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Page Six
George Whitefield and Bethesda
Continued from Page 1
An instance of the latter is found in
an anecdote related by Benjamin Frank¬
lin in his autobiography. Though not in
sympathy with his religious beliefs,
Franklin was a great admirer of White
field and went often to hear him preach
when he a^eared in Philadelphia.
Franklin was interested in the project
of the orphanage too, and tried to per¬
suade Whitefield to build it in Phil¬
adelphia where workmen and materials
would be more readily available. This
Whitefield declined to do and Franklin
washed his hands of the matter, resolving
not to contribute. Later, however, on one
of the evangelist’s visits, the canny
Philadelphian went as usual to hear him
but fully determined not to give a penny
if he made a plea for the home at the
close of his sermon and finished with a
collection for it. But let Franklin tell
the story. “I had in my pocket a hand¬
ful of copper money, three or four silver
dollars, and five pistoles (Spanish coins)
in gold. As he proceeded 1 began to
soften and concluded to give the coppers.
Another stroke of his oratory made me
ashamed of that and determined me
to give the silver. But he finished so
admirably that I emptied my pockets
into the collector’s dish, gold and all.”
It is interesting to note that White
field had to do with the founding of the
Charity School m Philadelphia, the be¬
ginnings of which came about in large
part as a result of the religious revival
accompanying Whitefield’s preaching.
The University of Pennsylvania traces
its founding to the establishment of the
Charity School. It is appropriate then
that on the campus of that institution
should appear a statue of Whitefield
in heroic size and striking posture. This
contribution to art and history was made
by the late Tait McKenzie, noted sculp¬
tor, who on a visit to Bethesda several
years ago presented the home with an
excellent photograph of the statue as
shown in the accompanying cut. The
picture bears this inscription: “To
Bethesda from Tait McKenzie, a souvenir
of May 13, 1936. A tribute to the spirit
of Whitefield which is here shown so
well.” The statue was the gift of Meth¬
odist alumni of the university which
had its beginning as the Charity School
in Whitefield’s tabernacle.
That the work of the orphanage was
uppermost in Whitefield’s mind is
evidenced by his asking for a grant of
five hundred acres of land as a site
for it, in lieu of salary as curate to the
colony. His faith in the Power he served
and his self confidence assured him that
his beloved project and he, himself, would
find ready support. The passage of
time justified his faith. During the re¬
maining thirty years of his life and care
of the home, it flourished. After his
passing, dark days came and Bethesda
went through a series of misadventures
and disasters, but, as if the indomitable
spirit of Whitefield still presided over
its destiny and strengthened the hands
of its supporters, the home survived.
And who will den ,T that from generation
to generation the faith and fire of the
founder has continued to live in the
minds and hearts of Bethesda’s friends.
BETHESDA NEWS
The Georgia Chapter, Colonial Dames
of America, in 1916 laid the corner¬
stone of, and a few years later completed,
the handsome little chapel of Early Geor¬
gian architecture that bears his name.
Other organizations of historical signi¬
ficance, and individuals in memory of
historic characters, contributed to the
furniture of the building in such a wav
as to make the immortal presence of
Whitefield a reality. It is not difficult
to imagine him standing in the lofted
pulpit in an attitude similar to that of
the pictured statue. And in the chancel
on the altar dedicated to his friend John
Wesley, there is perhaps a light that
never goes out.
On the occasion of Mr. McKenzie’s
visit to Bethesda, he was introduced to
the boys. When a staff member re¬
marked, mistakenlv, that their visitor
had chiseled the statue out of stone, a
small fry chirped: “He must be a great
chiseler.” (The figure is actually of
bronze.)
Bethesda Closely Belated to Rotary
Continued from Page 5
stantially to Bethesda’s welfare. For
several years, Lee Jones, a Bethesda
student, was organist for the club. His
friends, discerning his great musical
talent, financed a course in piano and
pipe-organ at Yale. He is now with
one of the broadcasting systems, and has
a brilliant war record to his credit.
PLANT REBUILT
The present superintendent of the
home, Max Livingston, is a member of
the club, and has in a brief period won
the confidence and esteem of his fel¬
lows.
During recent years the plant at
Bethesda has been practically rebuilt.
New buildings, fine dairy herds, in¬
creased farm acreage, all bear testi¬
mony to leadership, energy and close
personal attention of someone, and for
much of it, the “someones” responsible
are Rotarians.
HAS BETHESDA COMMITTEE
For years Rotary has had a Bethesda
Committee, members of which have de¬
voted not hours, but days and weeks of
time, thought and personal endeavor.
The members of the committee for
1946-47 are: W. T. Bennett, chairman,
Lawton M. Tison, A. J. Nitzschke, Er¬
nest C. Bull, Arthur W. Solomon and
J. F. Jackson.
Bethesda stands today as a memorial
to a great idea, to the work of many
minds, and many friends, to the de¬
velopment of useful manhood, to
achievements, tangible and intangible,
and well exemplifies the Rotary ideal
of service above self.
Frank L. Elliott—Paul G. Lubeck
ELLIOTT AND LUBECK
PLUMBING AND HEATING
1107 Bull Street Savannah, Ga.
Telephones: Office 3-8966
Night 7921-2-4994
February, 1917
1946 Christmas Donations
Continued from Page 2
Mrs. Albert Martin, Mrs. Fred Warner,
Mrs. Walter W. Worrell, John M. Hut¬
ton, Mrs. Harry Carter, Mrs. Edwin
Clements, Mrs. A. Syd Williams, Mrs.
Robert N. Snead, W. R. L. Roberts, Mrs.
Fred Hodges, Mrs. A. L. Simpson, Mrs.
Alex Elkins, Mrs. Frank H. Perkins,
Mrs. Charles R. Whitman, Mrs. William
Opper, Mrs. William Duflock, Mrs. L.
A. Looper, Mrs. John Winchester, Tully
Pennington, Mrs. Edward Perkins, Mrs.
J. N. Woodell, Mrs. Thomas M. Woodell,
Mrs. Ruby Taggart, Mrs. Joe Schuman,
Mrs. John H. Seyle, Mrs. W. Martin
Sweat, Mrs. M. B. and Marguerite
Bailey, Mrs. Fred M. Gorfain, Mrs. Gus
Lewis, Mrs. William Lewis, Mrs. Otto
L. Hart and George Hoffman.
We are especially grateful to the fol
loing persons and firms in Fitzgerald,
Ga. that contributed to our Christmas
fund, this money being raised by one of
our most faithful members, William B.
Baker: Bradshaw Music Co., Krugers
Dept. Store, Lark Martin, Colony Furni¬
ture Co., F. R. Justice & Co., Home
Furnishing Co., Hoyle Furniture Co.,
Bond Grocery Co., G. W. Mann, Jr.,
Charles R. Harris, Ben Hill Furniture
Co., The Fair Store, Hierc Jewelry Co.,
Ben Hill Auto Parts Co., H. R. Wentz,
Dr. J. G Ashley, Fitzgerald Jewelry Co.,
A. L. Bond, C. C. Persons, David Paulk,
Sheriff J. V. Griner, Paul J. Kelly,
Lovett Barber Shop, Dr. Will S. Haile,
Russell Jewelry Co., Grady Aldridge, and
Lois Baker.
It has been impossible so far to
acknowledge each contribution by let¬
ter due to the fact that this will get
to the printers by January 20. there¬
fore the members of the Alumni, through
“Bethesda News” wishes to express our
appreciation to all members of the club,
to all former Bethesda boys, and to our
friends for their Christmas contribu¬
tions. It is not the intention of the
editor to omit anyone that contributed
but due to the heavy amount of detail
work involved in the office this is im¬
possible. Should these be anyone that
contributed and their name is omitted
will you please notify the secretary.
Christmas collections the past year
were solicited through t he “Bethesda
News” and by mail. We did not go to
members homes but depended on them
to either bring, send or mail their con¬
tributions to the office. Last year we
collected $586.04. This year the collec¬
tions dropped to $481.35, this being a
decrease of $104.69. We believe that
there are many members and others
that would have contributed if they
were contacted, however, we trust that
all of you will contribute this coming
Christmas season. It is possible to
raise $1,000.00 each Christmas. Anytime
during the year that you would like to
lay aside something for the Christmas
Fund of 1947 so you may do so by send¬
ing your donations to the club office.
We gave each boy at Bethesda a dol¬
lar. The balance of this fund is used
throughout the year in giving the boys
birthday dinners at Johnny Harris, giv¬
ing each spending money while in on
their birthdays, and in taking the boys
in groups of ten to Savannah Beach dur¬
ing the summer on outings. We just
want to let you know how this money is
used, the officers of the club considering
it wiser to distribute the funds along
throughout the year in this manner than
to give it all to the boys at one time.