[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 65 (Wednesday, May 20, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E907]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   TRIBUTE TO DR. WILLIAM LLOYD BIRCH

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. JAMES E. CLYBURN

                           of south carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 20, 1998

  Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Dr. William 
Lloyd Birch of the Sixth Congressional District of South Carolina. Dr. 
Birch has taught at Francis Marion University in Florence, South 
Carolina, since he moved to the Palmetto State in 1971. It is on the 
occasion of his retirement that I pay tribute to his 27 years of 
tireless involvement in the community surrounding the Pee Dee area of 
South Carolina.
  A native of Louisville, Kentucky, Dr. Birch received his B.A. at 
Georgetown College in Georgetown, Kentucky. He received a Th.B. from 
Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in 1955. From 1949-1960 Dr. Birch 
conducted summer youth revivals throughout the state for the Kentucky 
Baptist Convention. He was a Mission Pastor and served as Interim 
Pastor for First Baptist Church in Prestonsburg, Kentucky. From there, 
he was pastor at Shakertown Baptist in Harrodsburg, Visalia Baptist in 
Covington, Wildwood Baptist in Ashland, and Chevy Chase Baptist in 
Lexington. He served on the Board of Directors for The Western 
Recorder, the Kentucky Baptist state paper, and was an Executive Board 
Member of the Kentucky Baptist Convention from 1964-1967. He was also 
on the Board of Directors of the Christian Life Committee.
  In 1969, Dr. Birch received an M.A. in Sociology from the University 
of Kentucky. He received his Ph.D. in 1971. Dr. Birch began his 
distinguished teaching career at Georgetown College in Georgetown, 
Kentucky as a part-time instructor and then Assistant Professor.
  Dr. Birch moved to the Sixth Congressional District of South Carolina 
in 1971 and began as an Associate Professor of Sociology at FMU. In 
1972, he established the Sociology major and Department of Sociology. 
He served as Chairman of the department for 23 years. From his 
leadership during the founding of the Sociology department, the 
Sociology major was the third most popular major on campus for many 
years. Through 1994, it remained in the top 5 largest majors of 
bachelor level graduates. Since the University opened, 35% of all 
graduates have taken Dr. Birch's Courtship and Marriage course, a 
course not required by any major. During his stint at FMU, Dr. Birch 
has also made professional presentations and published articles or book 
reviews a total of 45 times. In addition, he has made an average of one 
presentation per month during his tenure to workshops, civic clubs, 
hospitals, hospices and Family Life Conferences for a total of 297 
presentations.
  Dr. Birch has received numerous awards during his tenure at FMU. He 
was awarded the Distinguished Professor Award in 1977-1978 and held the 
Joan and Garry Gladstone Chair in Sociology since 1989. He is also a 
member of the Alpha Kappa Delta Honorary Society and the Pi Gamma Mu 
Honorary Society. Among his professional affiliations are the American 
Sociological Association, Southern Sociological Society, Association 
for the Sociology of Religion, and the Society for the Scientific Study 
of Religion. He was a charter member and served as Vice President of 
the South Carolina Sociological Society and is a Legacy Council member 
of the National Council on Family Relations. He also served on the 
Board of Directors and was Chairman of the Legislative Action Committee 
of the Southeastern Council on Family Relations. He was President and 
served on the Executive Committee of the South Carolina Council on 
Family Relations, is a Clinical Member of the American Association of 
Marriage and Family Therapy, and served as Vice President of the South 
Carolina Association Marriage and Family Therapy.
  Aside from his professional organizations related to Sociology, Dr. 
Birch is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. He remains in 
private practice at Family Therapy Associates in Florence where he has 
practiced since 1974. Dr. Birch has been a therapist at the Pastoral 
Counseling Service in Florence, a Consultant to the S.C. Department of 
Youth Services, and a Consultant on Human Sexuality for the National 
Council of Churches Task Force on Developmental Disabilities. He has 
also served as a member of the Ethics Committee of McLeod Regional 
Medical Center.
  Dr. Birch's first professional appointment came from Governor West in 
1973. He was appointed to the S.C. Council for the Developmentally 
Disabled and served as the Chairman of the Committee on 
Deinstitutionalization and Institutionalization Reform. He also co-
authored South Carolina's first plan for deinstitutionalization. 
Governor Campbell next appointed Dr. Birch to the S.C. Board of 
Examiners for Licensure of Professional Counselors, Associate 
Counselors, and Marital and Family Therapists. He was re-appointed to 
the S.C. Board by Governor Beasley and will serve as Vice President 
through 2001. He is also Chairman of the Marriage and Family Therapy 
Standards Committee that reviews the credentials of all applicants 
seeking licensing as marriage and family therapist in South Carolina. 
Dr. Birch has also been a recent S.C. delegate to the Annual Meeting of 
the Association of Marital and Family Therapy Regulatory Boards.
  Although he is retiring from FMU, Dr. Birch will continue to impact 
the lives of many of my constituents through his service as interim 
pastor at South Carolina's Southern Baptist Churches. During the past 
27 years, he has served as interim pastor 31 times, delivered 2,275 
sermons. For seven of 27 years, he has filled a pulpit every Sunday. 
Dr. Birch has also conducted over 100 Family Life Conferences for 
Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, Episcopal and Catholic churches.
  Throughout his 27 years in South Carolina, Dr. Birch has served, and 
continues to serve, his State and community tirelessly. Mr. Speaker, I 
ask that you join me in extending best wishes to him for a fulfilling 
retirement.

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