Chairman Linda W. Cropp at the request of the
Mayor
A PROPOSED RESOLUTION IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
To confirm the appointment of Reverend Willie F. Wilson to the Board of Trustees of the
University of the District of Columbia.
RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this resolution may be cited
as the " Board of Trustees of the University of the District of Columbia Willie F.
Wilson Confirmation Resolution of 1999".
Sec. 2. The Council of the District of Columbia confirms the appointment of:
Reverend Willie F. Wilson
3664 Highwood Drive, S.E.
Washington, D.C. 20032
(Ward 7)
as a member of the Board of Trustees of the University of the District of Columbia,
established by section 201 of the District of Columbia Public Postsecondary Education
Reorganization Act, approved October 26, 1974 (88 Stat. 1424; D.C. Code §31-1511).
replacing Shirley W. Hammond, whose term ended May 15, 1998, for a term to end May 15,
2003.
Sec. 3. The Council of the District of Columbia shall transmit a copy of this
resolution, upon its adoption, each to the nominee and to the Office of the Mayor.
Sec. 4. This resolution shall take effect immediately.
REVEREND WILLIE F. WILSON
CHIEF NANA KWADWO BOAFO I
Born in Newport News, Virginia. He received his Bachelor Degree in
Journalism from Ohio University. Reverend Wilson also attended Howard University School of
Divinity where he received a Masters Degree and did his Doctoral Studies. He was the
recipient of several awards including the Rockefeller Protestant Fellowship Award for
academic achievement and the Vernon Johns Preaching Award for the most "Outstanding
Orator and Preacher" of his graduating class. His repertoire includes training in
self- evaluation techniques and psychiatric counseling under the esteemed instruction of
Dr. B. Haldane and Dr. Ernest Bruder.
In 1980 Reverend Wilson was ordained a Wolof priest in the Gambia, West
Africa and with this honor he has the uttermost credence and positive authority to perform
any and all ceremonies relating to African people at home and abroad. He was inducted in
this high ceremony as NANA KWADWO BOAFO I. Chief Nana Kwadwo Boafo 1 has performed scores
of African-American weddings and was referenced in the book Jumping the Broom.
He recently authored and published his book, The African- American Wedding
Manual. In October 1993 in a ceremony at Asankrangwa, Western Ghana, a stool was
created by the Asankare-Bretuo clan to be occupied by Willie F. Wilson, the new subchief.
Union Temple Baptist Church has erected a home in Ghana, West Africa for its rites of
passage programs. The church has donated over one million dollars in medical supplies to
the hospital in Asankrangwa, sponsors an adopt-a-child educational program and is engaged
in several business enterprises in Africa including gold mining and brick manufacturing.
Pastor Wilson was recognized by USA Newspaper as one of the ten most
valuable people in America in 1986.
Drawing upon African heritage and contemporary economics, Reverend
Wilson has pastored Union Temple Baptist Church for more than 25 years. With more than
6,500 members the church has distinguished itself with an elaborate investment program
that has funneled more than $5,000,000.00 into housing, education and health services. The
church operates a home for teenagers, a rehabilitation program for substance abusers, a
feeding program for the hungry and rites of passage program for youth and adults. A new
independent recording label called UT RECORDS was recently initiated. Union Temple Baptist
Church was nominated by the National Conference of Black Churchmen, an organization of
over 68,000 churches, as one of the 100 Model Black Churches in America. In 1997 Pastor
Wilson and Union Temple Baptist Church were awarded the PRESIDENT’S SERVICE AWARD by
President Bill Clinton. This is the most prestigious Presidential recognition given for
community service. Of the 3,500 nominations and 41 finalists the church was one of only 16
national organizations to receive plaques and sterling silver White House medallions. The
church has received world acclaim for its 30×19-foot mural depicting the Last Supper. This
mural is believed to be the first of its kind. It depicts not only the Black Christ but
the twelve disciples as twelve significant Africans and African-Americans; among them
Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, Nelson Mandela, and Malcolm X.
Rev. Wilson led Mayor Marion Barry in the most spirited political
resurrection in the history of American Politics.
He also has led his church for the last 17 years in the organization of
one of the largest Cultural Arts Festivals on the East Coast, which annually attracts over
250,000 people over a two day span.
This distinguished pastor, orator, lecturer and teacher is listed among
Who’s Who in African American Leadership. He is a noted scholar and recognized
authority on Africentric theology.
Reverend Wilson has been featured in many top publications and has
appeared on numerous television shows. He has spoken at universities throughout the nation
and has traveled extensively as a spiritual advisor to persons such as South African
President Nelson Mandela, Mayor Barry, and World Heavyweight Champion Riddick Bowe.
As a National Committee Member and Executive Producer of the
Million-Man March, Pastor Wilson orchestrated the successful assembly of over 100,000 men
from the Washington area. He is the owner of the historic Pyramid Bookstore building,
located near historic Howard University where a 13.5 foot sculpture of an ancient Egyptian
is on the facade as created by world renown Ethiopian sculptor Falaka Yima.
Reverend Wilson is married to Rev. Mary Lewis Wilson of Buffalo, New
York and is the proud father of two sons and two daughters.