In December of last year, Bob (GBI '61) and Muriel Griffin took out their 30th gift annuity at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary. They have been taking out gift annuities for 24 years for two reasons. First, they want to help current students attend seminary without accruing substantial debt, and second, they want to show their appreciation to Garrett-Evangelical for the scholarship Bob received when he was earning his master of divinity degree. The money from their annuities goes toward the general scholarship fund.
"We took out our first gift annuity as a way to thank Garrett-Evangelical for my scholarship when I was a student there from 1958 to 1961," Bob said. "We have kept on taking out annuities because students continue to need scholarships."
"His scholarship meant a lot to him and to me in that he didn't start his ministry being in debt," Muriel added. "We did not make much as pastors, and having debt would have been really hard. I imagine it would be even harder today."
In addition to supporting current students and expressing their appreciation, the Griffins have two more reasons for supporting Garrett-Evangelical through their gift annuities.
Why Give a Gift Annuity?
"Garrett-Evangelical is a place that will use our money well," Muriel said.
"A gift annuity is a wonderful way to support any work you want to support because you can give the gift, and the return on the gift is quite amazing," Bob said. "That is a very nice part of the annuity."
Bob and Muriel first met at Iowa State University, where Bob majored in general science and Muriel majored in education. Bob knew he wanted to become a minister, and the general science degree allowed him to take courses in sociology, psychology, English, speech, and religious education. The year before he finished Iowa State, Bob was accepted at Garrett Biblical Institute, but one day in his senior year, he heard a speaker from the Wesley Foundation talk about the need for educated people to go to third world countries. His plans changed.
"I ended up going to Liberia and teaching science and math courses at the College of West Africa," said Bob, who graduated from Iowa State in 1954. Although they were not dating at the time, Muriel followed a year later after she graduated. She worked as a dorm parent, responsible for some of the women who attended the College of West Africa. Later, she taught home economics at the College.
Somewhere between Ames, Iowa and Liberia, the couple fell in love, Bob said. Bob returned to the United States first and started to attend Garrett Biblical Institutein the fall of 1958. A year later, Muriel joined him. They married in December 1958 and lived in the student apartments.
After Bob graduated in 1961, he was appointed to the Council Bluffs Community Church in Iowa as a member of the Iowa Annual Conference. They served there for six years until 1967.
In 1994, the couple returned to Iowa and began serving in a church again. Four years later, they retired and moved to Indianola, Iowa.
They started taking out annuities at Garrett-Evangelical after they retired and have been doing so since. "It just seemed like the appropriate thing to do," Bob said.
Your Generosity Matters
Your support of the Ministerial Education Fund Apportionment helps schools like XXXX to prepare people to discover their calling through the challenging curriculum. Your generosity enables the church to increase financial support for recruiting and educating ordained and diaconal ministers and to equip annual conferences to meet increased demands.
Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary website, Evanston, IL
This story shows the power of the Ministerial Education Fund—one of seven apportionment funds of The United Methodist Church—to prepare and equip those answering God’s call to ministry. Your church’s support provides theological education, scholarships, and leadership development through our United Methodist seminaries and boards of ordained ministry. Together, we ensure that faithful, well-prepared leaders continue to guide the Church into the future.
When your church supports the Ministerial Education Fund, you invest in the next generation of United Methodist clergy and leaders.
