The Waldemar A. and June Schuette Chair in Systematic Theology was formally recognized during the Sept. 7 opening service for the 165th academic year at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis. This endowed faculty chair is funded through the generosity of the late Waldemar A. and June H. E. Schuette of Lebanon, Mo. Dr. Charles Arand, professor of systematic theology, chairman of the department of systematic theology and associate vice president for academic affairs, will serve as the first occupant of the chair.
The Schuettes were active members of Trinity Lutheran Church in Lebanon, Mo. Their generous gift was offered in thanks to God for their parents, Henry and Clara (nee Schrieber) Schuette, and Charles and Louisa (nee Richter) Eckart, as well as Rev. J. H. Hartenberger (Red Bud, Ill.), Rev. Theodore Roschke (Collinsville, Ill.) and their children and grandchildren. Members of the Schuette family were present during the Seminary’s opening service and were recognized.
Through a charitable trust established with The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS) Foundation, the Schuettes set aside funds to endow a teaching position in the Seminary’s department of systematic theology. Income earned on the principal gift will be used by Concordia Seminary to fund the annual expenses, including salary and benefits, associated with the faculty position held by Prof. Arand. “By providing a perpetual source of income, endowed chairs reduce the need to fund faculty positions from student tuition and enable the Seminary to enhance the quality of the education provided to our future pastors,” commented Mr. Leonard Fiedler, the Seminary’s vice president for development. “We give thanks to God for giving the Schuettes this level of generosity and foresight in planning such a substantial gift.”
Other endowed chairs at Concordia Seminary include The Lutheran Charities Foundation Chair of Pastoral Ministry and Life Sciences, occupied by Prof. Robert Weise, and The Gregg H. Benidt Memorial Chair in Homiletics and Literature, occupied by Prof. Dale Meyer. Fourteen additional endowed chairs have been designated as future gifts through Christian estate plans established by Seminary donors. Concordia Seminary has a specific goal of funding every faculty position through an endowed chair.
To learn more about how a gift of an endowed chair can impact the formation of future pastors and missionaries, contact the Seminary’s development office at 1-800-822-5287 or [email protected] [1].