William A Baxter Jr.

William Andrew Baxter, Jr. was born in 1959, in Portsmouth, VA, to William Andrew Baxter, Sr. of Montgomery AL, and Florita Beatrice Burgess of Washington DC. The family of 9 moved to Boston in 1962. He was the oldest boy among 7 siblings.
His early education in Boston started at the Emmanuel House, St. John's Elementary, and Cathedral High School. At Cathedral he became the starting running back on the varsity football team midway through his sophomore year and the job was his until he graduated. He led the conference in rushing for more than 1000 yards in both his junior and senior years. BoomBoom, as he was dubbed, was one of the top young players in Massachusetts.
His college career started at Ferrum State College in Virginia under a football scholarship. He returned home and continued his college education at Boston State College. He graduated from Newbury College with a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice.
His career consisted of working in and promoting community and youth-oriented programs. He started as a program director at the YMCA in Roxbury and then moved to the position of group counselor at the Massachusetts Department of Youth Services. In 1986, William turned to law enforcement. He started as a corrections officer at the Suffolk County Sheriff's Department and he was later promoted to sergeant at Nashua St Jail. Bill entered the Boston Police Academy and graduated in 1989. He started as a patrol officer in D-4 in the South End. He then transferred to B-2 in Dudley and worked in the Community Service Office. He was a nationally certified instructor for the Gang Resistance Education and Training (G.R.E.A.T.) and DARE programs. He taught the G.R.E.A.T. curriculum in all the Boston Public Schools. He created programs for youth in Roxbury and Dorchester including the Cultural Cooking Classes with the Haley House. He collaborated with many community-based social service agencies creating programs for youth and connecting them with program directors and services. While working out of B-2 he successfully passed the Boston Police Sergeants Exam. He served as a sergeant until his retirement in 2016.
During his career William received The Boston Neighborhood Fellows award that was created by the Boston Philanthropic Initiative in honor of his service to the community; those who make Boston a better place to live and work. He also received the Boston Celtics Heroes Among Us program from the Boston Celtics organization which recognizes the contributions of individuals who have made a lasting impact on their communities.
His family always had a deep and abiding faith in God, starting with his Grandmother Tessie and other family members called to some form of ministry. He more fully accepted Christ at Holy Tabernacle Church in Dorchester in 1995. He continued his journey at New Covenant Christian Church which is now Jubilee Christian Center. He and his wife became deacons at Jubilee in 2018. At Jubilee William created the Peacekeepers Ministry and he was ordained as a minister in 2018. In 2005 he and his wife began attending and working with Life Church under the ministry of Pastors Rocklyn and Eva Clarke. He also was a part of the Miracle Mile Ministries with the Congregation Lion of Judah Boston in 2024 serving as a street minister. Over the last two years he began a bible-based discipleship program for men.
He is survived by his wife Gayle-Thomas Baxter of Hyde Park; his siblings Tessie Baxter of Quincy, MA, Juanita (Charlene) Baxter of Stoneham, MA, and John Michael Baxter of Sacramento, CA; as well as many friends and family members. He is predeceased by his parents and siblings: Shirley Spiedel, Florita Ford, and Anthony Baxter.
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