[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 153 (Thursday, October 13, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1862]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  IN HONOR OF REV. RICHARD NANCE, JR.

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. SAM FARR

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, October 13, 2011

  Mr. FARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life and legacy of 
Rev. Richard Nance, Jr., whose leadership and social activism over the 
past 60 years provided inspiration for friends and colleagues alike. 
Rev. Nance served as the interim pastor of Antioch Baptist Church of 
San Jose and the First Baptist Church of Pacific Grove.
  Richard was the fifth of eight children and was born and raised in 
South Carolina. Richard had long been involved with the ministries and 
at the age of twelve joined the White Plains Baptist Church in Laurens, 
South Carolina. He reported to Ft. Bragg in 1943 to serve in active 
duty in the army as a telephone and telegraph lineman with the 448th 
Signal Heavy Construction Battalion.
  After serving in the army, Richard was licensed to preach in 1945. He 
was ordained in 1949 and pastored three rural churches in Laurens and 
Spartenburg Counties in South Carolina. He attended Benedict College in 
Colombia, South Carolina and received his BA in May 1950 followed by a 
BA of Divinity in 1953. Richard then attended Berkeley Baptist Divinity 
School and earned a Masters there in 1956. In June 1956, Rev. Nance 
willingly accepted the call to serve as pastor of the First Baptist 
Church of Pacific Grove and continued to serve passionately there until 
1992.
  Throughout his career, Rev. Nance made significant contributions to 
countless organizations. He served as the President of the Monterey 
Branch of the NAACP where his leadership allowed the branch to address 
housing restrictions and business and school hiring practices. Rev. 
Nance contributed to the efforts of both the Pacific Grove and Monterey 
Peninsula Ministers Associations as their President and was a member of 
Alpha Phi Alpha.
  In addition, Rev. Nance was an active director on many boards 
including those of the Managers of American Baptist Churches of the 
West, the Pacific Grove Kiwanis, Monterey County Children's Home 
Society, the Alliance on Aging, The Pacific Grove Library, and the 
Pacific Grover Police Review Board.
  Mr. Speaker, I know that I speak for the entire House in recognizing 
the tremendous accomplishments and contributions that Rev. Richard 
Nance, Jr. made throughout his bright lifetime. We honor the family 
that he loved and cherished: his wife Esther Collins Nance, who pre-
deceased him, their sons Christopher and Marcus, and daughter Karen 
Small. On behalf of the United States Congress, I would like to applaud 
these significant efforts and honor his memory and to thank God for 
sharing such a wonderful leader with this community.

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