Wednesday, May 23, 2007

A Tribute to one of my heroes! He woud hate that!

My tribute to Grady Nutt:

I feel as though I grew up with Grady Nutt. I first heard Grady when he was a guest in my home church in Hobbs, NM. I had just become a Christian, but I remembered being a bit puzzled to see so many Christians looking as though they had been sucking dill pickles for many years. It was then that God brought an adult Christian in my life that knew how to laugh, and make others laugh too. That person was none other than Grady Nutt.

I went onto college, and Grady came to speak in our weekly chapel at Ouachita Baptist University. Chapel at Ouachita was normally a time to catch up on reading assignments, cram for a test, or even catch up on some sleep. That was not even close to being true when Grady came on the Ouachita stage.

He caught each person’s attention as he related his own Ouachita story. Of course, he could not pronounce Ouachita correctly, but he made a valiant try, when he said, “Wershita.” That in itself was funny, but he was not near through.

Grady, had been was trolling for girls, and he was calling from Waco, Texas. He got a operator (that really dates the story, huh?), and communicated to her that he wanted to speak to a QUATTLEBAUM gal, who lived in the CONE BOTTOMS women’s dormitory on the WERSITA BAPTIST COLLEGE CAMPUS in ARKADELPHIA, ARKANSAS.

The operator, by this time was beginning to get irritated, and she asked very curtly, “Now, who is this speaking?” Grady then delivered the very predictable, “Oh this is GRADY NUTT.”
The operator lost it, started laughing, and completed the call, free of charge.

My how we have missed Grady, and still do. Wouldn’t it have been wonderful to have Grady around with all the SBC controversy the past 25 years? He had a way of getting all of us to take a good hard look at ourselves and bringing tears to our eyes laughing.

Laughter is by all means, good medicine, and no wonder he was referred to as the PRIME MINISTER OF HUMOR.

I have made sure my students here at Ouachita know Grady’s Wershita story.

Kevin Wieser
Ouachita Baptist University
Arkadelphia, Arkansas 2007