The Ripple Effect of Generosity

Last fall, Rev. Susan Pate Greenwood received an issue of Faithful Giving featuring an article written by Maurice Ritchie. In it, he described why he and his wife, Dotty, support Duke Divinity School.

Pate Greenwood, who’s served seven congregations in the North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church, couldn’t stop thinking about the piece—because she owes her decision to go into parish ministry to Maurice’s thoughtful guidance.

When she attended Duke Divinity School, Pate Greenwood thought she wanted to be a hospital chaplain, but quickly realized it wasn’t going to be a good fit. Then Maurice, who served as the director of field education, signed her up for a field education internship in the tiny town of Swan Quarter, North Carolina. There, Pate Greenwood worked at a church teaching Bible study, visiting the sick, giving sermons, and much more.

“It really was an immersion, smorgasbord of ministry type of experience,” she says. “It was the best summer of my life.”

So, as she read the article by Maurice explaining why giving back was so important to him, she was deeply moved.

“I thought, ‘By golly, if Maurice and Dotty have done this, then this is what I need to do!’” she exclaimed.

Pate Greenwood called the school’s director of development, Betsy Poole, who walked her through the process of making a planned gift to Duke Divinity. Ultimately, Pate Greenwood chose to establish a named endowment directed toward supporting students who otherwise couldn’t afford to attend the Divinity School.

“I hope it gives them more time and freedom to pursue their studies,” she says.

You can join Pate Greenwood by making a future gift to support Duke Divinity School. For details, contact Betsy Poole at 919-660-3456 or external@div.duke.edu.