When Rev. Beverly Biehr (GTS 1970, G-ETS 1997) and her husband, Harold, decided to take out two annuities at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, their motivation to do so was clear. "We wanted to give toward the future, so Garrett-Evangelical remains a strong institution for higher learning," Biehr said. "And, we wanted others to benefit from the wonderful education the seminary provides."
Attending Garrett-Evangelical was transformational, said Biehr, who attended Garrett-Evangelical twice, twenty-five years apart. "It was like a miracle," she said. "Garrett-Evangelical took a little farm girl from Iowa and transformed her into a pastor in Chicago and Indiana."
Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary is one of the 13 United Methodist seminaries supported by the Ministerial Education Fund apportionment of the United Methodist Church.
Biehr grew up on a farm in Charles City, Iowa. Her family's church, West St. Charles Methodist Church, was located about a quarter mile from their farm and was integral to their lives.
Her original call to follow Christ came while she was at church camp in Clear Lake, Iowa.
She went to Iowa State College in Ames, Iowa and studied home economics. "Girls in the 1950's only had a couple of college choices; they could become either a teacher or a nurse," she said. "I didn't like the idea of being a nurse, so I went to Iowa State for home economics education."
When it came time for her to graduate in June 1961, she agonized as she decided what she wanted to do next.
Confused about which path to follow, Biehr started to go to the chapel at the Collegiate Methodist Church and pray. One day, she had an answer. "I really heard Jesus say, 'Follow me,'" she said. That's when she decided to apply to a short-term mission program through The Methodist Church. She was accepted, and because she had studied Spanish in college, she was sent to a hospital in Mexico to serve as a dietitian. "That was my first full-time job working for the church," she said.
When she returned to the United States in 1965, she decided to enroll at Garrett Theological Seminary, where she majored in biblical studies. "Those years at Garrett were really special," she remembered. "It was everything I could have dreamed of."
While at Garrett, she took a vocational test that suggested she consider teaching, so when she graduated in 1970, she applied to teach Christian education. "I had an open mind about being a pastor, but I was advised that churches at that time were not ready for single women pastors," she said.
Although she was offered a job in Arlington Heights, Illinois, she turned it down because her dream was to live in Chicago.
Biehr spent 10 years in the classroom. During that time, Biehr married and adopted two boys from Chile.
In 1992, the family moved to Valparaiso, Indiana, where they bought a home and joined the downtown First United Methodist Church, where Hosea Drake, a Garrett alum, was the pastor.
Unbeknown to Biehr, her husband talked to Drake, telling him about her background.
Drake called Biehr and encouraged her to join a United Methodist Candidacy Program that helps potential pastors understand what it means to be called to ministry.
In 1995, 25 years after she received her first degree, Biehr returned to Garrett-Evangelical, where she began working toward her master of divinity degree.
Once she graduated in 1997, she became ordained as elder in the then North Indiana Conference, while serving as associate pastor at First United Methodist Church in Crown Point, Indiana. She served there for eight years and retired in 2005.
Currently, she and her husband live in Ocala, Florida.
In addition to taking out the annuity at Garrett-Evangelical, Biehr and her husband continue to support the seminary and have made a generous provision for it in their trust.
Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary website, Evanston, IL
One of seven apportioned giving opportunities of The United Methodist Church, the Ministerial Education Fund is at the heart of preparing people for making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. The 13 United Methodist seminaries help students to discover their calling through the challenging curriculum. The fund enables the church to increase financial support for recruiting and educating ordained and diaconal ministers and to equip annual conferences to meet increased demands. Please encourage your leaders and congregations to support the Ministerial Education Fund apportionment at 100 percent.
