Bill Text: MS SC649 | 2017 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Mourn the passing of Methodist Minister Keith Tonkel and recognize his community service.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 7-3)
Status: (Passed) 2017-03-27 - Enrolled Bill Signed [SC649 Detail]
Download: Mississippi-2017-SC649-Enrolled.html
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2017 Regular Session
To: Rules
By: Senator(s) Frazier, Norwood, Burton, Horhn, Blount, Clarke, Jackson (11th), McMahan, Stone, Jackson (32nd)
Senate Concurrent Resolution 649
(As Adopted by Senate and House)
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION MOURNING THE PASSING AND CELEBRATING THE LIFE OF METHODIST MINISTER KEITH TONKEL AND RECOGNIZING HIS CONTRIBUTION TO CIVIL RIGHTS ADVOCACY AND HIS COMMUNITY SERVICE TO MISSISSIPPI.
WHEREAS, it is with sadness that we note the passing of Human Rights Advocate and Award-Winning Evangelist Reverend Keith Tonkel (81) of Jackson, Mississippi, on March 8, 2017. Keith Tonkel had been Pastor of Wells United Methodist Church since 1969, and was one of 28 white United Methodist Ministers who signed a statement condemning segregation and racism in the deep South in 1963; and
WHEREAS, he was Pastor of the Guinn Memorial Methodist Church in Gulfport when he and 27 other young Ministers signed the "Born of Conviction" statement against racism. It appeared in a Mississippi Methodist publication in January 1963, near the height of white resistance to the Civil Rights Movement. It was released three months after a mob rioted because of the court-ordered integration of the University of Mississippi in Oxford and about five months before Mississippi NAACP Leader Medgar Evers was assassinated outside his Jackson home. Twenty of the 28 Ministers who signed the document left Mississippi for a variety of reasons. Reverend Tonkel faced anonymous threats by telephone and at his home. Church members publicly criticized Reverend Tonkel for signing the statement. Reverend Tonkel told The Associated Press in 2005 that he signed "Born of Conviction" with the understanding that he was committed to staying in Mississippi. "How can you flesh out a conviction if you are absent?" he said. "I thought our responsibility was to see what we can create that would be inclusive"; and
WHEREAS, Keith Tonkel was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, on January 15, 1936, and was reared in the Crescent City and Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. He was licensed as a local Preacher in the Methodist Church in 1954 and ordained as an Elder in 1962, after he graduated from Millsaps College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy and from Emory University School of Theology. During his time at Emory, he served a psychiatric residency at Georgia Baptist Hospital. Reverend Tonkel served as a Student Pastor at Springridge Methodist Church in Jackson and as Director of Christian Education at Fondren Presbyterian Church in Jackson. He served as Pastor of Guinn Memorial Methodist Church in Gulfport for seven years. During his tenure at Wells, the church maintained an active witness to its inner-city neighborhood transition, and Reverend Tonkel had an opportunity to accept invitations to conduct revivals, seminars and camp meetings across the Continental United States and in other countries. He led an average of 18 revivals each year, primarily in Mississippi and Louisiana. Reverend Tonkel is the author of four books; and
WHEREAS, during his years at Guinn Memorial in Gulfport, Reverend Tonkel served as a single foster parent for children under the jurisdiction of the Harrison County Youth Court. In 1968, he acquired a partner in that effort, and in his larger ministry, by marrying Patsy Joyce Myrick. Pat Tonkel shared ministry with Reverend Tonkel until her death on June 9, 2011. Their children include Shelley Tonkel Herndon, Tracy Tonkel Furniss and Anthony Tonkel Puckett. Tracy and her husband, Jeff, are the parents of Porter Dayton Furniss, Carson Keith Furniss and Griffin Wells Furniss. If prompted in the slightest way, Reverend Tonkel would agree to tell you about Porter, Carson and Griffin. He might even be coaxed to show you a picture or two. Several foster children are still active in family life; and
WHEREAS, over the years, Reverend Tonkel had received state and national awards for community service and continued to serve on boards of several service agencies. Some specific awards include: the Fannie Lou Hamer Humanitarian Award, 2009; Distinguished Evangelist of the United Methodist Church, 2008 (Foundation for Evangelism); Emma K. Elzy Award, 2007 (Mississippi Conference Commission on Religion and Race); Distinguished Religious Leadership Award, 2005; Alvis Hunt Humanitarian Award, 2002; Humanitarian of the Year, Epilepsy Foundation, 2001; Harry E. Denman Evangelism Award, Mississippi Conference, UMC, 1999; and Friendship Award, Jackson, 2000; and
WHEREAS, over the years "WellsFest," which was inspired by Reverend Tonkel, has raised more than $1 Million for worthy charitable causes. In 2012, "WellsFest" was the recipient of the Governor's Excellence in the Arts Award for Arts. Reverend Tonkel led the opening prayer for the Senate on many occasions; and
WHEREAS, an advocate for the less fortunate among us, Reverend Tonkel was an example to others of how to live your convictions with courage, and he will be missed by all who were fortunate enough to have known his special wisdom and wit, and we pay tribute and cherish fondly the memory of this most public-spirited citizen of Mississippi:
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby mourn the passing and celebrate the life of Methodist Minister Keith Tonkel and recognize his contributions to civil rights advocacy and his community service to Mississippi.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this resolution be presented to the surviving family of Reverend Keith Tonkel and made available to the Capitol Press Corps.
