Dedicated to
Julius Henry “J. H.” Blackman, Jr.

Brother Blackman’s preaching career began in October 1949, at the age of seventeen, with the Springfield church of Christ in Jacksonville, Florida. This was his home congregation. His father also served as one of its elders for over thirty years. At this time, J. H. was part of Springfield’s effort to train young men to preach in the mission fields of Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia. Many of the congre-gations in these areas were small and did not have full-time ministers. J. H. also preached during this time in Ludowici, Brunswick, and Folkston, Georgia; and Lake Butler, St. Augustine, and Brooker, Florida.

Upon graduating high school in 1951, J. H. attended Florida Christian College and earned an associate of arts degree in 1953. It was here that he met G. K. Wallace, who encouraged him to continue his education at David Lipscomb College (now, David Lipscomb University). J. H. earned a bachelor of arts degree in 1955, with a major in speech.

Following his graduation from David Lipscomb, J. H. began the work in St. Marys, Georgia, under the oversight of the Springfield elders. During the years 1955-1957, he was also instrumental in helping to build a meeting house for St. Marys and in assisting church members in starting the Fernandina Beach, Florida, congregation.

Since those beginning years, he has preached in Hopewell, Virginia (1957-1959); Hollywood, Florida (1960-1962); Salisbury, North Carolina (1963-1964); Cocoa Beach, Florida (1965-1967); Bartow (North Jackson Avenue), Florida (1967-1969); Winter Haven (Central), Florida (1970-1972); Lakeland (South Florida Avenue), Florida (1972-1975); Plant City (Springhead), Florida, with whom he also served in the eldership (1976-90); and, currently, North Lakeland, Florida, having started in 1991.
Brother Blackman met Louise Welch while at David Lipscomb, and they married in 1956. Three sons were born to them. Their first child died shortly after birth. J. H.’s next child, Dan, is now retired from the military. He is married to Tracie, and they have one son, Timothy. J. H.’s youngest son, Ben, is married to Jesicia, and they have seven children. Ben currently serves as a major in the military, stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Whenever J. H. has visited his sons, he has been able to preach and encourage the church in locations such as Germany and the Panama Canal Zone. Louise passed away in 1992. In 2001, J. H. married Lucy Salley, who had been widowed since 1994.

Brother Blackman’s connection with the Florida School of Preaching dates back to its beginnings. B. C. Carr met with the elders of the South Florida Avenue congregation to present the possibility of starting a preacher training school in Lakeland. The elders agreed to the idea. Shortly thereafter, B. C. Carr and G. K. Wallace invited J. H. to serve on the teaching staff. Since September 15, 1969, J. H. has taught classes at the Florida School of Preaching.

From that time, J. H. has served the school in many capacities. Not only has he been the only remaining teacher who has taught continuously since the school began in 1969, he has also served as the only secretary of the board of directors that the school has ever known. In acknowledgment of this, J. H. was affectionately presented an “older than dirt” t-shirt, which he graciously accepted, signifying his unique humorous side.

Due to his experience with electronics, gained from his secular profession with the Polk County School Board, J. H. has been instrumental in the audio and visual recordings of the school’s lectureships. Though the technology has changed, from cassette tapes to CDs and DVDs to live audio streaming across the internet, one constant has remained the same, J. H. is still, “The voice of the man upstairs.”

Brother Blackman also has been a vital part of the school’s booster banquet for the past several years. Initially, he was instrumental in setting up locations to provide facilities and/or catered food. When the school started hosting the banquet at the South Florida Avenue facilities, J. H. coordinated the food preparation, with many others assisting him. The 2007 banquet was the first one that he did not play a major role concerning the preparation. Guests sure will miss his desserts!

The school appreciates the many other areas in which J. H. has served over the years, from the early years when he would take a small display of the school to lectureships and congregations, promoting the school, to his continuing loyalty and untiring love of the Florida School of Preaching. For these reasons, we dedicate our fifteenth bound lectureship book, Do You Understand the Biblical View of Man?, to our brother and fellow board member, J. H. Blackman, Jr.

Brian R. Kenyon, Editor
In Behalf of the Board of Directors