# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1938_S309
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

Financial Matters 309

September, 1936, the plan was approved by the College of Presi-
dents and the Board of Directors. Copies of the plan were mailed
to the more than 5,000 workers, and a more detailed report was
presented to the District conventions of 1937 by the office of the
President and by members of the Board. In order fully to comply
with. Synod’s instruction that “the plan be based on a safe and
sound actuarial basis” and to safeguard the solvency of the fund at
all times, the retirement and widow’s benefits for a number of years
will be small. Still both clergy and laity almost without exception
welcomed the plan with deep interest and great satisfaction. When
the plan was instituted on October 1, 1937, more than 600 workers
and 350 congregations had registered, practically all District boards
had voted to participate, the Fiscal Conference had added the
necessary funds to the 1938 budget for the workers salaried by the
synodical boards, and almost $4,000 in advance payments had been
remitted.

To date we have recorded 1,396 workers and 642 congregations,
and the fund has a balance of $59,000.

The system has been instituted and operated with a minimum
of overhead expense. The creation and equipment of a new office
was avoided. The office of the Board of Support, now called Board
of Support and Pensions, has charge of the executive functions, our
Fiscal Office at St. Louis does the collecting and general accounting,
and Synod’s Board of Trustees for Trust Funds invests the funds.
Under this fortunate arrangement the annuities do not have to be
reduced to meet overhead expenses, but our veterans, widows, and
orphans will receive the full benefit of the workers’ and the salary-
paying organizations’ contributions and the accruing interest.

However, your Board is convinced, and we believe this convic-
tion is shared by the Hon. Board of Directors and the College of
Presidents, that the incorporation in the plan of two special benefits
is extremely desirable in order to assure the efficiency and general
adoption of the plan. The funds necessary for the operation of
these two features should not be taken from the regular contribu-
tions, because that would result in a general reduction of the
regular retirement and widows’ annuities. These special benefits
are devised chiefly to assist the worker’s widow in meeting the
heavy expense at the time of her husband’s death and to grant an
additional subsidy to the retired veteran of advanced age and to
his widow during those years when the regular pension annuity
will be small. These benevolences were embodied in the original
plan as adopted in September, 1937, but subsequently partly sus-
pended in order to give Synod an opportunity to ratify and, if
possible, to increase them.