The UPCI OFFERING BENEFITS TO ITS MEMBERS

[Apprehended]

Originally Posted by Dora

Rev. V.A. Guidroz, C. G. Weeks, Bro. C.L. Dees, etc. etc. All these men died without any kind of retirement plan or health care in their senior years. Even when Headquarters was made aware of Bro. Dees's situation, little or no support was offered. Is that okay?

C.G. Weeks received a house just North of Tioga on the highway from the District and a stiphend also. It is my impression that Viley Guidroz did too...not sure about the house. It was a very nice, though modest home in Houston area. I was honored to have visited with him there a number of times, enjoying great fellowship.

C.L. Dees...well, that's another case. Don't want to open up THAT closet.

But, yes. There should be a collective effort to provide a much better benefit package for all contributing ministers.

[AmazingGrace]

This is a very sticky situation as a dear friend umm well.. a pastor I know had a home he had purchased with his own income he had saved up ... Not monies of the church. He lived in a little one bedroom apartment for the first 4 years he pastored in our area just to save some money. Bought a very nice house back then (its still really nice due to being kept well) and maintained it well for over 25 years. Another pastor came in and somehow got the nerve to say that this house now belonged to him (the pastor had deeded the house to the church as he believed anything that was his was the churches also and he wanted to know that if he died and she died it would be in good hands..) WRONG! This pastor made said Sr Pastor and wife move out of this home and took it as his own.

Fortunately the board took aside an amount of money they had put away (they saw this coming for a few months) and were able to purchase them a new home. This home is where they live now. They lost the other house and needless to say the church got rid of that pastor real quick like. All of this while the Sr Pastor was in the most major medical battle of his life. He now has a wonderful pastor there who is more than a blessing. And the church is continuing to take care of him well. He also has money set back so that when he does completely retire (I dont think will ever happen) or when he passes his wife will have plenty to live on. The church also purchased insurance for him and her. He has pastored and Started a few churches and learned fast that you had to watch out for retirement early on and did well in doing this.

[ForeverBlessed]

Originally Posted by Dora

Rev. V.A. Guidroz, C. G. Weeks, Bro. C.L. Dees, etc. etc. All these men died without any kind of retirement plan or health care in their senior years. Even when Headquarters was made aware of Bro. Dees's situation, little or no support was offered. Is that okay?

I look at the ministry as being self-employed and it is their responsibility to obtain insurance and save for retirement benefits…not the organization. If a pastor is paid a salary through a board in a church, then they should offer some type of insurance/retirement as well.

I understand that younger ministers can’t afford to save much, but usually those in the ministry for a while have been successful enough in most cases to save more. Personally, as a single mom, I am considered low income, and I save 4% of my income for retirement….so even in cases where they don’t make much, money should be saved… it is good stewardship.

I know that it can be done as my parents who were in the ministry for over 40 years prepared for their future. My mother is currently in an assisted living facility (Alzheimers) where she is self pay. She has my father’s SS and his retirement from the church he pastored for 36 years. In addition, she has lived the last 9 years on IRAs and other savings that they chose to save and invest of the finances God blessed them with when they were younger.

As far as Health Insurance.. as a kid, we had health insurance through the UPC… it was J.F. Malloy… because I remember presenting the card to the Dr. office as a teenager. I think that they can’t afford the insurance plans now, and I totally understand.

That isn’t unusual.. many companies today can’t afford health plans and have had to go with very high deductible plans to even insure their employees. My own company which is in the medical field has a high deductible plan and we are encouraged to pay into a health savings plan to help. We are also counseled every year on weight management and healthy lifestyles. They also strongly encourage us to participate in the wellness center so that they qualify for a discount on our insurance.

Medical costs are through the roof and it is affecting many companies and some companies are not offering it as a benefit all together… so, UPCI not even being an employer shouldn’t be put down for not offering insurance anymore.

[Dora]

Originally Posted by Apprehended

C.G. Weeks received a house just North of Tioga on the highway from the District and a stiphend also. It is my impression that Viley Guidroz did too...not sure about the house. It was a very nice, though modest home in Houston area. I was honored to have visited with him there a number of times, enjoying great fellowship.

C.L. Dees...well, that's another case. Don't want to open up THAT closet.

But, yes. There should be a collective effort to provide a much better benefit package for all contributing ministers.

Paw Paw Guidroz was supplied a certain amount, but not enough for him and Maw Maw to live on. Paw Paw was an astute man regarding finances. His savings got him through retirement.

I'm not saying the district didn't do nice things for him. But he had to make it on his own resources in the end. Which is fine.

But I'm thinking it would be nice for the org to step in (to a certain extent) when things go south for one of their elders.

[Dora]

Well, thanks for setting me straight on this issue. I appreciate all the feedback.