The Foundation for Evangelism awarded its second “So That The World May Know Jesus Grant” from the Dr. H. Eddie and Mary Nell Fox Endowment for Evangelism to Wesley College in Mwanza, Tanzania. This grant will allow development of curriculum to train pastors for evangelism in the Tanzanian context. The award was announced at the World Methodist Conference in Gothenburg, Sweden on Friday, August 16, 2024, to an audience of friends, colleagues, and those whose lives and faith were impacted by the ministry of Eddie and Mary Nell Fox.
The Rev. Dr. Eddie Fox has been called “one of the most visible evangelistic faces in the Methodist/Wesleyan movement in our lifetime” by Bishop Michael Watson, a retired United Methodist Bishop.
“Eddie Fox has preached to more people and taught faith sharing to more people than anyone on earth.”
Bishop Michael Watson | Retired Bishop, The United Methodist Church
Rev. Dr. Fox’s ministry spanned 62 years and as an ordained elder, he served Methodist churches in Virginia and Tennessee. He worked for the Board of Discipleship of The United Methodist Church, was on the faculty of the Billy Graham School of Evangelism, and prior to his retirement he was the Executive Director for World Methodist Evangelism, an affiliate of World Methodist Council. With his wife and ministry partner, Mary Nell, he traveled the globe to inspire, support and train evangelistic leaders to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ, always with an interest and emphasis on equipping leaders for ministry in their local context.
Bishop Darryl Starnes (A.M.E. Zion Church), a friend and colleague of Rev. Dr. H. Eddie Fox and member of The Foundation for Evangelism’s board of trustees, spoke about the impact that Eddie had on his ministry and countless others’. It was a time to celebrate the couple’s far-reaching spiritual impact and remember Eddie, who passed away in July 2021.
During the celebration at the World Methodist Conference, the Foxes’ daughter, Gaye Nell Heck, spoke about her father’s ministry and the unwavering support of her mother as Mary Nell looked on from the audience. Mrs. Heck said, “All of us here today knew my dad or were impacted by his ministry and we all experienced his presence, passion, and purpose in his mission to make ambassadors for Christ…. Yet I cannot talk about my dad’s ministry without acknowledging my mom, Mary Nell, who enabled my dad to fulfill his promise to God.”
Mrs. Heck explained that the Fox family partnered with The Foundation for Evangelism to form the Dr. H. Eddie and Mary Nell Fox Endowment for Evangelism because, “Throughout my family’s life and for as long as I can remember, the Foundation has been a partner in my dad’s ministry and with our family…. The Foundation for Evangelism has Christ as its cornerstone. It is a pan-Wesleyan foundation that seeks to unite the many worldwide Methodist families around one mission and vision that has been central to my mom and dad’s ministry – to be a Catalyst to equip disciples to share the Good News of Jesus Christ… and the Foundation will continue to be a steward of the Fox Endowment so the world will come to know who Jesus is for generations to come.”
Rev. Dr. Jack Jackson, President of The Foundation for Evangelism, explained that leaders involved in opening Wesley College were part of a gathering of evangelists from across Africa in Mozambique that was sponsored by the Foundation in 2016. Since that time, discussions between the Foundation and Wesley College’s leaders have taken place to determine what would be most beneficial for the ministry students and their communities. The grant will be used to create a scalable, Swahili-language curriculum and training, both for church planting and evangelism in Tanzania that would be transferrable to other Wesleyan traditions.
“What was really exciting to us is that this is not just something designed for their college and their denomination, but for the entirety of the Wesleyan tradition, so when Fox family heard that, and we heard that we said, ‘this sounds exactly like something Eddie and Mary Nell would love to encourage and embrace!’”
Rev. Dr. Jack Jackson | President, The Foundation for Evangelism
This grant is the second grant to be awarded from the Dr. H. Eddie and Mary Nell Fox Endowment for Evangelism. The first was awarded in 2022 to the Estonian Methodist Church for their youth ministry initiative. The superintendent provided a video update sharing words of thanks to the Foundation’s donors and supporters of the Fox endowment saying, “Thank you so much for the support. It has helped us to raise new youth leaders and to spread the gospel among young people in Estonia. And we truly appreciate your prayers and your support.”
You can learn more about the Foundation for Evangelism’s Dr. H. Eddie and Mary Nell Fox Endowment for Evangelism and the 2024 “So that the World May Know Jesus Grant” to Wesley College Tanzania at https://foundationforevangelism.org/FoxEndowment.
