team, and rejoices with them that this beloved servant of the Lord has completed his journey and is at home with his Savior."

>>Image credit: Rev. Billy Graham returns to Wheaton College, AP Images/Anonymous/Associated Press

(Patch editor Joe Vince contributed to this report)