James I. Vance Society Formed
By Jimmy Webb, III
Download a James I. Vance Society Enrollment Form
Contact Card to fill out and e-mail
 After much discussion and much prayerful thought, the Endowment Committee is pleased to announce the formation of the James I. Vance Society, which is being organized primarily to recognize and honor the generosity of those in our church family who have included First Presbyterian Church in their will. By their example, members of the James I. Vance Society will be a visible leadership group in our ongoing efforts to strengthen the church's endowment program.
The Endowment Committee plans to conduct Society events from time to time that will be intended to increase the visibility of, and participation in our First Things First endowment program. Planned giving can be a complex subject that many folks unfortunately put off until it's too late. To help address that issue, Society events will also serve to educate our members about the benefits of planned giving, benefits to the donor as well as the church.
The only requirement for membership in the James I. Vance Society is participation in some form in the church's First Things First endowment program, and a statement of that participation by completing an enrollment form. The Endowment Committee would like for all members of the church to be a member of the Society, signifying their belief that a solid endowment program strongly supports our church's mission "to know Christ, to make him known, and to exhibit his love through education, worship and service". For that reason, and also because everyone's situation is unique, there is no minimum dollar participation level required for membership, but it is hoped that members will see fit to include the church in their planned giving program in an amount of $10,000 or more.
In order to memorialize the formation of the James I. Vance Society, all members enrolled by this summer's end will become charter members, and their names will be included on a commemorative plaque which will be displayed at church. This fall we plan to celebrate the Society's formation at a dinner to which all charter members will be invited.
If you have already expressed your love for our church by including it in your estate plan, please contact the church office (383-1815) or a member of the Endowment Committee (Joe Hutton, Allen Kennedy, Stuart Campbell, Jimmy Webb III, Darryl Edmonds or Brendan Finucane) so that we can enroll you in the James I. Vance Society. (Click Here to download the enrollment form.) Similarly, if you have not yet expressed your love for the church in this way and are inclined to do so, but feel that you need some assistance in taking the first steps, any one of the above-named people will gladly make himself available to help get answers to questions you may have.
Participation in First Things First, and joining the James I. Vance Society is about faith. Why? Because only God know what opportunities will be placed before our church in the years to come (remember, an endowment gift is a permanent gift) that will enable our endowment to play a role in expanding God's kingdom and saving souls. Our strong belief is that God will faithfully respond to our expression of faith by clearly presenting those opportunities to us.
Please prayerfully consider your participation in First Things First and demonstrating that support by your membership in the James I. Vance Society.
James I. Vance: A Man of His Time and Ours
The James I. Vance Society is named for James Isaac Vance, who came to Nashville in 1895. He was 32 years old and First Presbyterian Church was his fourth pastorate. At that time our church was the largest Presbyterian church in the PCUS, or the "southern" church. He served seven years, then left for a church in New Jersey, but returned after ten years away and stayed until his death. Within three years of his arrival the second time, the executive committee of the Board of Foreign Missions moved to Nashville. The PCUS had missionaries in China, Belgian Congo, South Africa and the New Hebrides. He became the executive secretary of the Board and later built its offices into the second floor of a new Sunday school building when it was added to the church in 1919.
Since 1887, before he came to the "First" church, Vance had been active in the Young YMCA movement; this work he was to continue all his life. It would take him all over this country and during World War I, overseas, and along with his consuming interest in foreign missions would quickly make him known nationwide and worldwide.
In the early twenties he led in inviting the evangelists Gipsey Smith and Billy Sunday to come to Nashville to preach at the Ryman Auditorium. Their preaching drew enormous crowds from all the Protestant denominations of the city. In 1925 he began preaching in his own evangelistic meetings using the nearby Princess Theatre every Sunday night. These very popular services he did alone for three years, but was afterwards helped by ministers from the Baptist and Methodist downtown churches. These Princess Theatre services were broadcast over WSM, the new clear channel station of the National Life and Accident Insurance Company on a wavelength of 282.8 meters, the first in the south. So James I. Vance, now at the height of his career, became even better known and appreciated over air waves throughout the South and Eastern seaboard.
Vance wrote and published twenty-one books. One book, Being a Preacher, was required reading in many Protestant seminaries and in it he says, "The preacher, in the right sense of the word, should be a man of the time. He is a community builder and while his work is definitely spiritual, he has contact with groups whose lives cross and parallel his and whose goal is to secure conditions of human welfare which come as by-products of the Gospel. He should be a sympathetic friend to all who labor to build a better time. He must join with these and make his contribution to the common good. He does not cease to be a preacher because he lends a hand to social reform and civic righteousness and industrial fair play. He has not betrayed his pulpit nor surrendered his message because he has taken his place among those who are the foes of injustice and the friends of the weak. He is merely showing that he has a Gospel which not only talks, but works."
Have you remembered First Presbyterian Church in your will?
Vance Society Enrollment is Growing
Enrollment in the James I. Vance Society continues to grow. What this means is that many of your fellow FPC members have chosen to express their love for the church by allocating a portion of their accumulated estate at their death to the ongoing support of our mission, which is "to know Christ, to make him known, and to exhibit his love through worship, education, and service."
In case you need a reminder of how our endowment program (which we call First Things First) is already supporting our mission, here are just a few examples. Our Eakin Fund (established by John Hill Eakin in his will, written in 1902) has donated over $1 million to help seed and otherwise assist twenty-one churches in middle Tennessee, plus assist multiple benevolences of our church such as Martha O'Bryan and Monroe Harding. The Sullivan Fund helps to pay the ongoing educational expenses of our ministerial staff. The Dixon Fund has helped to beautify our grounds for many years, most recently by funding the cost of installing the flower beds in front of the sanctuary and Cheek House. And of course our Capital/Building Fund waits patiently for the next necessary roofing, plumbing, HVAC or similar capital project, the likes of which in the past have played havoc with our annual budget, unfortunately impacting negatively the missions part of the budget the most.
These are just a few examples of how First Things First directly supports the mission of the church. So you see, endowment donations don't go into a black hole, never to be seen again. The funds are wisely invested and income from them is wisely spent.
Many recent enrollees in the Vance Society actually took action some years ago by including the church in their will, or possibly by naming the church as a beneficiary of a charitable gift annuity, a charitable trust or their 401(k) plan. Does this situation describe you? If so, please give other church members the gift of letting them know that you have chosen to support the church in this important way. Download a James I. Vance Society Enrollment Form; if you have not already done so, please complete it today and send it to Cindy Bozman. You can call her at 298-9507 if you have any questions. If you have been feeling the urge to include the church in your planned giving, but have not yet acted, please make a note to yourself right now to call your lawyer or financial counselor to begin the process. Remember, there are many different ways to participate, and any one of them, in any amount, qualifies you for Vance membership.
Church members who have already enrolled (and will be included as charter members) include the following: Bill Blevins; Ray & Susan Bowling; Andrew Byrd; Jim & Martha Davis; Lip & Kim Davis; Joe & Nancy Fawn Diehl; Susan Eason; Darryl & Anne Edmonds; M. L. & Meredith Flautt; Ruth French; Ed & Betty Graham; Cordia Harrington; John Hollins, Sr.; Joe & Anne Hutton; Clark Hutton; Sam Johnson; Nancy Jones; Audrey Kennedy; Allen Kennedy; Banks & Tracy Link; Hill & Emily McAlister; Dick & Mary Morgan; Sarah Piggins; Sandra Randleman; Allen Reynolds; R. E. & Dee Ann Stone; Harry Stratton; Jimmy Webb, III; Elizabeth Wheeler; Tom Yount. Several additional members prefer to remain anonymous.
Because we know that there are church members who intend to enroll, but have not yet sent in their enrollment forms to Cindy, we have decided to extend the period for charter members into this fall. Charter members' names (unless they wish to remain anonymous) will be included on a plaque, to which we will add future members in the coming years.
Remember, supporting First Things First, and enrolling in the James I. Vance Society is about faith, faith that the God who created the universe has the power to place opportunities before us in the years to come to use endowment income to spread the good news of Jesus to a needy and hurting world. That faith is well placed; opportunities abound. |
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