Retired reverend continues to impact community

ALBANY — Many citizens of Albany were faced with adversity after the storms that devastated the community in early 2017, including Father Bill Stewart, a retired reverend who’d served at The Episcopal Church of St. John and St. Mark.

But adversity is nothing new to the man who has had — and continues to have — such a strong impact on the community.

Stewart, who recently celebrated his 70th birthday, moved to Albany in June 0f 2007 and notes that during his time here he has not only impacted the community, but the city has changed his life as well.

Stewart said in a recent interview he was first faced with adversity during his childhood when he was diagnosed with polio during the 1950s epidemic. He said that he has never really known life without polio but that he is very fortunate to have had treatments that allowed him to continue to enjoy life.

“I am very fortunate to have had a few orthopedic surgeries,” Stewart said. “I was able to go through most of my life doing the things that I enjoyed doing.”

Stewart said he went into priesthood later in adult life and did not become ordained until 2001. He met his wife in Cordele, and they moved to Albany, where he became the Reverend at The Episcopal Church of St. John and St. Mark in 2009.

It was at the church that he met Ri Lamb, who is just one of the many people in Albany whose life he has impacted. Lamb became the Deacon at the church at around the same time that Stewart joined the clergy there and he became a mentor to her.

“He is the most deeply spiritual man that I know and he has been a mentor and a guide to me,” Lamb said. “He always wanted to see how we could help fulfill the needs of the church and of the community.”

During his time with the church, St. John and St. Mark became deeply involved in the lives of the community. The church started hosting block parties during which the neighborhood could come out to enjoy food and fun activities. Stewart also started trunk or treat at the church. These activities and more continue today.

“I wanted to invite our neighbors to come out, not to feel like they had to be apart of the church, but just to come as neighbors,” Stewart said.

Lamb said that one thing the church started during Stewart’s time as reverend that had an impact on the lives of the children in the community was the creation of a community computer lab.

“Our church is located in an underserved area of Albany,” Lamb said. “We had a few computers donated to us, and we were able to open a computer lab for children in the neighborhood to help with research for their school work.”

Stewart said one key lesson he learned during his time working for the church is that nothing they accomplished was from the efforts of just one individual but rather a group working together.

“It is not the individual that accomplishes the most,” he said. “But rather, it is lots of people.”

During his time as Reverend, Stewart said his life was greatly impacted by the people who came to the church. He said that the church is very diverse with a congregation that is 40 percent African American, 40 percent white and a few others from a variety of places. He was able to develop relationships with people who are very different from him and learn a lot from them in the process.

“I grew up during the ’60s and because of the church, I got to know African Americans who were apart of the civil rights movement,” Stewart said. “From them I gained a greater understanding and a different perspective.”

He said that he believes we live in a society that is scared of differences, but that it is important to learn to trust difference.

“Our church shares a weekly meal every Sunday, and I find sharing a meal one of the best ways to develop a relationship with someone different than you,” Stewart said. “I find my life richer because of all the different people in it.”

Stewart was once again faced with adversity during the tornado that hit Albany in January 2017. His house was hit by the tornado that tore through Radium Springs, and he said that so many trees were knocked down that it took two days just to be able to get out of his driveway. To make matters worse Stewart suffers from post-polio syndrome, which requires him to use an electric chair in his house.

With the power out, it became difficult for him to get out of his home. However, he said the one good thing that he saw come out from the tornado was the sense of community. He said many people from all walks of life came out not only to help him, but others who were in need as well.

“I watched Albany forget its differences and reach out and really care for each other,” Stewart said. “It is times like these when we put our political and racial differences aside.”

Stewart’s house was destroyed by the tornado, and it took quite a long time for him to finally settle into a new place in Albany. While he may have lost his house, he said one thing that stayed safe were his quails that he was raising. He said that a few days after the storm, he sent his sons back out to his house to see if any of the birds could possibly still be alive. When they got there, they found that not only were all 17 still alive but a few had also laid their first eggs.

“These birds were living in absolute desolation,” Stewart said. “And by laying these eggs, it was if they were saying ‘I may not come out of this, but something else will.’”

Many may wonder how Stewart was able to push past the hardships he faced during his life. He said that he learned from his mother that there is absolutely no point in regretting what has happened to you.

“We can find the goodness and godness in all aspects of life, but we won’t see that if we keep regretting what we don’t have,” Stewart said. “I’m more compassionate because of the things I’ve been through. As long as I’ve got something to give, then I can’t really be poor.”