If Richard McLawhorn had his way, South Carolina pastors “who have given their lives to serving Jesus Christ” would never have to worry about a lack of resources if they wished to spend their retirement years at either of the state’s two Baptist senior adult communities.
A new fund will assist retired Baptist ministers who “need some help” to live at Bethea or Martha Franks retirement communities, says SCBMA president Richard McLawhorn.To that end, he hopes a new initiative designed to assist ministers who have underfunded retirements will be a good start.
On Feb. 28, the trustees of South Carolina Baptist Ministries for the Aging gave unanimous approval to SCBMA president McLawhorn’s request to establish a fund to provide supplemental financial assistance to retired South Carolina Baptist pastors and missionaries and their spouses.
McLawhorn said money for the fund will come from the ministry’s annual statewide Mother’s Day Offering, which last year netted approximately $250,000 from churches across the South Carolina Baptist Convention. In recent years proceeds from the Mother’s Day Offering were used for capital improvements at the ministry’s two retirement facilities in Laurens and Darlington.
“There are a lot of good things we could do with that amount of money, but God has convicted me that there’s something better we should try to do,” said McLawhorn, “and that is to help his servants who have given their lives to serving Jesus and who now, in their senior years, need some help.”
McLawhorn said he hopes South Carolina Baptists, once they hear about SCBMA’s commitment to provide financial assistance to retired ministers, will be inspired to give more this year, perhaps as much as half a million dollars.
“The number of our brothers and sisters that we will be able to help with this new program will depend on the amount of money given,” McLawhorn wrote in a letter to pastors and directors of missions. “I am writing to ask for your vocal and energetic support for this year’s Mother’s Day Offering.”
Guidelines are being drawn up for awarding the assistance, “just like guidelines had to be established for scholarships to our Baptist universities,” McLawhorn said. The standards should be ready for board approval in August and for implementation beginning in 2009, he said.
SCBMA, an institution of the South Carolina Baptist Convention, operates Martha Franks Baptist Retirement Community in Laurens and Bethea Baptist Retirement Community in Darlington.