A new insurance benefit for seminarians and added assistance for needy retirees were noted by GuideStone Financial Resources President O.S. Hawkins as enhancements that have been added to the Southern Baptist entity’s long-range ministry.
In an effort to reach out to seminarians, all full-time students at the six Southern Baptist seminaries will receive a free $10,000 life benefit beginning this fall, Hawkins told trustees during their July 30–31 meeting in San Diego. Describing new provisions in GuideStone’s financial assistance ministry, Hawkins said, “We have recently approved expanded guidelines that will enable more of our retired pastors or their widows to qualify for financial assistance. Additionally, as of Jan. 1, 2008, we will double the amount of monthly assistance to our most needy recipients. In some cases, this will amount to as much as $530 per month.”
Update on GuideStone operations
For the five years ending June 30, eight of the nine GuideStone Select Funds (GS2 class) and nine of the 14 GuideStone Funds (GS4) exceeded the median of their “peer universe,” according to Lipper, a nationally recognized Reuters organization that compares the total return performance of mutual funds with other funds having similar investment objectives.
“A highlight for the quarter was closing the month of April with more than $10 billion in assets under management,” said Chief Operating Officer John R. Jones. “This significant milestone represents growth in the capital markets as well as increased contributions by our participants.”
After three consecutive years of rate stability, GuideStone anticipates rate increases for its personal medical plan participants for 2008. “With a wide variety of plans available, participants have the opportunity to control costs by choosing a plan that meets their needs and their budgets,” Hawkins said.
For example, a participant with family coverage can move from the Health Legacy 200 into the Health Choice 500, which has a slightly higher deductible but a lower family out-of-pocket maximum. Even accounting for age-based rate increases, this move could net no rate change from 2007 to 2008 for the participant. In some areas of the country, moving to a higher deductible plan could cut a participant’s monthly rate in half. (BP)
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