At the March 2021 meeting of the CBF Church Benefits Board (CBB), the board voted to welcome Mrs. Beth Roberts as the new Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer and to affirm the launch of The Financial Wellness Initiative.

The board’s actions come as CBB’s assets under management now exceed $102 million. CBB remains focused upon lower fees, improving service, and leveraging economies of scale for participants and congregations.

Roberts comes to CBB after serving for 22 years as Associate Administrator with Adventist Retirement, a similar 403(b)(9) church retirement plan. Adventist Retirement serves over 46,000 active and retired participants, with defined contribution assets under management of $1.9 billion and $1 billion of assets in their frozen defined benefit plan.

“Beth Roberts is a well-respected and admired colleague within the Church Benefits Association and a veteran plan administrator with Empower Retirement. She brings over two decades of church plan expertise and service to her new role as Executive Vice-President/COO,” said Rob Fox, CBB president.

“Beth has committed her career to investing in the financial well-being of those called to serve the Church,“ said Fox. “Her addition to our CBB team signals our commitment to improved service for our participants and employers. Our CBF family will quickly embrace Beth for her professionalism, expertise, and the enthusiasm she brings to her work.”

“I’m honored to be part of the Church Benefits team and the amazing vision cast by Rob, Jim, and the CBF Church Benefits Board as they continue to enable the CBF ministers and participants to be financially prepared for and through retirement. I am excited and grateful for the opportunity to serve alongside of them as we endeavor to continue bringing that vision to reality,” said Roberts.

CBB also announced the receipt of a multi-year grant to launch The Financial Wellness Initiative (FWI) in October 2021. The Financial Wellness Initiative will build upon the success and learnings of The Ministerial Excellence Initiative by offering individual ministers the opportunity to receive financial relief grants, financial education experiences, financial planning incentives, and financial wellness packages.

Jim Morrison, who currently serves as CBB’s Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer, will transition to serve as the part-time grant administrator for The Financial Wellness Initiative. Morrison recently commented on these new developments, saying, “Beth brings a depth of defined contribution church plan experience, a heart for service, and formal training. Her arrival as the EVP/COO will help Church Benefits take a major step forward in accomplishing higher levels of service, greater efficiency, and economies of scale which help all current and future participants.” 

Morrison continued, “As I transition into a new role of focusing on financial wellness and education, I am excited about the opportunity to serve CBF Church Benefits participants in ways that will help them with the current financial issues they face and the prospect of helping them build financial assets for future use.”

Prior to his work with CBB, Morrison served as Chief Operating Officer-Executive Vice President with The Church Pension Group in New York, N.Y.; and as Executive Officer-Managing Director of Retirement Services with Guidestone Financial Services in Dallas, Texas.

For more information about CBF Church Benefits, visit www.churchbenefits.org.