wfn.org | New endowment supports recreation courses at Union-PSCE

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Note #7418 from PCUSA NEWS to PRESBYNEWS:

09-September-2002
02344

New endowment supports recreation courses at Union-PSCE

Backers seek $1.5 million to preserve legacy of Glenn Bannerman

by Glenn Burch, Union-PSCE
and Jerry L. Van Marter

RICHMOND, VA - Supporters of the legendary Glenn Bannerman's unique
approach to recreational and outdoor ministry have started a fund to
continue his teaching legacy at Union Theological Seminary &
Presbyterian School of Christian Education (Union-PSCE).

The goal of the campaign is to raise $1.5 million in the next few years
to endow a permanent faculty position in recreational and outdoor
ministry at Union-PSCE.

Almost a quarter of a million dollars has been raised so far, primarily
by gifts from Alice Jones Thompson, formerly of Richmond and now a
resident of Virginia Beach, VA; her daughter, Lisa Thompson Cross of
Suffolk, VA; and son, William McIlwaine Thompson Jr. of
Charlottesville, VA. The Thompson and Cross families have a
long-standing involvement with Union-PSCE, particularly the
recreational ministry program, which bears the indelible mark of Glenn
Bannerman's unique approach. A number of Bannerman's former and current
students have also contributed to the fund.

A professor at PSCE for many years before its merger with Union
Seminary, Bannerman is professor emeritus of recreation and outdoor
education at Union-PSCE. In retirement, he and his wife, Evelyn,
continue to teach courses at Union-PSCE and to lead workshops and
events throughout the United States.

His folk and square dances on the Richmond campus and at Montreat
Conference Center in North Carolina are fabled. Also a noted
peacemaker, Bannerman has taken his recreational ministry gifts to such
troubled areas of the world as Northern Ireland and Central and South
America.

"This endowment will help ensure that the rich legacy of recreational
ministry continues at Union-PSCE," said Jim Brashler, dean of
educational faculty at the school. "New courses and programs will teach
students to carry out recreation programs that break barriers between
people and contribute to the spiritual development of children, youth
and adults."

Contributions to the Glenn and Evelyn Bannerman Fund for Recreational
Ministry can be made by contacting the Union-PSCE development office at
804-278-4279.
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