Maryville Couple Leaves Behind $1.25 Million Endowment for New Churches
By Annette Bender
A foundation director could go an entire career without ever seeing a $1 million check, says Roger Redding.
But on June 30, Redding was presented with such a check the first installment for an endowment supporting new church development in Holston Conference. The $1 million gift to Holston Conference Foundation is from the estate of Conchita and Earl Blazer, long-time members of First Maryville United Methodist Church.
Holston Conference is just one beneficiary of an estate valued at about $5 million, Redding said. Maryville College will receive one-half of the estate for a scholarship endowment. The Foundation for Evangelism and Holston Conference Foundation each are receiving one-fourth.
“It's one of the most exciting things to ever be part of,” said Redding, Holston Conference Foundation director, “to see someone love the church so much that they could give a gift that large.”
The Foundation expects to receive an additional $210,000 to $225,000 for The Earl and Conchita Blazer Endowment once the estate is settled, he added.
The childless Maryville couple, who made their fortune in the insurance business, were “strong advocates” of a fund for starting new churches, Redding said. Earl Blazer died in 1992. Conchita Blazer died in December 2002 at the age of 91.
Within 18 to 24 months, earnings from the endowment will put an estimated $40,000 to $50,000 in the hands of the Witness Ministry Team each year – “in perpetuity” or for all time, Redding said. The Witness Ministry Team oversees church development in Holston Conference.
“This gift will enable us to realistically up our timeline for starting another new church within the next year or two,” said Becky Hall, Witness Ministry Team chair. “We've had to table new church starts due to decreases in our funding. As our conference budget keeps shrinking, these kinds of things are gifts from above.”
Lasting impact
The Blazers met as students at Maryville College, Redding said, launching a lifelong devotion to the institution. Earl was a native of Walland, Tenn. Conchita's father emigrated from Spain and ran a general store in Jefferson, Ga. “He sent Conchita to Tennessee to attend Maryville College to receive a Christian education on the advice of his mailman's brother,” Redding said. As members at First Maryville UMC, the Blazers were active at all levels of the church. The Rev. Spurgeon McCartt, pastor at First Maryville from 1967 to 1973, remembers that Earl was conference lay leader during the 1950s. McCartt also remembers that Earl Blazer was generous as well as a willing volunteer. After learning that McCartt had been placed on a committee to raise money for Tennessee Wesleyan College, Blazer offered to help. “You and I would make a good team,” Blazer told his pastor.
“It was amazing,” said McCartt, a retired minister now living in Kingsport, Tenn. “Every person we visited would say, ‘Now Earl, how much do you expect from me?' Earl told them, and they would write a check for that amount. People had a lot of respect for him.”
Upon learning that the McCartts had postponed vacations until they could put their children through college, the Blazers, who were avid travelers, offered to pay for a vacation for the pastor's family. McCartt declined but appreciated the offer. “I'm not surprised at all,” he said after learning about the Holston Conference Foundation endowment established by the Blazers. “That's the kind of people they were.”
The Blazers made plans for the endowment in the 1980s, after striking up a friendship with the Rev. Ben St. Clair, first director of Holston Conference Foundation, Redding said.
Studies have shown that emerging churches are more attractive to seekers than long-established churches, according to Holston's new church development office.
When the gift becomes a reality for the Witness Ministry Team, the team is likely to use the money to begin new churches parented by existing churches, according to Hall.
“New churches in the parenting model have been more successful than other church starts,” she said, citing Sycamore UMC fostered by Fairview UMC in Maryville as an example.
“We hope this gift [from the Blazer Endowment] will serve as an example and inspiration to others within Holston Conference who want to make a lasting impact,” Hall said.
Would-be donors don't have to be millionaires, she added. “Any amount can be parlayed into a long-time gift.”
Waiting for funds
Holston Conference Foundation manages more than 60 trusts and endowments funded through individual gifts and bequests, Redding said. On July 8, the Foundation set an all-time record high in assets: $37 million.
In August 2002, The Call reported on another large gift through the Foundation: The Buel D. and Mildred Brooks Trust Fund. Last year, the Brooks Trust was estimated to be $2-$3 million, “but it now looks as though it will be around $3 to $3.5 million when it's fully funded,” Redding said.
Beneficiaries of the Brooks Trust include Holston Home for Children and Trinity UMC in Greeneville, Tenn., but the groups have yet to receive earnings from the trust, Redding said.
“We have about $2.2 million in hand from the Brooks Trust and are expecting another $1 million,” he said. “But the estate hasn't been closed out yet. Until we get all of it, we can't get it fully invested to benefit the various ministries through the earnings of the trust.”
Beneficiaries may have to wait another 18 to 24 months before receiving earnings from the Brooks Trust, he said. Among the recipients, Holston Home will receive $20,000 annually, while Trinity will receive twelve $3,000 annual college scholarships.
For more information about Holston Conference Foundation, contact Redding at (865) 690-4080 or by e-mail, or visit www.holston.org/foundation/.
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