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Bill
Wilson
August 27,1935 - May 7, 1977 |
The origins
of Bill Wilson Center go back to 1973 when a prominent Santa Clara citizen,
Bill Wilson, Jr., worked with troubled youth in addition to owning Wilson's
Jewel Bakery and serving as a Santa Clara City Councilman (1963-1971),
with a term as mayor in 1965.
Bill collaborated with faculty at Santa Clara University on a proposal
for a counseling center which would combine counseling of students in
the local secondary schools with a family therapy program. Wilson's credibility
with both the counseling professionals and Santa Clara political and business
leaders was an important factor in creating this community-based service.
Webster Center, as it was then called, opened its doors in the fall of
1973. Bill Wilson continued to be involved as an active member of its
Board of Directors. He later earned a Masters Degree in Counseling Psychology
and volunteered as a counselor at the Center.
In May 1977, after a brief illness, Bill died at the age of forty-one.
The staff and the Board of Directors made the unanimous decision to change
the name of Webster Center to Bill Wilson Center in memory of this very
special person and one of the founders of Bill Wilson Center.