Pastor William O. Wills

PASTOR WILLIAM O. WILLS JR. William Ollendorff Wills Jr., affectionately known as (Ollie) was born to William O. and Martha T. Wills on July 5 1954 in San Antonio, Texas. He entered into eternal life on May 26 2013 in Tucson, Arizona. As His father was in the military, Ollie attended public schools in Kansas, Tennessee, England, Montana and Arizona. He graduated from Santa Rita High School in Tucson in June 1972 where he was active in track and football. He attended Arizona State University but graduated a Wildcat from the University of Arizona with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Broadcast Journalism. In 1980 he established Sunshine Ministries, Inc., In 1982 he was ordained and in 1984 he became the Senior Pastor of Sunshine Training Center in Tucson Arizona. Pastor Ollie implemented many successful ministries and programs at Sunshine Training Center including: Friday Night Live, Praisers Unlimited, STC Food Program, Sunshine Prison Ministry, Sunshine Nursing Home Ministry, Men of Purpose (MOP), Eve's Life Givers, Sunshine Literacy Program, Higher African Ministries (HAM), Cultural Academic Tutoring Educational Mentoring Program (CATEM) and the Teaching Institute for God, Holiness and Togetherness (TIGHT). Pastor Ollie was a man with a vision and an uncompromising teacher of the Word of God. He was a motivational leader with a strong voice for reconciliation in Tucson and the southwest. He was influenced by his father's experience in The Vermont Plan* which brought together children from different backgrounds and races to interact with each other without prejudice. He was committed to building these same relationships with churches, families and business throughout the city. In 1987 he started the Racial Reconciliation Conferences, in 1993 he founded the Racial Reconciliation Community Outreach Network (RRCON) and served as president until his passing. He served on the Board of Directors for the Arizona Association of Evangelicals (AAE), Secretary of the Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance (IMA), and a member of the Board for the Tucson Minister Alliance (TMA). Pastor Ollie received many certificates, awards, and recognition for outstanding community service from the following individuals and organizations: Congressman Ed Pastor, former Tucson Mayors Robert Walkup and George Miller, City Council Member Shirley Scott, Pima County Board of Supervisor Ramon Valadez, The Tucson Police Department, The University of Arizona International Student Organization and Citizen and Neighborhood Services. In 2004, he was presented with the Inter Religious and International Federation for World Peace Crown Award for his outstanding leadership in reconciliation, peacemaking and service to others. In 2005, he received the United States Department of Justice Federal Bureau of Investigation Certificate of Appreciation for Outstanding Community Service from the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC). Pastor Ollie believed in investing in people and was a key component in restoring the fine arts within several local churches (dance, drama, instrumental and vocal music). He was preceded in death by his maternal grandparents, Perry G. and Oreana S. Thompson, his paternal grandparents, William T. Wills, Laura and Loftin McIntyre. He is survived by his parents William O. and Martha T. Wills, sisters Regina and Connie Wills, Beverly Toliver, brother Dennis Freeman, niece Candace R. Wills, great nephew Jaylin W. Wills-Dennard, great niece Joelle E. Wills-Dennard all of Tucson Arizona. His aunts, Aleana Smith, Memphis TN., Lois Vines, St. Petersburg FL., Sandra Carter Manhattan NY., Sharon (Adam) Marks The Bronx NY., His uncle Lorence (Maggie) Thompson Memphis TN., and a host of extended family and friends. We thank God for sharing our son, brother and family member with you. He will be sorely missed. *The Vermont Plan - The Seed and Germination of RRCON As a young child William O. Wills and his brother Thomas were included in a vision "The Vermont Project" which brought together children from different backgrounds and races to interact with each other without prejudice. Minister A. Ritchie Low of the Congregational Methodist Church in Johnson, Vermont contacted Rev. Adam Clayton Powell Jr. of the Abyssinian Baptist Church of Harlem, New York to share this vision. Together, the two created "The Vermont Plan"*. This provided the vision which later became the incentive for his son Pastor Ollie to organize the Racial Reconciliation Conference and the Racial Reconciliation Community Outreach Network. *Article "Hands Across the Color Line" Parent Magazine, August 1948, Vol XXIII, No. 8, page 34