Walker RayWalker Ray 62C 65M 68MR, co-chair of Candler’s Committee of 100, has received Emory University’s Turman Alumni Service Award and is dedicating $8,000 of the $25,000 prize to Candler.

“Dean Love and I are thrilled that Walker has chosen to direct a portion of this award to Candler. This gift represents Walker’s abiding commitment to Candler’s mission to educate faithful and creative leaders for the church’s ministries in the word,” says Mathew Pinson, Candler’s Interim Chief Development Officer.

A graduate of Emory College and Emory Medical School, Ray worked as a successful pediatrician in Atlanta for 38 years. His first alumni involvement with Emory was with the board of the Emory Medical Alumni Association, where he served for several years, including a one-year term as president. That led to his selection to the Emory Alumni Board, where he also served as president.

After Ray completed these terms of service, he began looking for new challenges within the University. That led him to Candler School of Theology. Always a man of faith, but never previously involved with Candler, Ray accepted a new position as co-chair of Candler’s Committee of 100, a University advisory board that continually works to advance Candler and its mission.

“Members of the Committee of 100 serve as ambassadors for the school and work to stimulate interest in and support for ministerial education,” explains Pinson. “They play a vital role in keeping Candler connected to the church, and in keeping the church supplied with excellent leaders.”

Ray was awarded the 2011 J. Pollard Turman Alumni Service Award, Emory’s highest award for alumni service, at a banquet on March 24. Like other Turman recipients before him, he was chosen by the Nominating and Leadership Committee of the Emory Alumni Board for his extraordinary service to Emory through alumni organizations and related groups; his leadership in the Emory Alumni Association; and his exceptional contributions of time and expertise as part of volunteer service on behalf of Emory.

Each year, the Tull Charitable Foundation makes a gift of $25,000 to Emory in honor of the Turman award recipient, and the recipient designates to which Emory program, division, or school the funds are given. A true believer that the “uni-“ in “university” refers to a whole made up of parts, Ray decided to allocate his gift to five Emory entities, including Candler, which will receive $8,000 from the award.

Ray acknowledges that although one might have a bent toward service, engagement with a group you’re passionate about doesn’t just happen. “I think many times, for service, there has to be a portal that’s attractive, an opportunity that presents itself, or an environment that’s very receptive to establishing that first relationship,” he explains.

“We at Candler are grateful for Walker’s dedicated service, and grateful for his willingness to go beyond the typical boundaries of alumni involvement to include Candler as an outlet for his time, talents, and gifts,” says Pinson.

More about this story

Read an article on Emory Alumni Association’s site:
http://www.alumni.emory.edu/about-the-eaa/awards/turman-recipients.html

View a slide show of the banquet:
http://emoryalumni.smugmug.com/Award-Ceremonies/2011-Turman/16378353_FNYpr#1231666726_n4KVN

Watch a podcast interview with Walker Ray:
http://itunes.apple.com/itunes-u/alumni-up-close-interviews/id422855745