'We miss him': Rev. Billy Graham remembered on anniversary of death

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Rev. Billy Graham died one year ago Thursday at the age of 99.

Channel 9 was at the Billy Graham Library on Thursday morning and watched as visitors came to remember the Charlotte farm boy who became “America’s Pastor.”

[READ MORE: 'America's Pastor' Rev. Billy Graham dies 'peacefully' at 99]

Graham is being remembered by many for how he treated everyone -- from the president of the United States to those living in poverty -- with dignity and respect.

[PHOTOS: Billy Graham through the years]

Channel 9 spoke with a group who traveled nearly 1,500 miles from Puerto Rico to visit the library. They gathered in a circle outside Graham’s grave and sang "How Great Thou Art," an old hymn Graham loved.

“We miss him, but we have to follow his steps and we hope to meet him one day,” said Jose Gonzalez, who is a pastor.

Graham lived a remarkable life, counseling presidents and preaching to millions of people around the world. He’s buried at the Billy Graham Library in a simple grave with an inscription that reads: “Preacher of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.”

It is estimated Graham preached to more than 215 million people during his life.

When the fiery preacher spoke, the world listened.

In a black and white clip, Graham can be seen staring intently into a crowd. With his trademark powerful delivery, he exclaims, “Christ can change your life. He can forgive your sins. He can make you a new person.”

Graham took that gospel message behind the Iron Curtain when no other westerners were allowed, and he also tried to break down racial barriers at home.

At one of his crusades in the U.S., Graham forcefully told the integrated crowd, “Don’t anybody let you tell you it’s white or black. Christ belongs to all people. He belongs to the whole world.”

His son, Franklin, said his family was touched most deeply by the reception for Graham’s funeral procession.

After Graham's death, thousands of people lined every highway and bridge along the route when Graham’s body was brought back to Charlotte from his home near Asheville.

Memories like that gave Franklin Graham a special prayer of thankfulness on Thursday.

“Lord, thank you. Thank you for my father. Thank you for his life. Thank you for his example,” he prayed.

Families who were shaped by Billy Graham's ministry overseas also have their own prayers of thankfulness for him and the message he faithfully preached.

Gonzalez and his friends from Puerto Rico all bowed their heads and held each other's hands while they prayed next to Graham's grave.

“We hope to meet him one day. We know that we should be meeting him in heaven,” Gonzalez told Channel 9.

When it comes to the future of the library, Franklin Graham said he doesn’t plan to change anything. The Billy Graham Library saw a 50 percent increase in visitors after the reverend’s death in 2018.

Cox Media Group