In anticipation of Billy Graham’s 99th birthday, Franklin Graham, president and CEO of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, released the following statement about his father:
“Nov. 7 will be a big milestone for my father as he turns 99 and enters his 100th year. As a family, we are just so very grateful that he is still with us. His mind is good but he’s quieter these days. He can’t see or hear well, but his health is stable.
“On his birthday, some family will be with him and we’ll give him his favorite cake—a lemon cake with lard icing. He loves those cakes—but it has to have the lard icing.
“At the Billy Graham Library we’ll have a special celebration that day, as this year is also the 10th anniversary of the opening of the library. We’ll have birthday cake for everyone who comes by.
“Also as my father enters his 100th year, for the year leading up to his 100th birthday, we are going to honor what God has done through him by highlighting significant moments of his life and some eight decades of ministry. The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association is moving strong into the future, but it’s also important to celebrate the past, so each month we will focus on a particular decade and highlight significant things like his 16-week evangelistic crusade in New York City, his impact on worldwide evangelism and personal testimonies of people whose lives were forever changed at one of my father’s crusades. During this next year we’ll have special content on billygraham.org and in Decision magazine, so be sure to check those out. My father always wants the focus to be on the Lord Jesus Christ, and not on him; and so we will point to the amazing ways God has worked in lives around the world, through the ministry of Billy Graham.
“I know my father is grateful for all the prayers for him and birthday wishes on this special occasion.”