Issue: Spring 2017 | Posted: June 1, 2017
William H. Latimer
Robert E. Craig Service Award
Presented to men and women who have given significant service and contributions to ensure the future of Union University.
Bill Latimer didn’t graduate from Union University, but his involvement in Union life has transformed the institution for decades to come.
Bill and Carol Latimer were the lead donors to The Logos, Union’s library that opened in 2015. Because of their $10 million matching gift, Union was able to build a 53,000-square-foot facility that is now the centerpiece to the campus.
“I’ve always valued education, especially a Christian education, because I think we are supposed to help spread the gospel,” Latimer says.
A native of Union City, Tennessee, Latimer graduated from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville in 1960 with a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering. After serving in the army, he returned to his Union City home and was involved in several businesses over the years before he began trading commodities.
The Latimer Foundation played a large role in construction of a new library in Dyer County, increasing the facility’s space from 8,000 square feet to almost 30,000 square feet. Latimer saw how that investment helped raise the community’s education level.
“I knew that Union really needed a library, so we just decided that we would make a matching gift to a Christian university, and Union was the nearest one that we wanted to help support,” he says.
Latimer says The Logos has a couple of unique characteristics that he likes—both sides are designed as main entrances to the building, and there are no plaques inside the library, which he says adds to the aesthetic value.
He says Union President Samuel W. “Dub” Oliver deserves credit for his role in bringing the library to completion—“I think Union is very fortunate to have someone like Dub Oliver as its president,” he says.
And he’s grateful to have played such an important role in the life of Union University.
“God has blessed me tremendously,” Latimer says. “You need to use the blessings that God has given you to bless others.”