something has happened to Billy Graham. The world is going to
hear from this man.’”
Indeed, in Pasternak’s phrase, Billy’s soul was “inspired and
ablaze.”
■ ■ ■George Bennett and Allan Emery of Boston served for decades in
key roles on Billy’s board. Both were extremely successful—
Emery in the wool business and Bennett in finance. Bennett had
served as treasurer of Harvard University; Emery served as chair
of the executive committee of Billy’s organization and eventually
as its president.
In Emery’s home, overlooking Boston’s bay, Emery points out
the place where the British sailed in with a great fleet during the
Revolutionary War. A history buff, he explains both the major
events and how his immediate neighborhood fit into them. Ben-
nett, who in his nineties still swims more than a mile, points out
the spot on the distant shore at which he starts his annual spring
swim across the bay. Both men are giants of accomplishment and
have vivid memories of Billy’s international leadership.
“So, with all this history in Boston and its vitality and intel-
lectual horsepower,” we asked, “how did the Bostonians react
when Billy first came here?”
Emery smiled, a bit mischievously. “He came on the heels of his
Los Angeles crusade in 1949, which was his first national atten-
tion. The Boston group looked down their noses at anyone fresh
from L.A. and were calling him ‘Hillbilly Billy.’ Even Harold Ock-
enga, pastor of historic Park Street Church, was reluctant about
him. Billy thought he might be invited to speak there, but Dr. Ock-
enga didn’t think Billy was qualified; he didn’t have a degree.”
Emery grinned, “So when Billy spoke to a group of New Eng-
land pastors prior to the Boston crusade, Ockenga had him speak,
not from the pulpit but in one of the Sunday school rooms. Billy did
so with no complaints. There was quite a response, much more than
expected! That was my first association with Billy, and his profound
humility came through and a sense of purpose, a sense of direction.”
The Leadership Secrets of Billy Graham