Weldon Fallaw, president of the Baptist Foundation of South Carolina, has announced plans to retire effective Dec. 31. At his retirement, he will have served the foundation for more than 28 years.
Fallaw, 68, joined the foundation on Aug. 1, 1981, as vice president, when the foundation was managing assets with a fair-market value of about $12 million. Trustees elected Fallaw as president in May 2000; assets were worth nearly $57 million. Today, assets under foundation management are valued at more than $75 million.
The foundation distributed more than $2.1 million last year primarily to South Carolina Baptist ministries and has distributed more than $49 million to ministry causes since 1950.
“There was never a day when I didn’t anticipate coming to work,” Fallaw said. God has certainly blessed my life by guiding me to this ministry. I will leave the foundation knowing that this ministry is on solid footing, and, as it begins its 60th year of ministry in 2010, will continue to grow and flourish under new leadership.”
The foundation’s board of trustees will ratify Oct. 15 a search committee for a new president. The committee will develop a formal process for applications and announce guidelines through The Baptist Courier and other media.
A press release detailed Fallaw’s professional accomplishments. During his tenure as president, the foundation added professional staff positions, offered a variety of diversified investment funds, developed an online client and account database, offered new charitable giving instruments such as donor-advised funds, implemented a grant awards program, increased donor contact and recognition, streamlined operational procedures, networked with planned-giving and estate-planning professionals, offered online estate planning tools, and added field development coordinators in the central and Upstate regions of the state.
A native of Union, Fallaw attended the USC and worked as an insurance sales manager and in budget and audit positions in state government prior to joining the foundation.
He and his wife Jane have two children and three grandchildren. The Fallaws have been members of State Street Baptist Church in Cayce for more than 40 years, where Fallow serves as deacon and Sunday school director. He plans to continue ministry work through volunteer efforts in his church and community.