By Hunter Vinson

Every current or potential Samford student probably has a picture of them beside a statue of Mr. Beeson. Ralph Waldo Beeson, also known as Mr. Beeson, was a major player in shaping today’s Samford University. Mr. Beeson donated over a $100 million to the university and was a very influential figure in the formation of the Beeson School of Divinity, so much so that it is named after him. Mr. Beeson sits at the head of Centennial Walk and welcomes visitors that enter Samford’s campus. Although many Samford students treat the statue simply as a photo spot, it stands for so much more. That statue, and Mr. Beeson himself, are a reflection of the values of the university and what the students of the university should strive to be.

The History of Mr.Beeson

Ralph Waldo Beeson was born in 1900 to his father, Dr. John Wesley Beeson, and his mother, Rosa Beeson. Mr. Beeson graduated from Emory University in 1920. By 1921 he had joined the Liberty National Life Insurance Company. The company today is now known as Globe Life. When Mr. Beeson was only 29 years old, he heavily invested his money in Liberty National stock. This is how he would end up making most of his money as he would someday reap over $100 million from this investment.

In 1957 Samford University moved from being located in the City of Birmingham to a suburban site in Shades Valley over Red Mountain in Homewood. The university moved to this new location because of the growing number of students and the need to expand the campus. After the university acquired Cumberland School of Law in 1962, the issue of renaming it arose. At the time, the school was known as Howard College, after the eighteenth-century English philanthropist John Howard. But few in Alabama knew about John Howard and there was another school in Washington, D.C., already named Howard University. So to prevent confusion, it was decided to rename the school after Frank Park Samford, a long-serving leader of the board of trusteees. Thus it became Samford University.

It was through Samford that Mr. Beeson was introduced to the school. Both men worked for Liberty National. When Mr. Beeson learned about the university, he found that he really aligned with their motto: “For God, and for learning.” Upon learning that the campus was expanding, he decided that he would donate to the university to help with the expansion. Due to Mr. Beeson’s contributions to the university, the construction was able to finish faster and more efficiently.

After the new campus was finished, Mr. Beeson did not stop giving money to the school. Mr. Beeson became very involved in the university and continued to donate to it. As documented by Sean Flynt, “other building projects supported by the Beeson family include the Beeson Woods Residence Halls, Orlean Bullard Beeson Hall, Dwight M. Beeson Hall, Dwight and Lucille Beeson Center for the Healing Arts, Beeson Divinity School, and the Lucille Stewart Beeson Law Library” ( Flynt 2001 97). Possibly the most prominent out of all of these would be the Divinity School. The driving force behind Mr. Beeson starting the divinity school was to honor his father.

Mr. Beeson’s father, Dr. John Wesley Beeson, was very involved in ministry throughout his life. Dr. Beeson named his sons after famous orators and evangelists: Ralph Waldo Beeson after Ralph Waldo Emerson, and his brother Dwight Beeson after Dwight Moody. Dr. John Beeson served as the president of Meridian University, which was a Christian-affiliated university. Dr. Beeson was also a very active member of St. Paul’s Methodist Church in Meridian, Mississippi. Dr. Beeson was very committed to his faith. To honor his father, Mr. Beeson wanted to help Samford University create a divinity school.

Mr. Beeson knew that the creation of a divinity school would not be easy. He knew that most of the students who were in the school would not have high-paying jobs, so he wanted to make sure that the school would be affordable, thus donating over $70 million to help create the school. While Mr. Beeson would never get to see the completion of the school, his legacy still lives on. The divinity school building was designed by “Birmingham architect Neil Davis and dedicated in 1995” (Flynt 2001 118). If it was not for Mr. Beeson, Beeson Divinity School would not exist.

Philanthropy

The Mr. Beeson statue, dedicated to him in 1988, not only represents the man Ralph W. Beeson but the philanthropic work that he did. Mr. Beeson believed that if you had the resources to help someone, you should. If it were not for Mr. Beeson’s work, the university would be nowhere near the powerhouse that it is today. Mr. Beeson saw something that he believed in and even though he had no previous relationship with the university, he donated to it to help the university to grow.

Philanthropy is best described as supporting the welfare of others or an organization usually with a sum of money. According to scholars Robert Payton and Michael Moody, “philanthropy is a tradition, it is not a body of laws, nor is it is a fixed set of institutions. As a tradition it has common roots, themes, practices, and values.” (Payton and Moody 2008, 40) Although Mr. Beeson has been dead for over thirty years, he still continues to help people through his philanthropy which is still making a difference today. Not only did he support Samford, he also supported Asbury Theological Seminary in Kentucky.

The statue is a physical representation of philanthropy and is meant to call students to philanthropy work. One area that still needs attention is climate change. Many people are willing to help out with climate change until they find out how much it will cost. We need more philanthropy work from ordinary people to help fight this problem. The statue is suppose to inspire ordinary people to give to things that they believe in. It does not have to be a lot, but they should give something and stand up for what they believe in.

The statue that sits at the base of Centennial Walk honors Mr. Beeson, but it is not its only purpose. The statue serves as a reminder to students that they must stand up for what they believe in. Like Mr. Beeson, if they see something that requires their help then they should act. They should not just stand by and watch, they should make an effort to help even if it is only a little.

Conclusion

Mr. Beeson was a man who alway came through when it came to helping others. He was a man who knew what he believed in and is still impacting people even today. His statue shows us not only the impact that he made on Samford University, but also what students should strive to be. The next time that you stop and take a photo with Mr. Beeson, you should take a moment to remember who he was as a person and all that he stood for.

Ralph Waldo Beeson
Medium: Bronze statue
Artist: Gylnn Acree
Commisioned by: Samford University
Installed: October 24, 1988 for Mr. Beeson’s Birthday

Bibliography

Bateman, Lori Brand. 2008. Samford University: Foundations for the First Year. New York: Pearson Custom Publishing.

Capek, Mary Ellen S., and Molly Mead. 2006. Effective Philanthropy: Organizational Success Through Deep Diversity and Gender Equality. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.

Corts, Thomas E. Samford University at Its Sesquicentennial: Empowered to Bless. New York: Newcomen Society of the United States, 1992.

Flynt, Sean. 2001. 160 Years of Samford University: For God, for Learning, Forever. Charleston, SC: Arcadia.

George, Timothy, “Twenty Years of Gratitude.” Beeson Journal. 2008. Pp. 1-2. https://www.samford.edu/beeson-divinity/files/beeson-journal-2008.pdf

Payton, Robert L., and Michael P. Moody. 2008. Understanding Philanthropy: Its Meaning and Mission. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.

Sulzby, Frederick James. 1986. Toward a History of Samford University. Birmingham, AL: Samford University Press.

Hunter Vinson ‘27 was a student in UCS 102: Memorials & the Future in Samford University’s Howard College of Arts & Sciences in spring 2024.