Gift Annuity Provides Income Stream Back to Donor

Rev. Charles “Ed” Weber and his wife Alice devoted their lives to ministering in the Christian 

Church (Disciples of Christ), and their charitable legacy makes a difference even today.

A graduate of the divinity school at Yale University, Rev. Weber spent the next 45 years planting a new church in Arizona and serving congregations in Illinois, Ohio, Tennessee and North Carolina, as well as time with what was then called the Board of Christian Discipleship. He and Alice married in 1951. Alice taught elementary school and college classes, while being the consummate pastor’s wife.  

In their later years, family and friends witnessed the intensity of Ed and Alice’s love for one another. Ed would sing to Alice when she was rehabilitating after a stroke. He could not bear to be away from his wife, visiting daily just to hold her hand and tell her what a wonderful woman she was. 

Ed died in 2024 at the age of 102, and Alice died on the same date in 2025 at the age of 99. But their legacy lives on, through their children and grandchildren, and in the denomination they loved deeply.

In 2007, the Webers created a charitable gift annuity with the Christian Church Foundation, guaranteeing them an additional stream of income for the rest of their lives. What was most important to them, however, was knowing that the eventual beneficiaries would be some of their favorite church-related causes, including HELM.

HELM is a ministry partner with the Christian Church Foundation, which offers charitable gift annuities among its focused-ministry. In return for a gift of cash or appreciated securities, the Foundation issues a one- or two-life gift annuity that guarantees a stream of fixed payments for life.

Best of all, when the gift annuity matures, any residual is directed to the charity or charities designated by the donor. This gift supports the donor’s favorite causes and provides a lasting testimony of a charity’s mission.

HELM appreciates the ministry of the Webers and their commitment to providing educational and leadership opportunities for young Disciples! To learn more about how a charitable gift annuity might help you, contact Jim Cullumber, Director of Major Gifts & Planned Giving, at jcullumber@helmdisciples.org, or the Christian Church Foundation, (800) 668-8016.

Rev. Charles “Ed” Weber

Alice Weber