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Fall 2009 | Volume 68, No. 1
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A Lifetime of Service
by Southwestern News Staff
When they first arrived at Southwestern Seminary in 1947, John Earl Seelig and his wife, Virginia, never imagined they would invest their lives into the seminary for nearly six decades.
Since he became a student at Southwestern, Seelig, a Southwestern alumnus and former vice president for public affairs, has been acquainted with seven of Southwestern’s eight presidents, from L.R. Scarborough to Paige Patterson. He served under many of these presidents, and, now in retirement, he continues to support the seminary.
Together with his wife Virginia, Seelig was one of three recipients of Southwestern’s 2008 L.R. Scarborough Award, which was established in honor of the seminary’s second president, who exemplified fervor for evangelism and missions. The seminary also named a banquet room in the Naylor Student Center in honor of Seelig and his wife upon his retirement in 1990.
“Virginia and I were overwhelmed when informed about receiving the L.R. Scarborough Award,” Seelig says. “Having known some of the recipients and the reputation of Dr. Scarborough, we were overwhelmed with feelings of humility and gratitude. This award and the naming of the banquet room in the student center were honors the magnitude of which we would never have dreamed. We could only praise the Lord for His goodness and mercy realizing once again that ‘every good and perfect gift is from above.’”
Seelig was born to Charlie and Katy Seelig in Fredericksburg, Texas, in 1924. He attended Hardin-Simmons University, where he earned his Bachelor of Science degree in 1946 and his Doctor of Humanities degree in 1969. He also earned his Master of Religious Education degree from Southwestern Seminary in 1949. On October 16, 1947, the same year he began his studies at Southwestern, Seelig married Virginia Garrett, the daughter of the late Congressman Clyde Garrett and Sallie Day Garrett. The Seeligs have two sons, Stephen Clyde and Timothy Garrett.
Seelig served as vice president for public affairs at the seminary from 1960 to 1990, and the seminary saw exponential growth in various capacities during his tenure. Financially, endowment funds increased from $4.4 million to $50 million and assets increased from $13.6 million to more than $100 million. Physically, Southwestern’s campus added eight buildings. Seelig initiated the President’s Club, the Founders’ Circle, the Distinguished Alumni Awards, and the B.H. Carroll Awards. He also restructured the Advisory Council.
Virginia Seelig also contributed to the seminary by serving for 27 years as an associate professor of voice in the School of Church Music. She is an accomplished vocalist with performances ranging from opera and musical theater to oratorios and singing for several Billy Graham crusades. She has also performed throughout Europe, the Greek Isles, and the Holy Lands, including a solo performance in Handel’s Messiah presented for the king and queen of Jordan. Her husband says that, although the Seelig family was involved in the “total life of the seminary,” they have always placed a high priority on the recitals, concerts, and other activities of the School of Church Music.
The Seeligs continue to be involved in the life of the seminary as well as in weekly ministry through their church.
“A day never passes,” Seelig says, “that Virginia and I are not aware of God’s presence and leadership.”
For the past 31 years, they have ministered to 100 senior citizens, ages 65 to 96, who make up their Sunday School class. “We minister to members, their families, and friends every day,” he says.
“The sunset years are filled with the great joys of children, grandchildren, even two great-grandsons, and retirement, as well as the challenges of declining health,” Seelig says. “We have become professional listeners through these years and relish every opportunity this brings.”
Considering the many leaders and students who have impacted Southwestern Seminary through the past century, Seelig says, “There have been countless others, too many to name, who through their unswerving loyalty to the seminary and its mission have made it what it is today.”
The Seeligs can be counted among these loyal Southwesterners.
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