Church’s investing clubs learn, grow

Two investing clubs formed at a Suffolk church are celebrating their 20th anniversary this year, and one recently was featured in a national magazine, BetterInvesting.

Faith Investors Club was officially formed on June 12, 1996, as a result of an interest meeting at East End Baptist Church. Another investment club, Heritage Investors, was formed around the same time, due to the high interest.

Dr. Mark A. Croston Sr., then the pastor of the church, initiated the conversation about the investment clubs. A notice in the church bulletin read “Are you working for your money or is your money working for you?”

There are 19 partners in the Faith Investors Club, said Gloria W. Mizelle, a founding member and past presiding partner. Some partners are individuals, and some partners are couples. There is a limit of 20 partners, so the club is almost full. It is not limited to church members, but many of the partners are members.

The group meets monthly to hear reports on stocks and decide whether to hold, buy or sell. Each member is responsible for a stock to report at each month’s meeting.

The members contribute a minimum of $25 monthly. A software program keeps track of how much each member has invested in and gained from the club’s investments. Earnings are reinvested in stocks.

The club chooses mostly consumer-product companies to invest in for a very simple reason, said Mary Bess Riddick, a past presiding partner of the club.

“The idea is to invest money in what you buy,” she said. “If you have a baby and you’re buying lots of diapers, you need to be investing in the diaper (company) stock.”

The club’s first investment was in McDonald’s. Currently, its best-performing stocks include Apple, Dollar Tree, Express Scripts, Home Depot, Norfolk Southern, Pepsi and Walmart.

Lynn Parker of the Heritage Investors Club said it uses a diversified approach. The club owns some of the same stocks as the Faith Investors Club but also has a couple of pharmaceutical stocks and others.

“It’s very diverse,” Parker said. “The list just goes on and on and on.”

Mizelle and Riddick said the Faith Investors Club has been educational for its members.

“It’s a learning process, and we all are better for it,” Mizelle said. “You buy low and sell high, which is hard to do. It requires a little discipline.”

Members sometimes ask to get some of their earnings, but they understand they cannot receive them immediately, Mizelle said. The club needs to meet and look at options to determine the best way to provide cash.

“We make sure they know they’re in it for the long haul,” Riddick said.

Parker said the clubs are an easy way to save and invest, and she recommends them for any group. She’s a former member of East End Baptist Church and is trying to get one started at her current church.

“It’s easier when you’re with a group, as opposed to investing on your own,” she said. “There’s a lot of benefits. The return is much greater than saving your money in a savings account.”

Parker said the Heritage Investors Club has a maximum of 25 members and currently has 23 on its roster. It also requires a $25 minimum monthly investment.

Parker believes the investments are better than a universal life or whole life insurance policy.

“I feel the risk is lower, and we have control over what we choose to invest in, as opposed to universal life or whole life,” she said. “It’s a good retirement savings that can be added to other retirement funds, and you can borrow money and pay it back, unlike other retirement funds.”

A youth investing club also used to exist at the church, which Mizelle and Riddick said they would like to see get going again.

“We especially encourage young people to invest,” Riddick said. “If you start early in your career, you can see the growth, but you have to be consistent.”