Celebrating the Great Legacy of Johnny Wilson

4/20/2018

On April 20, members of the St. Stephen's school community gathered in Chapel to celebrate the retirement of biology teacher Johnny Wilson, who has served students and peers with fierce devotion and infectious joy for the last 29 years. Throughout Wilson’s impressive tenure at the school, he has served as Middle School dean of students and assistant head, MS science teacher, Upper School dean of faculty and US biology teacher. He also has led countless student trips across Texas and to Guyana and Haiti.

The Rev. Todd FitzGerald opened the heartfelt service by perfectly summarizing Wilson’s influence on students, faculty and staff: “He has taught us how to love.” FitzGerald then led participants in a rousing rendition of Episcopal Hymn No. 602, “Jesu, Jesu, Fill Us with Your Love,” a fitting tribute for a man who filled his classroom with remarkable intelligence, humor and humanity.

Following the hymn, numerous students, alumni and faculty shared personal stories of how Wilson has influenced their lives, including the following:

Senior Madeline Casas said, “Whether he is chasing Haitian children around the schoolyards of Salmadere, throwing bananas at freshmen on their first day of biology, or encouraging his advisees to blow off a little steam by dancing on the tables of his science lab, Mr. Wilson boldly and courageously lives by example in every aspect of his life. He inspires me and everyone around him to become better versions of ourselves because he radiates the most positive energy imaginable from every fiber of his being.”

Junior Ian Hutchinson said, “Mr. Wilson is one of my favorite people. Going to Haiti and seeing him connect with and impact people was really inspiring, and I will try to emulate his way of impacting people for the rest of my life. His positivity is contagious, as is his love and care for the environment.”

Reid Powers ’11 said, “Johnny Wilson is one of those rare people whose kindness and energy infects everyone around him — whether teaching biology or sitting around a fire telling stories, he makes everyone’s life a little happier. I remember walking alongside him one day in the Davis Mountains when he said to me, ‘It’s a pretty cool world out there. Be good to people around you and remember that everything will work out in the end.’ So thank you, Mr. Wilson, for all of these small moments where you reached out to us. It made all the difference in the world.”

James Green ’17 said, “Mr. Wilson, what a hilarious and important impact you have had on my life. You awoke within me a deep and unshakable love for this planet. Your spirit, attitude and devotion were the keys that opened a world of incredible connectivity to me, and for that I am and will forever be grateful. Thank you dearly.”

Theology teacher Jim Woodruff said, “Maybe it was studying geology long ago that made him this way. You think in terms of millions of years; that’s got to affect your perspective. It is good to work with someone who is a stand-up person, who tries to match what they do with what they say. A real human being. Back in his hometown of El Dorado, Ark., they might have called such person a mensch. That’s what Mr. Wilson seems to be, and I think that’s what he’s really been teaching — how to be a real human being.”

Following the many speakers, Wilson was treated to a performance of the Grateful Dead’s “Uncle John’s Band” by the school’s Madrigal singers, who wore Hawaiian shirts in recognition of Wilson’s standard school dress. During the song, Wilson was set upon by a troop of gorillas — faculty, students and alumni dressed in brightly colored gorilla costumes — a nod to how Wilson greets his biology students on the first day of class each year. When the song ended and the gorillas were unmasked, biology teacher Dean Mohlman said Wilson was “a modern Lorax,” referencing the Dr. Seuss character who chronicles the plight of the environment and speaks for the trees.

The program closed with Dean of Faculty Wallis Goodman telling Wilson that a gift of $1,000 has been made in his honor to St. Etienne in Salmadere, Haiti, where Wilson has led multiple student service trips each year and helped foster stronger bonds between our two school communities for the past 15 years. “We all appreciate your hard work and dedication to both of these schools,” Goodman concluded.

The St. Stephen’s community is tremendously grateful to Wilson for the love, care and devotion he has showered upon us throughout the past 29 years. We will miss his wicked humor, sweet nature and gentle heart.

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