Most people know that saving for retirement can help them in the future. Thanks to a partnership between the Baptist Convention of Iowa and GuideStone, those retirement savings can help provide protection to GuideStone participants and their families in the event of death or disability.
Ministers who participate in GuideStone’s Church Retirement Plan have many good reasons to participate: access to award-winning investment funds, caring, compassionate customer service and a plan designed for the unique needs of ministers. But it’s the protection benefits available to eligible participants that many find to be reason enough to participate.
These benefits provide peace of mind while participants are investing toward their retirement. The protection benefits, which are provided at no cost to churches or participants, include a disability income benefit of up to $500 per month, if the participant becomes disabled, and a survivor protection benefit of up to $100,000, payable upon death to the participant’s family.
The numbers are telling: In 2013 alone, across the Southern Baptist Convention, GuideStone and state conventions provided almost $8.2 million in disability and survivor benefits to eligible participants and their families. For the first half of 2014, that number already totals more than $4.2 million. Since the turn of this century, more than $93.6 million has been paid out in survivor and disability payments.
“We know of no other retirement plan for ministers and churches that provides this type of protection and assistance at absolutely no cost to the participant or church,” GuideStone President O.S. Hawkins said. “GuideStone works with state conventions, including Iowa’s, to provide these valuable benefits.”
Eligible participants accrue these benefits as they begin to make contributions to the Church Retirement Plan. Twelve consecutive monthly contributions are required to receive full protection benefits. If a participant has less than 12 consecutive monthly contributions and dies or becomes disabled, benefits are prorated.
“These protection benefits help differentiate the retirement plan offered to Iowa Baptist churches through GuideStone from almost every other plan out there,” said Tim Lubinus, executive director/treasurer of the Baptist Convention of Iowa.
Hawkins noted that this benefit is part of GuideStone’s long-standing and unwavering commitment to pastors.
“While some companies are primarily driven by a profit motive, GuideStone’s primary motivation is to ‘honor the Lord’ by serving our participants with integrity and excellence,” he said.
To enroll or to learn more about the Church Retirement Plan, visit www.GuideStoneRetirement.org or call 1-888-98-GUIDE (1-888-984-8433).
