For more details about the history of the Martha Franks and Bethea retirement communities and a comprehensive story with details leading up to the decision, please read our previous article.
On November 11, 2025, during the 205th annual SCBaptist convention meeting, the executive committee presented a motion to sell the Martha Franks and Bethea retirement communities.
Tony Wolfe, executive director treasurer, said,
“We have prayed fervently, forecasted financial models, sought counsel, from industry leaders, and pursued every course of possibility we could imagine. What remains is what comes before you in the form of a motion today.”
The first motion passed by 83%. 668 total ballets were cast; 554 were in favor and 114 in opposition.
Tom Turner, executive director and CEO of the SCBMA, said their ministry has always been clear about their mission, “to provide professional services for seniors, with compassionate care in the name of Jesus Christ so all who we serve will thrive.” And even with the sell of the properties, he said,
“This next chapter would allow us to continue fulfilling this mission in new and more accessible ways.”
Those ways include providing financial assistance to retired pastors and missionaries allowing them to choose where they want to live, instead of limiting them to two facilities. In addition, the SCBMA hopes to reach more seniors across the state with the gospel, instead of solely focusing their efforts in two retirement communities.
The official motion was stated as follows:
“With gratitude in our hearts for how God has worked in and through SCBMA’s retirement community facilities; with utmost respect for past, present, and future residents of the retirement communities; with thanksgiving to SCBMA leadership’s tireless efforts in serving senior adults through this worthy ministry model since 1954; and with great expectation of a future ministry model that multiplies opportunities for senior adult ministry across our state through the South Carolina Baptist Convention, a motion is hereby made to accept the recommendation of the Executive Board of the South Carolina Baptist Convention to approve, in principle, the sale of substantially all of the assets of the Bethea and Martha Franks retirement communities, seeking a purchase price that reflects the estimated fair market value of the properties, with the final terms of the definitive transaction documents to be approved by the SCBMA Board of Trustees and the South Carolina Baptist Convention Executive Board being authorized to approve the actual transaction, including the contract, on behalf of the the Convention.”
Messengers discussed the motion publicly before the vote was made. Microphones were provided for messengers to share their thoughts and concerns.
Those in opposition said that there was not enough time or information for messengers to pray and make a wise decision concerning the motion.
Darren Rood, pastor of Bellview Baptist Church, said,
“Our church is broken over this proposed decision.”
Rood said he wished there was more information and more options.
“We don’t know anything about the new ownership and that should concern every SCBaptist,” he said. “We want a plan in place before we vote in the affirmative.”
Deborah Guest, of Lakeview Baptist Church in Hartsville, said her parents were South Carolina sent ones for 30 years and when they got back to the States they lived at Martha Franks and loved it. She said she was heartbroken when she first heard the news of selling the property. But she went to one of the town hall meetings that the SCBMA team hosted and was encouraged.
She said, “When they said they would support missionaries and retired pastors to be wherever they would like to be in the state so that they could be with family, that hit home for me.”
Guest said, “This is a hard decision. But God uses hard decisions to spread the gospel and isn’t that what we’re all about? The Jerusalem church underwent persecution and none of us would say that that’s wonderful or that any of our brothers and sisters around the world that are currently under persecution is a great thing. But our God is big enough that He can use even persecution to expand the spread of the gospel…”
She continued,
“And when I think about our retired pastors and missionaries, who will not stop sharing the gospel wherever they are because it’s in their blood, being spread out across the state, I have to say with my dad “hallelujah!” because God can use this opportunity, this difficulty, this sale of two buildings. He can use even that, as He’s used persecution, to expand and spread the gospel across our state.”
After the first motion was completed, two succeeding motions relating to the process of the sale and refocus of the SCBMA ministry were presented and voted upon. Both won the majority vote.
The second and third motions are provided below:
Motion Two:
“A motion is hereby made to approve a collaboration between the Executive Board of the South Carolina Baptist Convention and the SCBMA Board of Trustees to develop a future statewide senior adult ministry model, and to present recommendations at the 2026 Convention for messenger consideration and approval.”
Motion Three:
“A motion is hereby made to authorize, empower and direct the Executive Director-treasurer of the Convention, for and on behalf of the Convention, to deliver to any person or entity any papers, certificates or other documents, and to perform such acts, take such actions, or enter into and execute such documents or instruments that in his opinion are necessary or advisable to memorialize the Convention’s approval of the the foregoing motions.”
SCBaptist leadership will provide updates on the future of SCBMA next year November 9-10 at Riverland Hills Baptist Church in Irmo.
This article was recently updated.