The Board of Directors of the Arkansas Baptist Foundation (ABF) held its quarterly board meeting on Thursday, May 11, at the Arkansas Baptist State Convention (ABSC) building.
John McMorran, vice president of Lewis Architects Engineers, led the opening devotional. McMorran shared his experience during the March 31 tornado that hit Little Rock, and the many warning signs he was given but chose to ignore leading up to their office being hit and the destructive aftermath. McMorran shared how often we are given warning signs as Christians and churches and that we often miss the mark because we choose to ignore the warning. It is far too easy to slip into destructive behavior. We must remain aware of warnings in order to avoid sinful patterns.
Highlights of the board meeting included:
- Randy Milligan, Landmark PLC managing partner, reviewed the 2022 Audit and presented a clean audit report.
- Bobby Thomas, ABF president, provided an update regarding the Hammons Charitable Foundation, which will award $498,000 in scholarship awards to eighty-three students in the 2023-2024 school year.
- Dr. Ben Sells, president of Ouachita Baptist University, gave an institution report sharing about the new nursing program that launched in 2022. Dr. Sells shared how the Hammons Charitable Foundation Capital Grant, which they received in 2022, helped them convert the old Hammons Guest House into a Nursing Education Center. The simulation and teaching center features a clinical skills lab, five simulated hospital patient rooms, a pharmacy, and several high-fidelity mannequins to perfect their skills.
- Mark Conine, ABF Operating vice chairman, shared the 2024 Operating Budget estimate which was unanimously approved and will be finalized in November.
- The Foundation’s Executive Committee recommended approval of a funding request of $10,000 received on behalf of the Disaster Relief ministry of ABSC. This too passed unanimously.
- The Foundation celebrated first quarter distributions to Arkansas Baptist ministries, institutions, and churches of $11,907,758. Highlight was given to over $8 million in distributions directly to Arkansas Baptist churches.