VALDOSTA —
The Rev. Alvin Frederick Ponder Sr., 83, passed from this life following a brief illness on Aug. 9, 2012, at John D. Archbold Memorial Hospital in Thomasville, Ga.
Rev. Ponder was born on May 9, 1929, in Quitman, Ga. He was the younger of two children of the late Rev. Abner F. Ponder and Essie B. Ponder, an educator. Being the son of a preacher and an educator, Rev. Ponder also stressed the importance of education to his own children.
Rev. Ponder received his diploma from Brooks County High School in 1945, at the tender age of 16. After graduating, he attended Morehouse College in Atlanta under President Benjamin E. Mays’ early admission policy to rebuild enrollment which was depleted by World War II. He graduated from Morehouse with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1949. He was a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. and the order of Free and Accepted Masons — Prince Hall Affiliated.
Rev. Ponder continued his higher education in Religion and Philosophy at Columbia University in New York City.
When he returned to Quitman after seminary studies, Rev. Ponder resumed worship at Beulah Baptist Church, where his faith in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ had been nurtured from childhood. He served the church as an ordained minister for many years, as had his father, the Rev. Abner F. Ponder, who had served as senior pastor of Beulah Baptist Church. Rev. Ponder was an Army veteran of the Korean War and was honorably discharged in 1953. He also worked for many years at the Greyhound headquarters in Chicago, Ill.
Rev. Ponder is survived by his sister, Dr. Mildred Ponder-Stennis, Detroit; and 11 children, Dr. Alvin F. Ponder Jr., New York, Darryl D. Ponder, Chicago, Attorney Anita J. Ponder, Chicago, Attorney Rhinold L. Ponder (Attorney Michele Tuck-Ponder), Princeton, N.J., Reginald C. Ponder (Donna S. Ponder), Chicago, Sharon M. Ponder, New Orleans, Maria R. Ponder-Duncan (Greg Duncan), New Brunswick, N.J., Erik B. Ponder, Angela J. Ponder, Alvina F. Ponder, Chicago, and Tracie D. Ponder, Los Angeles; and six grandchildren, Brian L. Ponder, Bobbi C. J. Ponder, Carri D. C. Ponder, Jamaica S. Ponder, Matthew D. Duncan, and William D. Ponder. He is further survived by a niece, Sydney Sharise Stennis; first-cousins, Deacon James H. Adams (Mattie Adams), Dr. Russell L. Adams (Eleanor Adams), Franklin Adams (Eddie Ruth Adams), Deloris A. Thomas (Frank L. Thomas), and Wallace Warren; other relatives and friends, including the staff and residents at Fellowship Home in Valdosta, Ga., where Rev. Ponder had resided for the last several years.
In addition to his parents, Rev. Ponder was predeceased by two former wives, Dr. Gwindelle W. Ponder and Carrie B. Ponder; and a daughter, Cassandra J. Ponder.
Funeral service will be held on Thursday, Aug. 16, 2012, at 1 p.m. at Beulah Missionary Baptist Church in Quitman with Pastor Walter A. Mays officiating. Burial will follow in the North End Cemetery in Quitman. Stevens-McGhee Funeral Home is in charge of the arrangements. — Stevens-McGhee Funeral Home
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Rev. Alvin Frederick Ponder Sr. Contributed photo
Rev. Alvin Frederick Ponder Sr.
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