Dr. John Bailey will receive this year’s Outstanding Alumnus of the Year award.
Dr. Bailey will speak in the Robert D. and Shirley Hunter Welcome Center at noon on Sunday Oct. 10.
Bailey graduated from ACU in 1957 to work in dental medicine. After retiring from private practice in 1998 he began traveling around the world on medical missions. In 2003 he created Body and Soul Ministries, a nonprofit organization that provides free health care to those in need.
Body and Soul Ministries operates in 15 countries around the world, including Nicaragua, Ghana, Iraq and Indonesia.
Senior Alumni Relations officer Samantha Adkins said the Outstanding Alumnus award goes to individuals over the age of 40 who have significant professional and personal achievements.
“Dr. Bailey, instead of retiring, became a global missionary,” Adkins said. “He now works with the Caris Foundation, going to third world countries and giving dental care to those in need.”
A board of alumni choose an Outstanding Alumnus of the Year and a Young Alumnus of the Year from nominations received each February.
“The board is made up of about 36 people from all over the U.S., with different professions and different class years,” said Jama Cadle, assistant director of Alumni Relations and university events. “We solicit nominations from faculty, staff, alumni, students and friends of the university – So pretty much everyone.”
The board recognizes several other nominees in addition to the Outstanding and Young Alumni.
“We also give out Distinguished Alumni Citations. We try to recognize an alumni from each school,” Cadle said. “Several Distinguished Alumni have gone on to become Outstanding Alumnus of the Year.”
The Alumni of the Year were traditionally honored in the spring, but the event was moved to Homecoming because of changes in ACU’s Summit schedule.
“We used to honor the alumnus during lectureship but then Summit was moved to the fall,” Cadle said. “This will provide more opportunities to meet with them and maximize their time on campus.”
Tickets are $20, and tables for eight may be reserved for $140. Tickets can be purchased at www.acu.edu/alumni.
Nominations for next year’s awards can be made at www.acu.edu/alumni/awards/index.html.
