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Former US congressman and frater from the ETSU chapter in Tennessee passes away
Grand Prytanis Mark Romig and Tau Kappa Epsilon Fraternity Mourn the
Loss of James H. Quillen, Beloved Frater and Former US Congressman
(INDIANAPOLIS) -- On November 2, 2003, former US Congressman and
beloved Frater James H. Quillen passed on to Tau Kappa Epsilon
Fraternity's Chapter Eternal. He was 87. In 1982, Frater Quillen
became an honorary initiate of the Pi-Gamma Chapter at Eastern
Tennessee State University (ETSU).
"Frater Quillen's service and devotion to the people of
Tennessee, our Nation and his extraordinary representation of our
Fraternity embodied the characteristics of Love, Charity and Esteem,"
said Mark Romig, Grand Prytanis.
As one of ten children in a Tennessee farming family, the need to
help support his family led him to turn down an appointment to the
United States Military Academy at West Point. Therefore, he began
work instead at the Kingsport Times-News and the Kingsport Press. In
1936, Frater Quillen launched his own weekly newspaper, the Kingsport
Mirror and in the process, he became the youngest newspaper publisher
in the country.
Frater Quillen began his service in the United States Navy shortly
after the attack at Pearl Harbor. Beginning as an ensign, he
eventually rose to the rank of lieutenant and saw action aboard the
aircraft carrier USS Antietam in both theaters of the war.
Representing Tennessee in the US House of Representatives from 1963
to 1997, an active legislative agenda included his sponsorship of the
first legislation to establish a federal law preventing the
desecration of the American flag. He was also instrumental in naming
John Philip Sousa's "The Stars and Stripes Forever" as America's
national march.
Frater Quillen was best known for his passion and mastery of
constituent relations. Many years ago, he once rode a mule up to a
mountaintop to personally speak with a farmer and advise him that he
had solved the man's trouble with the Department of Agriculture.
Unable to afford the experience of higher education for himself,
Frater Quillen assisted in bringing in millions of dollars to
Tennessee to build or add on to colleges.
As a reflection of his devotion to the state of Tennessee and higher
education, Eastern Tennessee State University proudly renamed their
College of Medicine in his honor. Posthumously, ETSU's library
will now stand as a memorial to Frater Quillen's undying devotion to
his constituents.
During his distinguished career, Frater Quillen received many honors
and awards including honorary degrees from King College, Milligan
College, and Tusculum College. Frater Quillen was also honored by
the creation of a James H. Quillen Regional Heart Center at Holston
Valley Hospital in Kingsport (Tenn.), the James H. and Cecile C.
Quillen Center for Rehabilitative Medicine in Johnson City (Tenn.),
and the Quillen Chair of Excellence in Education at ETSU. He was the
first honorary member of the ETSU Foundation and was bestowed the
foundation's highest honor, the George L. Carter Award. Frater
Quillen's political career was also recognized by 29 consecutive
Golden Bulldog awards for fiscal integrity and the Golden Plow Award
for serving American farmers, along with numerous veterans'
association honors.
"Jimmy Quillen never forgot a friend, and his influence will
forever be felt on the ETSU campus. It is indeed a better place
because of his remarkable life and work," said Paul E. Stanton, Jr.,
ETSU President.
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