Retired Missionary Aid Fund

The Retired Missionary Aid Fund (RMAF), founded in 1914 as a UK charity, exists to relieve poverty and provide Christian fellowship for retired missionaries commended by Christian Brethren Assemblies, who dedicated their lives to overseas service without salaries or fixed support. Its mission honors their sacrifices through practical stewardship, sustaining dignity and wellbeing in later years among 'The Family'—elderly individuals from over 40 countries. Rooted in Brethren values of faith, compassion, and service, RMAF maintains direct trustee relationships with beneficiaries, issuing annuities, regular payments, and ad-hoc aid for living costs and hardship, as seen in recent support for 161 individuals.

RMAF exclusively aids individual retired Brethren missionaries in financial need; no organizations, groups, or third parties qualify. There are no income limits, entity size rules, or geographic restrictions—support spans globally for those originally commended from the UK—though eligibility hinges on personal circumstances known to trustees via ongoing ties.

Unsolicited applications are not accepted; grants arise from direct contact and needs-led trustee reviews on a rolling basis, with no deadlines or forms. Typical awards average just over £2,000 annually per beneficiary, varying by need. Distinctively, RMAF funds nothing beyond personal relief for this niche group—no projects, core costs, capacity building, or non-Brethren causes—operating traditionally with unremunerated trustees, quarterly fellowship publications, and a laser focus that sets it apart in Christian philanthropy.