Willard Conchin (1921–2019)

He was influenced by, studied with and baptized by a gospel preacher, Barton Laws, who became a second father to him and urged him to leave the homeplace at an early age to attend Georgia Bible College for his last two high school years. He graduated as valedictorian. He then attended David Lipscomb College where he earned a basketball scholarship and paid his own way through school by waiting tables in the school lunchroom and scrubbing floors and windows.

Willard was religious editor of the college paper, Vice President of the senior class and the student board and graduated cum laude. He later completed his Bachelor of Science at East Tennessee State College in Johnson City, Tennessee where he completed his Master’s degree in education in 1946. He was also on the basketball team. He was active in speech and sports work there, editor in chief of the school paper, and valedictorian of his class.

He began preaching at the age of 19, meeting in unfinished buildings and basements in Elizabethton, Sevierville, Jonesboro, Johnson City, Tennessee and preaching at mission points in Georgia and Florida. He preached his first sermon in 1940 at White’s Creek Church of Christ.

Brother Conchin worked tirelessly to preach the gospel and his family moved to various church assignments throughout Tennessee and North Carolina, including an extended stay in Mocksville, North Carolina, before moving to Huntsville where he and his wife became teachers at Madison Academy in 1963. He was chosen by the teaching staff to be the principal several years in the 1960’s.

After leaving Madison Academy both Willard and Vonda taught at Redstone Arsenal, teaching English and communication skills to government employees for 21 years. During that time, he was still preaching and writing workbooks. He also preached full time at local congregations, and along with faithful members and friends he began the Meridianville Church of Christ in 1964 in the Meridianville Middle School lunchroom. They later built the building in Meridianville. He felt a calling to develop smaller churches and left Meridianville to preach at the State Line Church of Christ and Camargo Church of Christ in Tennessee, where he spent seventeen years.

When Brother Conchin was not preaching the gossip or teaching school, he was writing and publishing Christian work books. He wrote his first Bible workbook in 1952. He and Vonda (wife) edited and published 67 church study work books which are still in print today and have sold over four million copies. His works were biblical and scholarly.

He was a great song leader at church, often agreeing to come early, before worship service, to “teach singing” to the congregation.