Episode Transcript
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Mrs. Erin Kay (00:27):
Welcome to
another episode of the Ben
Lippen Podcast.
Today I have with me KellyDavis, our development director,
to share with us more aboutgenerosity, what it means, why
it matters, and how it shapesevery part of Ben Lippen school.
Kelly, welcome.
Mrs. Kelly Davis (00:42):
Thank you so
much, and thank you for having
me.
Happy to be here because BenLippen is far more than a job to
me.
19 years ago, my husband and Ienrolled our oldest son in
kindergarten.
All three of my boys have gonethrough Ben Lippen and have
since graduated.
And it really has just been ourwhole life, our whole
(01:03):
community.
And they are still friends withall of their friends that they
made here.
They're still in contact withteachers and coaches from here.
And of course, I still workhere.
I started working at Ben Lippen13 years ago, and I'm in my
eighth year in the developmentoffice.
And I stayed here because Ilove the people.
I'm passionate about ourmission and about supporting our
(01:26):
mission.
And it is just truly an honorto serve the Ben Lippen family.
Mrs. Erin Kay (01:31):
Let's go back in
time for a minute.
Take a few moments to sharewith our listeners the rich and
very unique history of BenLippen, including the original
mission that was established.
Mrs. Kelly Davis (01:41):
Yes.
So Ben Lippen is celebrating 85years this year.
It was founded by CIU ColumbiaInternational University, which
was CBC Columbia Bible Collegeat the time.
And the mission was simple toeducate students from a biblical
worldview to impact the nationswith the message of Christ.
(02:04):
And that is still our purposetoday.
But our unique history tells agreat story about God's
faithfulness and how he finisheswhat he starts.
CIU's first president believedstrongly in summer conferences
because he had been saved at arevival when he was young.
He asked the board and gotsupport for starting a summer
(02:25):
conference series, and they usedborrowed property up in the
mountains of North Carolina.
But they were praying andlooking for their own property.
During that time, theconference was named Ben Lippen,
which is actually Scottish forMountain of Trust.
In 1929, CIU found andpurchased an entire mountain.
(02:47):
It was called Dryman Mountain,and it is just outside of
Asheville, and it cost them$9,000.
They built an outdoor pavilionfor the preaching sessions, a
chapel, and the conference inn,which was the grandest building.
It was multi-storeys, it had abeautiful front porch with tall
(03:09):
columns, and you could see itfrom anywhere in Asheville
sitting up on top of themountain.
In 1940, President McLoganstarted believing that it was
poor stewardship to leave thefacilities up on the mountain
unused for nine months out ofthe year.
It was only used during thesummer.
So he proposed to the boardthat they open a boarding school
(03:31):
so that it could be fully used.
And that's what happened.
In the fall of 1940, theyopened Ben Lippen Boys' School,
which was a Christian boardingschool.
Girls were then admitted in1952.
And for several decades afterthat, Ben Lippen became a great
educational resource formissionaries that were serving
(03:52):
overseas that didn't have a goodeducation system for their own
children.
So they sent them to BenLippen.
And it had a fantasticmulticultural flair to it.
The teachers lived rightalongside the students.
They worked together and dinedtogether and played together.
And it really was a veryclose-knit family.
(04:13):
Many students attended CIUafter graduating from Ben
Lippen, and many of them evenwent on to serve in the mission
field on their own.
So in December of 1980, therewas a fire that actually
destroyed the inn.
And it was incredibly sad.
I think probably for all ofAsheville, but it was extremely
(04:34):
difficult for the students andthe teachers and even the
alumni.
Efforts were made to rebuild,but several years later, CIU
decided to bring Ben Lippen downto its own campus here in
Columbia.
And that did meet a real needbecause there was no Christian
school in the capital city.
Ben Lippen opened in Columbiain 1987.
(04:57):
It was high school only.
It focused primarily on daystudents, but we still had six
boarding houses.
Mrs. Erin Kay (05:05):
How does the 1987
enrollment of Ben Lippen differ
from what Ben Lippen is today?
Mrs. Kelly Davis (05:11):
We definitely
look different today.
We have grown.
We have 1,200 students inpre-K3 through 12th grade.
We have three lower schoolcampuses, a middle school and a
high school.
And then we still do have aninternational student program
right here.
But the mission that wasestablished with Ben Lippen on
(05:31):
the mountain is still ourmission today.
What I really love about ourhistory is that the leadership
learned to rely on the Lord fromthe earliest of days and that
set of pattern that we still usetoday.
They would identify a need,they would send out a letter
explaining the need, and theywould trust that people would
give.
(05:52):
And they did.
That $9,000 mountain purchaseback in 1929, the final gift was
received and the last paymentmade to the bank the day before
Black Tuesday.
So despite the difficulty ofthe coming years, CIU celebrated
the ownership of a mountain andfrom it proclaimed the good
(06:12):
news.
There are so many stories thatpoint to that pattern and
ultimately showcase God'sfaithfulness.
Time and time, God has shown upfor Ben Lippen.
He was faithful then, just ashe is faithful today.
And that tells us that we cantrust him with everything.
We can trust him with BenLippen.
This is his school, and he willprovide everything that we
(06:36):
need.
Mrs. Erin Kay (06:36):
Can you
specifically share how the
development office has carriedout this specific mission from
1940 all the way to 2025?
Mrs. Kelly Davis (06:45):
Yes.
Development is the process ofbringing out possibilities.
It causes growth or expansion.
So school development meansraising money to support, grow,
or expand the purpose of theschool.
Many do it by fundraising,which we do that too, but it is
also bigger than that.
At Ben Lippen, it is aboutrelationships.
(07:08):
So what we say is developmentis creating and stewarding
relationships with people whoare called to support kingdom
education.
We present the opportunity toinvest in the lives of students
who will go beyond these wallssomeday.
What we do is grounded in thebelief that everything that we
have belongs to God.
(07:29):
That includes our money.
It is all God's, and everythingthat we have is only on loan.
So it is the Lord who moves inthe hearts of others to give.
And that is why I say oftenthat giving is a heart issue.
It is not a result of anythingthat my office does or says.
(07:49):
It is a result of the Lordworking in individuals who
believe in the mission of BenLippen.
Mrs. Erin Kay (07:56):
Generosity and
stewardship are key components
of mission-focused development.
How does the development officeof Ben Lippen describe and
infuse generosity andstewardship into their work?
Mrs. Kelly Davis (08:09):
Well,
generosity goes way beyond
financial gifts.
It includes committed prayerwarriors, an army of volunteers,
and obviously people who givegenerously.
Ben Lippen would not be who itis without those three things.
The Ben Lippen community isincredibly generous.
(08:29):
They already give to theirchurch, to missionaries, to
organizations and causes, and toBen Lippen.
And this kind of generosity isbiblical.
What we want to do then issteward well the relationships
and resources that we are given.
I love this quote from HenryNowen.
Fundraising from the point ofview of the gospel says to
(08:52):
people, I will take your moneyand invest it in this vision
only if it is good for yourspiritual journey, only if it is
good for your spiritual health.
In other words, we are notlooking for gifts the same way
as the world.
We need financial gifts and wedo ask for them, but we want the
donor to be enriched in everyway for their great generosity,
(09:14):
as it says in 2 Corinthians.
So yes, there must be anunderstanding of how gift money
is a necessary resource.
And we ask our parents toalways look beyond what is right
in front of them.
But overall, it's the parents,the grandparents, alumni,
corporations, and friends whopray, give, and serve.
Mrs. Erin Kay (09:36):
Kelly, thank you
for sharing with us how the
development office here at BenLippen really works towards that
original mission founded on themountain back in 1940.
So, how do you see stewardshipand generosity embodied at Ben
Lippen through the joy ofgiving?
Mrs. Kelly Davis (09:52):
So there is
joy in giving at all levels.
I want to say that first.
And everybody's heard, youknow, it's better to give than
to receive.
And that is definitely true.
But what I love about ourdonors is that there is joy for
them and there is joy in thereceiving.
And putting those two thingstogether is really neat.
(10:15):
I would love to give you acouple examples or stories of
how giving and the joy of givingis so inspiring at Ben Lipon.
Not too long ago, I opened acheck for $125,000, and it was
completely unexpected.
It was from a wonderful teacherwho taught at Ben Lippen back
in the 50s and 60s.
And her students and hercoworkers have made such an
(10:38):
impact on her growth anddevelopment.
And she's just wants to seethat multiplied at Ben Lippen
today.
And in the last three yearsthat she has been giving, she's
become one of Ben Lippen's topdonors of all time.
She is a true champion for whatour teachers are doing in the
classroom each and every day.
But my favorite check to openis one where I've noticed that
(11:03):
the handwritten address on theoutside is getting shaky.
I know that when I open thatenvelope, it's going to be a $5
check.
And this alumnus is incrediblyfaithful, but it really does
bring a tear to my eye everytime I get it.
And I make sure that I share itwith the team because it is so
encouraging to see that he caresenough about Ben Lippen that he
(11:24):
he is doing what he can toexpand that mission.
Another example is Jim.
Jim graduated in 1955, and Jimwas raised by a single mother,
and he was going down what hedescribes as the wrong path when
a couple of the men from thechurch thought that it was time
to get involved.
So they passed a collectionplate in order to raise tuition
(11:47):
for Jim to go to Ben Lippen.
And it changed his life.
He met the Lord there and hedeveloped his theology there.
And everything he did from thatpoint was for the Lord.
In fact, he turned around andlooked at Ben Lippen now, and he
wanted to make sure thatstudents like him could afford
Ben Lippen.
(12:08):
So he started a scholarshipthat was named for the Lord in
order to allow students who maynot be able to have a Christian
education to afford Ben Lippen.
And it's a huge blessing.
We have parents give becausethey've seen their child's
entire outlook improve aftertransferring to Ben Lippen.
(12:28):
We have families that are onthe other end that are
struggling to make tuitionpayments only to have somebody
come in and pay off the rest oftheir bill.
We even have a teacher who hasa small amount coming out of
their paycheck every singlemonth.
And one would think it doesn'tamount to much, but they have
been giving it for 27 years.
(12:50):
So our students also hear ustalk about giving, and in
particular to the Falcon Fund.
And over the years, I've alsobeen given baggies that has
change in it that is literallytheir allowance.
And they bring it because theylove their teacher or they love
their best friend and they justwant to do something for the
(13:11):
school.
Mrs. Erin Kay (13:12):
So what I'm
hearing you say is it doesn't
matter the size of the gift,it's the heart behind the gift
that truly makes an impact.
That is very true.
So tell us about the FalconFund.
What is it?
What is the heartbeat behindit?
And how does the Falcon Fundsupport Ben Lippen?
Mrs. Kelly Davis (13:30):
There are many
different ways and places that
you can support Ben Lippen.
You can give to scholarships,capital projects, or facility
improvements.
You can give to debt reduction,endowments.
But the one thing that we needeach and every year is the
Falcon Fund.
The Falcon Fund is Ben Lippen'sannual giving program and our
(13:52):
top fundraising priority.
It's the first and mostimportant gift each year because
it touches every student andevery teacher from K3 through
12th grade and on all of ourcampuses.
Tuition alone doesn't covereverything that makes Ben Lippen
so special.
So the Falcon Fund provideswhat we call the margin of
excellence, which is thedifference between doing what is
(14:14):
necessary and doing what isexceptional.
And when the Falcon Fund isstrong, everything else can
flourish.
Classrooms are equipped,teachers are encouraged, and
students are supported in everyarea of the school.
Mrs. Erin Kay (14:27):
Kelly, thank you
so much for being with us today.
If listeners want to give, whatare the best ways to do so?
And what is the bestinformation to contact you?
Mrs. Kelly Davis (14:37):
So we are
quickly approaching our biggest
giving season, the time betweenThanksgiving and Christmas.
Listeners can support theKingdom Work of Ben Lippen by
visiting our website,www.binlipen.com slash giving.
Or you can email me atKelly.com.
(14:57):
I love hearing from people.
I want to hear your Ben Lippenstories.
I'd love to answer anyquestions.
I love talking about kingdomeducation.
Mrs. Erin Kay (15:07):
So please reach
out.
Kelly, thank you so much forbeing here with us today and
sharing the heart of generositythat has been a part of Ben
Lippen School since itsinception.
Again, if you'd like to give,the website is www.binlippin, b
e n l i p e n dot com backslashgiving.
We look forward to seeing y'allon the next episode of the Ben
(15:27):
Lippen Podcast.