Divest Your Funds at Wespath: How to Get Started
Did you know that Wespath already has fossil free funds as part of its options for investment? It is largely not known, but it is true. In 2016, two United Methodist conferences passed resolutions requesting fossil free investment options for clergy and others with pension investments at Wespath. The result was that Wespath created three fossil free funds.
While we continue to work and pray for full divestment of The United Methodist Church, those with investments at Wespath can already move their money from the standard investment funds Wespath uses and into these special funds.
The Pacific Northwest Annual Conference was one of the conferences that passed the legislation in 2016 that made this possible. In 2023, the conference took further action, this time asking further that local PNW churches and the Faith Foundation Northwest, also consider divestment. With so many interested in divestment, it just seemed right.
The result was really positive! The PNW voted overwhelmingly to support divestment. And, just last month, the Faith Foundation Northwest chose to divest its own funds. A number of clergy and others with funds at Wespath are also interested in divesting.
To help the process for individual clergy and others with Wespath pension investments, members of the Pacific Northwest Conference ad hoc creation care team created a how-to video for divesting. They invited Julia Frisbee also to bring her expertise. In the video, the presenters tell their stories of how they divested their funds using existing Wespath options. They also show screenshots to help. Importantly, they recommend that a first step is to contact EY Financial Services at 1-800-360-2539.
To see which of Wespath’s funds are fossil free, click to the Faith Foundation Northwest website where a description of those funds are listed.
The Pacific Northwest Annual Conference divestment effort was supported by the eight model resolutions that were created by a team from the United Methodist Creation Justice Movement. These eight model resolutions were written in 2023 for use in annual conferences. They cover everything from green teams to church land use to net zero to divestment and more. Two more model resolutions were added this year.
For those interested in bringing divestment to your annual conference, two model resolutions are available. Just download and modify them so that they fit your annual conference needs and context.
Blessings on your divestment journey!
For more information about divesting your Wespath funds into fossil free holdings, contact Wespath and EY Financial Services at at 1-800-360-2539. To learn more about the Faith Foundation Northwest, see their website. To learn more about Creation Justice in the Pacific Northwest Conference, contact Rev. Paul Mitchell.
Rev. Richenda Fairhurst is active in the United Methodist Creation Justice Movement in several ways, including co-founding and hosting the Movement Café. Find her at JustCreation.org.