Report of the

Beneficiary Society

The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer;

my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my shield,

and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower. Psalm 18:2

            I, as Secretary of the Beneficiary Society of the BFC, am happy to report for the 53rd year that the Society is still rendering its aid to the faithful and beloved Pastors and their wives. During this past year of 2009 two of our retired Pastors, John Dunn and Robert Smock, and two of our sisters in Christ, Mae K. Hartman and Ruth Seifert, answered the call of our Lord and are now in the presence of the Lord of Glory. They have completed their ministry of love and compassion for the lost and Christ’s church. We also have aided Elizabeth Bartron during the year with an aid grant.

            The Fund has been doing well throughout the year despite the heavy financial drain on its assets. Our bonds and other investments have aided us in meeting our responsibilities, The officers have labored together to see that all that can be done to help our brethren has been done.

            If there has been any increase in our families during the year, be sure to notify the Secretary at once. This is your responsibility. He will need the name of the child and the birth date.

            The following articles are submitted to be approved by the Pastors. They are not new rulings but are an attempt to clarify regulations pursuant to the operation of our rules on duties, membership and benefits.

1.         Under 701-1.3 Rules and Regulations – Membership, modify second sentence of the second paragraph to read:

“Ministers of the BFC who are working with other Christian ministries, inactive ministers, and ministers on leave of absence for reasons other than disability are not members of the Beneficiary Society and are not eligible for benefits from the fund.”

2.         Move third paragraph under Membership and modify it to be the second paragraph under Dues and the modified paragraph would read:

Ministers receiving Ministers’ Retirement Fund benefits, ministers on disability, and ministers under the Ministers’ Annuity Fund who have retired at age 65 or later are members of the Society but are exempt from dues. Members who continue on active service are exempt from dues after they have paid dues for forty years. Ministers over age 65 who choose to continue to serve as pastors or under ministries of the BFC must pay dues until they reach the age of 72 or have paid dues for forty years. Ministers who retire before age 65 are required to pay dues until age 65.”

3.         Remove second sentence under first paragraph of Dues since it was modified and is now included in the second paragraph.

4.         Add the following sentences between the second and third sentences of the paragraph under Benefits:

“If a pastor-member of the Beneficiary Society is called home to be with the Lord, his children are covered until their nineteenth birthday. The coverage of a pastor-member’s wife shall continue after the death of her husband until her death or remarriage. Wives of ministers who were retired and receiving benefits under the MRF or MAF at the time of marriage shall not qualify for death benefits.”

5.         Delete the last paragraph under Miscellaneous Rules which now reads:

“Each probationer/ordained man upon re-entering the membership of the Society must pay an equal amount of money equivalent to the number of years he was licensed up to the present year. This amount will be the total amount that was to be paid for the years that he was not a paying member of the Society.”

Beneficiary Society: Philip G. Norris, Chairman (2010); R. C. Reichenbach, Secretary (2012); LeRoy S. Heller, Treasurer (2011).