EDITOR’S NOTE — WMU Foundation held its 30th anniversary celebration event June 7 on the campus of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. The content shared below is the anniversary report presented by Peggy Darby, president of WMU Foundation since July 2023. She followed David George, who served in the role for 21 years.
Today (June 7), we celebrate 30 years of faithfulness, 30 years of generosity, stewardship and Kingdom impact through the work of the WMU Foundation. What began as a vision to support and sustain the missions work of WMU has grown into a ministry partner that champions the cause of Christ around the world.
Since the beginning, our fundraising priorities have remained deeply rooted in our mission: to support national WMU, provide scholarships for missionary kids and those preparing for Christian service, empower Christian ministries connected to WMU and sustain the operational work of the foundation itself.
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Over the past three decades, God has done immeasurably more than we could have imagined. The WMU Foundation has established over 125 funds and endowments to strengthen the ministries of national and state/regional WMUs. We’ve helped grow the Touch Tomorrow Today endowments in 41 state and regional WMUs to a combined total of more than $3.8 million. We’ve stewarded the Second Century Fund, which has grown from a modest beginning of $146,715 in 1988 to more than $5 million today — thanks to faithful partners like you.
We’ve also expanded the reach of the Julia C. Pugh Scholarship, increasing our support for missionary kids attending college. And we are thrilled to report that just this April, we surpassed our goal of growing the Pugh Scholarship corpus to over $1 million — months ahead of schedule.
As we look to the future, we do so with the same clarity of purpose and commitment to Kingdom work. We will continue to grow the Vision Fund to amplify the mission of national WMU. We’re working to expand our monthly donor circles, ensuring sustainable support for state and regional WMUs, as well as for our scholarship programs. And we remain dedicated to partnering with state WMUs to strengthen their Touch Tomorrow Today endowments.
Our commitment to biblically responsible investing has never wavered. We believe that how we invest matters to God. That’s why our investment portfolio excludes companies involved in adult entertainment, alcohol, tobacco, gambling or abortion as a means of birth control. Every dollar we manage is handled with integrity and purpose — because we want our stewardship to reflect our faith.
And here’s what’s beautiful: the management fee we receive for our services doesn’t go into someone’s pocket — it goes right back into missions efforts. When you partner with us, your investment doesn’t just grow — it multiplies in missional impact. Your money counts more than once.
We do this because your investment matters.
Thank you for your support of WMU through the WMU Foundation over these past 30 years. Your faithfulness has helped equip disciples to live on mission for Jesus — and your continued support will ensure this mission continues for generations to come.
Here’s to 30 years of Kingdom impact — and to the many years of faithful ministry still ahead.
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