Each spring a generous amount of funds is made available to the Red Lodge Community Church (RLCC) Stewardship and Mission Committee for second-mile giving thanks to the Hazel Chamberlain Endowment Fund. With those funds RLCC has offered support to many non-profit organizations throughout our county and across the country, provided scholarship aid to students at Rocky Mountain College and CUE (seminaries of the UCC), supported the work of Intermountain Children’s Home, contributed to youth outreach, and just this year funded a discretionary pastor’s fund to give flexibility to our pastor in lending an immediate helping hand where it might be needed.
Each year thousands of dollars have been gifted through this fund created through the generosity of one woman, Hazel Florence Anderson Chamberlain. Hazel and her husband Clair grew up in Joliet and were long-time Red Lodge residents and members of Red Lodge Community Church. We are told they were both very fond of children though they had none of their own. Hazel was the Deputy County Superintendent for Carbon County schools. Clair was in banking before opening an insurance agency which he operated from 1936 until retiring in 1966. Both he and Hazel were actively involved in many organizations in the community and were known for their generosity, especially toward children. Hazel’s obituary tells us her interests included bridge, sewing and painting. Clair died in Red Lodge in 1969. Hazel passed away in Tempe, Arizona, at the age of 89 on September 4, 1991. Her funeral service was held here at RLCC and she requested that memorials be made to this church.
Hazel Chamberlain’s own gift to RLCC made in 1992-93 was just over $250,000. A committee was formed to lead the process of educating the congregation about the gift and the benefits of investing it in an endowment which would grow over the years providing financial stability for the church and the opportunity for second-mile giving using some of the earnings each year. The endowment has been well-managed over these many years and has grown substantially.
One of the greatest joys of the stewardship and mission committee is our spring campaign to solicit from the congregation how the year’s allocation should be used and involve everyone in learning about the opportunities for giving and making the final choices. The COVID-19 pandemic saw us donate the majority of our 2020 funds to the Red Lodge Area Community Foundation’s COVID-19 Emergency Fund to be put to use helping with the many needs of families in Carbon County. Watch the video of our meeting with members of the Foundation regarding this RLCC donation. As you do so, keep in mind the generosity of a humble woman whose legacy continues to give year after year.