The Words of the Tully Family
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The Words of the Tully Family |
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Today in Kona, Hawaii, the Seunghwa Ceremony for our beloved elder brother, Joe Tully, is being held. As you know, Joe passed away October 13, due to complications resulting from a stroke, heart attack and kidney failure. Our True Parents love Joe and his family dearly and are very proud of the life that he lived, centered on the will of God. Our senior pastor, Rev. In Jin Moon, has expressed her deep gratitude for Joe's outstanding life of faith, and for giving her his great support as she was establishing her ministry in America.
I know that all of us would like to be able to attend his ascension ceremony. We are grateful that our Continental Director, Dr. Chang Shik Yang, will be there to officiate the Seunghwa Ceremony. Mr. Jim Gavin, President of UPF-USA, will attend and read a personal letter from Rev. In Jin Moon. The West Coast Block Leader, Rev. Kevin Thompson, will also attend, representing In Jin Nim. In addition, many of Joe's family members, friends and colleagues will participate to honor this great man of God.
Below is a brief biography of Mr. Joseph Allen Tully. We have also attached the Seunghwa Address which will be presented by Dr. Yang today.
Joe Tully was born June 29, 1946 in Texas (his family was traveling at the time). Joe grew up in the small town of Naalehu on the "Big Island" of Hawaii. Joe lost his dad in a traffic accident when he was quite young. He went to a prestigious boarding school, Hawaii Preparatory Academy, from grade school through high school years. Joe was an athlete who excelled at football, and was named to the Hawaii All-State team as both an offensive and defensive player in the same year.
Joe attended and Graduated from Stanford University. He joined the Unification Church in San Francisco in early 1970. Joe became the leader of the large New York branch of the U. C. for many years, and was always one of the very best lecturers in America. He assisted Rev. Sudo at Barrytown and was quite active with the fight against communism. Joe worked with our headquarters at the New Yorker Hotel, and then was one of the founding members and President of the American Constitution Committee (ACC), under the guidance of Dr. Bo Hi Pak. During the era of transition after the fall of Communism, Joe also spent time in the Ukraine and the Crimean peninsula teaching Divine Principle workshops.
Joe suffered a massive heart attack, followed by quadruple bypass surgery in 1987. In 1989, Joe returned to his home state of Hawaii, where he began the Hawaii Freedom Coalition in Honolulu. During that time True Parents would visit Kona, Hawaii often and upon seeing Joe at prayer-study meetings, would frequently call on Joe personally by name Joe Tully and Victor Jessop were the two primary 'founding fathers' of True Father's High School of the Pacific, and to Joe's last day, he remained loyal to Father's vision for HSP and the school's vital mission to Pacific Island students.
Since that time Joe has worked tirelessly in the education and political arenas to support the family unit in Hawaii through education about absolute sexual morality and related issues. To that end, Joe together with other prominent leaders in the Hawaiian community worked to found the Hawaii Family Coalition, a grassroots organization dedicated to protect traditional family foundations and values in Hawaii. Joe suffered a stroke just days after launching an inaugural series of HFC workshops here in Hawaii.
Joe and his wife Sanae were blessed in the 1800 Couples Blessing in 1975. Sanae passed away in 1999 and they are survived by five children in the following order: daughters, Bumi, Mi Hwa, Jamie and Hyo Ja, and son David.
Let us continue to keep Joe and his family in our prayers. If you would like to offer donations for the Tully family, please contact Rev. Jorg Heller at our national headquarters office.
May God bless your family.
