William Gilvin "Gil" Bates, Jr. (born January 1, 1965) is the patriarch of the Bates family. He is the husband of Kelly Bates, with whom he has 19 children, 32 grandchildren and 1 grandchild on the way.
Early life[]
William Gilvin "Gil" Bates, Jr. was born on January 1, 1965, in Honea Path, South Carolina, to William "Bill" Bates, Sr. and Jane (Hartsell) Bates. He was the couple's first child, and they went on to have two more children after him.
Gil was said to be obsessed with football, even from a young age, having a uniform by the age of two and playing by the age of eight. As a child, he attended Methodist churches.
He attended Belton-Honea Path High School. In tenth grade, his football coach, Kenny Ashley, started a chapter of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and soon after Gil became a Christian. He asked his parents for permission to attend Austin Road Baptist Church, which they granted. As a senior, Gil won the 1983 South Carolina State Wrestling Championship and was voted Most Outstanding Wrestler.
Personal life[]
Marriage[]
Just married
Gil began college at Anderson University in Anderson, South Carolina, where he met Kelly Jo Callaham. The two served on the same ministry team, and when Gil needed tutoring for his chemistry class, Kelly Jo was the lab assistant. The two then transferred to Carson-Newman University in Jefferson City, Tennessee. Gil proposed to Kelly while they were still in school in October 1987. Gil and Kelly got married on December 19, 1987. For their honeymoon, they went to Gatlinburg, Tennessee.
Fatherhood[]
Although Gil and Kelly had expected to not start having children until they had been married for five years, Kelly got pregnant only a few months after getting married, and the couple's first child, Zachary Gilvin, was born on December 30, 1988. Just over a year later, Zach was joined by a sister, Michael Christan, on January 23, 1990. Kelly quickly got pregnant again, and by this point Gil said he "got excited about having children". This child, Erin Elise, was born on May 2, 1991, and was joined by sixteen more: William Lawson was born on July 27, 1992, Kenneth Nathaniel was born on August 29, 1993, Alyssa Joy was born on November 9, 1994, Tori Layne was born on December 20, 1995, Trace Whitfield was born on February 1, 1997, Carlin Brianne was born on April 11, 1998, Josie Kellyn was born on August 4, 1999, Katie Grace was born on October 5, 2000, Jackson Ezekiel was born on February 17, 2002, Warden Justice was born on May 19, 2003, Isaiah Courage was born on October 16, 2004, Addallee Hope was born on February 17, 2006, Ellie Bridget was born on April 28, 2007, Callie-Anna Rose was born on August 2, 2009, Judson Wyatt was born on September 15, 2010, and Jeb Colton was born on February 1, 2012.
The couple suffered four miscarriages: Jewels, between 2007 and 2008, Jubilee, between 2007 and 2008, Zion, in March 2011, and Sunny, in August 2012.
Gil is a very involved father and does his best to spend as much quality time with his children as possible. At her graduation party in 2016, Carlin said that she aspired to be like her father, saying: "He's always been faithful in the little things. He's steady in the Lord. Whatever he does, he doesn't lose his cool."
Grandchildren[]
On November 2, 2013, his daughter Erin married Chad Paine. Together, they have 6 children. Their first child, son Charles "Carson" Stephen IV, was born on May 14, 2015 May 14, 2015. Their second child, daughter Brooklyn Elise, was born on August 6, 2016. Their third child, daughter Everly Hope, was born on March 30, 2018. Their fourth child, daughter Holland Grace, was born on November 26, 2019. Their fifth child, daughter Finley Marie, was born on January 18, 2022. Their sixth child, son William Gage, was born on October 30, 2023. The couple suffered three miscarriages in 2014.
On December 14, 2013, his son Zachary married Whitney Perkins. Together, they have 5 children. Their first child, son Bradley Gilvin, was born on October 29, 2014. Their second child, daughter Kaci Lynn, was born on June 20, 2016. Their third child, daughter Khloé Eileen, was born on November 7, 2019. Their fourth child, son Jadon Carl, was born on June 7, 2021. Their fifth child, daughter Lily Jo, was born on August 15, 2023. The couple suffered a miscarriage in June 2018.
On May 24, 2014, his daughter Alyssa married John Webster. Together, they have 5 children. Their first child, daughter Allie Jane, was born on April 11, 2015. Their second child, daughter Lexi Mae, was born on January 26, 2017. Their third child, daughter Zoey Joy, was born on March 28, 2018. Their fourth child, daughter Maci Jo, was born on February 9, 2021. Their fifth child, son Rhett Alan, was born on March 18, 2023.
On August 15, 2015, his daughter Michaela married Brandon Keilen. The couple miscarried a daughter, Eden Miracle, in 2021.
On December 16, 2017, his daughter Tori married Bobby Smith. Together, they have 5 children. Their first child, son Robert "Kade" Ellis IV, was born on November 9, 2018. Their second child, son Kolter Gray, was born on March 25, 2020. Their third child, daughter Charlotte Raine, was born on June 24, 2021. Their fourth child, daughter Cambree Layne, was born on August 2, 2022. Their fifth child, son Weston Slade, was born on May 29, 2024.
On October 5, 2018, his daughter Josie married Kelton Balka. Together, they have 3 children. Their first child, daughter Willow Kristy, was born on July 19, 2019. Their second child, daughter Hazel Sloane, was born on June 14, 2021. Their third child, son Miles Kelton, was born on February 21, 2024. The couple suffered a miscarriage on August 25, 2020.
On May 25, 2019, his daughter Carlin married Evan Stewart. Together, they have 2 children. Their first child, daughter Layla Rae, was born on January 31, 2020. Their second child, son Zade Patrick, was born on March 27, 2022.
On October 22, 2021, his son Nathan married Esther Keyes. Together, they have 2 children. Their first child, daughter Kenna Joy, was born on October 17, 2022. Their second child, son Graham Alan, was born on October 4, 2024.
On December 3, 2021, his daughter Katie married Travis Clark. Together, they have 2 children. Their first child, daughter Hailey James, was born on February 17, 2023. Their second child, son Harvey Gray, was born on September 29, 2024.
On May 12, 2022, his son Lawson married Tiffany Espensen. Together, they have 1 child. Their first child, son William Daniel, was born on July 19, 2024. The couple miscarried a child, Hope, in early 2023.
On October 1, 2022, his son Trace married Lydia Romeike. Together, they have 1 child. Their first child, son Ryker Cruise, was born on September 12, 2023. They are currently expecting their second child. The couple miscarried a child, Angel, in 2024.
Career[]
Excavating[]
Gil owns a tree excavating company, Bates Tree Service in Rocky Top, Tennessee. As his sons have grown old enough to help, he has employed them in this business as well. He acknowledges that it's a dangerous job, even when you take safety precautions. "We've had some close calls, and I get awful nervous, but we've had no mishaps, thank the Lord." Even with this business, however, Gil also struggles to make ends meet. His son, Lawson, opened his own lawn care business as a young teenager, and Gil often relied on teenage Lawson's income to help make ends meet.
Pastor[]
In September 2015, Gil opened his own church, Bible Baptist Church of East Tennessee in Clinton, Tennessee. Gil is still the pastor there today.
Institute in Basic Life Principles[]
Gil serves on the Board of Directors for the Institute in Basic Life Principles.
Television[]
Gil and his family's close family friends, the Duggar family, premiered their own reality show, 17 Kids and Counting, on TLC in 2008. In the episode "When Big Families Collide", which aired on October 13, 2008, the show's viewers were introduced to the Bates family. Gil and his family went on to appear in a number of episodes throughout the show's ten season run.
On March 13, 2012, a special episode of the show, "The Bates Family: And Baby Makes 19" premiered, which served as a sort of re-introduction to the family before the premiere of their own TLC show, United Bates of America, on August 13, 2012. The show ran for one season, before announcing on October 6, 2012, that it had been canceled.
On November 18, 2014, the family announced they had begun filming for a second reality show, Bringing Up Bates. Bringing Up Bates, which premiered on UpTV on January 1, 2015, was canceled after ten seasons on January 18, 2022.
Sexual assault scandal[]
On October 20, 2015, a lawsuit was filed against the Institute in Basic Life Principles and its board members, which included Gil Bates. The lawsuit was filed by five women who claimed the experienced "sexual abuse, sexual harassment, and inappropriate/unauthorized touching" while working at IBLP. David Gibbs III, son of IBLP member David Gibbs, Jr., owned one of the law firms that represented the case. This lawsuit followed an internal investigation that IBLP conducted about sexual abuse allegations in 2014, which the plaintiffs felt was not handled properly. After the initial internal investigation, IBLP's founder, Bill Gothard, had resigned on March 5, 2014.
On November 13, 2015, the Board of Directors released a statement claiming that the lawsuit was misplaced, with Bill Gothard being the only source of misbehavior. Due to the fact that none of the board members at that time had been on the board when the plaintiffs were working for the Institute, they felt confident that they were not at fault, and stressed that no members of the board had been involved in any sort of cover-up.
On December 2, 2015, the complaint was dismissed due to failing to state the necessary facts.
On January 6, 2016, a second lawsuit was filed. This lawsuit named Bill Gothard, but dropped the allegations against the individual board members, which included Gil. It still was against the corporation as a whole.
Wedding involvement[]
Gil was an officiant at his daughter Erin's wedding to Chad Paine on November 2, 2013.
He was an officiant at his son Zach's wedding to Whitney Perkins on December 14, 2013.
He was the officiant at his daughter Alyssa's wedding to John Webster on May 24, 2014.
He was an officiant at his daughter Michaela's wedding to Brandon Keilen on August 15, 2015.
He was the officiant at his daughter Tori's wedding to Bobby Smith on December 16, 2017.
He was an officiant at his daughter Josie's wedding to Kelton Balka on October 5, 2018.
He was an officiant at his daughter Carlin's wedding to Evan Stewart on May 25, 2019.
He was the best man at his son Nathan's wedding to Esther Keyes on October 22, 2021.
He was an officiant at his daughter Katie's wedding to Travis Clark on December 3, 2021.
He was an officiant at his son Lawson's wedding to Tiffany Espensen on May 12, 2022.
He was an officiant at his son Trace's wedding to Lydia Romeike on October 1, 2022.
He was an officiant at his son Jackson's wedding to Emerson Wells on October 14, 2023.
