Another Of My Heroes Has Gone Home

BORN: FEBRUARY 22, 1930; DECEASED: APRIL 12, 2005

When my phone rang early Tuesday morning, I had no idea I’d hear one of the most heartbreaking messages since my Dad went home to be with the Lord. My friend called from Ohio and told me that one of my dear heroes in Southern Gospel music had gone home to be with the Lord. George Wilson Younce passed away about 3:30 AM on Tuesday morning, April 12^th. Tears rolled down my face.

My memories of George Younce go back to his days with the Blue Ridge Quartet. Our family loved attending the “all night singings” in the south and the Blue Ridge Quartet was one of the headliners. Then I grew up and George moved on the awesome Cathedrals and my admiration for this giant grew.

I joined the staff of a Gospel trade magazine in 1982, and George was among my first featured artists. From the beginning, he treated this green-horn journalist with the greatest respect; as if I were a seasoned veteran.

Our friendship grew over the years. I was privileged to interview this gentle giant and we always had a wonderful time talking. Man, we could run up a gigantic phone bill!

George not only made this writer feel special, he treated EVERYONE he met the exact same way. His sense of humor is legendary and his heart was as big as the universe. No matter how he felt or however his health was at that time, he always managed to make one smile.

A year or so ago we “caught up” with George here on the website. We played phone-tag for several days, then on a late Sunday afternoon when my husband and I were on our way home from the SGMA awards in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, my cell phone rang. It was George and Clara Younce, and again we talked for over an hour.

In 1994 promoter Charles Waller allowed me the honor of being a co-presenter of the Living Legend Award at his Grand Ole Gospel Reunion in Greenville, SC. That August Charlie honored the original Cathedral Quartet; Danny Coker, Bobby Clark, Glen Payne and George Younce, as his annual Living Legend.

After his first major heart attack, George watched his diet and exercised daily. During the last National Quartet Convention held in Nashville, Tennessee, I caught up with George as he did his daily walk…no, I TRIED to catch up with him and did catch him with my camera, but he was constantly on the move and determined to maintain his health!

During a very trying time in my life, George found a way to encourage this writer. I am honored that he was my friend, and I’m sad at his passing. A while back, during the passing of another dear friend, Jake Hess, I spoke with George about our mutual sadness. George told me that the sadness we felt was really our selfishness; that we were the losers-Jake was the winner, and the reason we were sad was because we wouldn’t be able to see or talk to our friend here on earth again. How wise he was!

So, I’m sad again. I’m sad that I won’t be able to hear his laugh, to see the twinkle in his eyes and hear his jokes. I’m sad that I won’t be able to give him a hug or hear his wise counsel on something. I’m having those same selfish sad feelings we felt when Jake crossed over Jordan.

You know, I’ll just bet they’re looking over the embankments of Heaven and cheering on Signature Sound and Legacy Five and the Mark Trammel Trio and Greater Vision and the Florida Boys and on and on and on. I’ll just bet that George and JD have tested out their “glorified voices” and I can’t help but wonder who hit the lowest note. Can’t you just hear that belly-laugh??????

I’ll surely miss you, George, but not as much as Clara, Gina, Dana, Tara, Lisa and George Lane as well as all your Grandchildren. From the depths of our hearts, our sympathy goes out to the Younce family. We love you all, and we have the blessed promise that we will all meet George again! Hallelujah!

Written by: Sandi Duncan Clark -- sandi@sgmusicforum.com