VALLEY FORGE, PA (ABNS 10/14/11)—Horace E. Gale, a past treasurer of American Baptist Home Mission Societies (ABHMS), died Sunday, Oct. 9, at Elm Terrace Gardens, Lansdale, Pa. He was 92.
He served as treasurer from the time he joined ABHMS in 1970 until retiring in 1982. In addition, he represented ABHMS to the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility and was a founder of ABHMS’ Social and Ethical Responsibility in Investments (SERI) initiative, both of which urge Fortune 500 companies to address practices related to environmental stewardship, consumer protection, human rights and diversity issues.
“Horace Gale was a drum major for justice. He played a pivotal role in empowering ABHMS to take the lead in reminding us of the ministry of money,” says ABHMS Executive Director Dr. Aidsand F. Wright-Riggins III. “What he did in helping to found the SERI initiative was a prophetic challenge to the Apartheid regime in South Africa as well as a confrontational witness to corporate America, based on our understanding of Christ’s imperatives toward our working for the common good.”
Before joining ABHMS, Gale served at Colgate Rochester (N.Y.) Crozer Divinity School, where he became treasurer in 1962. He had been a certified public accountant since the 1940s.
Born Nov. 2, 1918, in Anderson, Ind., Gale was the son of the late Earl and Martha (Jester) Gale. He graduated from Anderson High School in 1936 and continued his education at a business school in Fort Wayne, Ind.
Gale was a member of Central Baptist Church, Wayne, Pa., since 1970. For many years, he served on the board of the National Council of Churches, for which he attended meetings in New York City.
After retiring, he volunteered with Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity in a home for the destitute and dying in Calcutta, India. He also participated in mission trips to Cuba, South Africa, El Salvador and many other places around the world.
In 2006, Gale was predeceased by Elizabeth Wright, his loving wife of 65 years. He is survived by two daughters, Martha Gale, wife of the Rev. Dr. Robert Carpenter of Penney Farms, Fla., and Gwendolyn Wheat, wife of Chatham R. IV of Coatesville, Pa.; two grandchildren, Chatham R. Wheat V, husband of Jennifer of Parkesburg, Pa., and Alison Egerton, wife of Jason of Nazareth, Pa.; two great-grandchildren, Allayna and Alyssa Wheat; brothers, William Gale of Anderson, Harold Gale of Newark, Del., Earl Lee of Colorado, and Charles Curtis of California; and sisters, Nancy Mechem and Corinne Brinduse of Indiana.
A service to celebrate Gale’s life will be held at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 16, at Central Baptist Church, 106 W. Lancaster Ave., Wayne, Pa. 19087. The family will receive friends following the service.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be sent to either the Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America, 4800 Wedgewood Drive, Charlotte, N.C., 28210, or to Central Baptist Church ― Missions at the above address.
Arrangements are by Huff & Lakjer Funeral Home, Lansdale.
ABHMS—the domestic mission arm of American Baptist Churches USA—ministers as the caring heart and serving hands of Jesus Christ across the United States and Puerto Rico through a multitude of initiatives that focus on discipleship, community and justice.
American Baptist Churches is one of the most diverse Christian denominations today, with 5,500 local congregations comprised of 1.3 million members, across the United States and Puerto Rico, all engaged in God’s mission around the world.