Lee community says goodbye to former board chair Dr. Paul L. Walker
Photo of Dr. Paul Walker as a student at Lee. Photo courtesy of Dr. Louis Morgan.
On Tuesday, Feb. 23., Chancellor Paul Conn announced Dr. Paul L. Walker’s passing. Dr. Paul Walker was the father of President Mark Walker and grandfather of Assistant Professor of Christian Ministries and Old Testament Dr. Justin Walker. The Walker family is now gathering in Atlanta to mourn their loss.
Dr. Conn noted Dr. Paul Walker died peacefully and was in declining health for the last few months.
Dr. Paul Walker served as the chairman of the Lee Board of Directors and as a liaison advocate from the Church of God Executive Committee. Dr. Paul Walker played a vital role in many aspects of campus life alongside his wife, Carmelita Walker.
“There will be time in another message to say more about Paul L. Walker. I won’t trivialize his unique gifts and accomplishments by trying to summarize them here,” Dr. Conn said in a statement. “But as he was a towering figure in the life of his family, he was also a giant in the life of Lee University and a mentor and role model to many of us at Lee who admired him so much and loved him in a personal way.”
According to Dr. Louis Morgan, director of library services, Dr. Paul Walker attended Lee for two years, enrolling in the Junior College program in 1949 and graduating in the spring of 1951.
“He was quite popular among the students and faculty, and he was very active in music and sports. He provided piano accompaniment for several musical groups, sang with the Messenger Quartet and the Mixed Chorus and played trumpet in an instrumental quartet known as ‘The Trumpeteers,’” said Morgan. “He also was elected Mr. Lee College and President of the Student Body during his senior year, and he served on the Vindagua staff and was a member of the Junior College Honor Society. It was at Lee that he met his wife, Carmelita Howell.”
Dr. Paul Walker served on the Board of Directors for Lee from 1974-84, including as chair of the board for part of his career. He was among several generations of the Walker family to attend Lee and contribute significantly to the university’s development. The lecture hall in the Science and Math Complex is named for Paul and Carmelita Walker.
A memorial service will be held at Mt. Paran Central Church at 2 p.m. in Atlanta on Friday, Feb. 26. The service will be live-streamed here.
Anna Shand, News Editor, contributed to this article.
