Stephen Drury
Stephen Max Drury was born on February 28, 1948, in Frankfort, Indiana, at Clinton County Hospital. He was the first child of Robert Lee and Audra Browning DeFord Drury. He was taken to God's house and dedicated at three days of age at Zion Apostolic Tabernacle in Frankfort, Indiana.
At age five, his family and a sister, Joyce Ann Drury, age 3, moved to Kokomo, Indiana, to a larger farm in Howard County and started attending church at Zion Tabernacle in Kokomo. There he was filled with the Holy Ghost and baptized in a revival with Evangelist Irvin Baxter, Sr. His parents were farmers, and he lived on a farm until around age 12.
In 1962, the Drury family relocated to Indianapolis, Indiana, and started attending Calvary Tabernacle. He immediately became involved in the youth group under J. Hugh Rose and Nathaniel A. Urshan as his pastor. During that time, a third child, Brenda Marie Drury, was added to the family.
During those years at Calvary, he sang in the youth choir and played in the Sunday night orchestra. He also played Bro. Urshan's stand-up bass. He was short and Bro. Urshan was tall. They could never get the "peg" to loosen on the bass, so Steve stood on the first step behind Sis. Urshan as she played the grand piano during all the services Sunday morning, Sunday night, Tuesday, and Thursday as well as revivals.
Upon graduation from Arlington High School in 1966, Steve moved to St. Paul, Minnesota, to attend Apostolic Bible Institute and graduated with his Bachelor of Theology in 1969. Bob Carter from Northeast Maryland, and the "Glynn Davis Trio" recorded a long-play album with Steve playing the bass in their senior year and then headed out on the evangelistic trail in June 1969. Their first revival was at Oak Grove, Louisiana, outside of Natchitoches. Over 30 people received the Holy Ghost and were baptized. They felt they had found their gifting and calling, until the next revival! They soon disbanded with Steve becoming a youth pastor at the UPC church in Montgomery, Louisiana.
In January 1970, Steve accepted the youth pastor position of First Pentecostal Church in Dallas, Texas, pastor and wife, B. Brian and Annette Chelette. However, in February, the Tupelo Children's Mansion board appointed them the next Superintendent. Steve stayed until a new pastor was elected and headed back to Indianapolis to visit with pastor Nathaniel Urshan and stopped at Tupelo Children's Mansion on the way home. He never made it to Indianapolis as he was appointed Office Manager, Manager of Food Services, and Residential Care. Steve's training ground for his future began there.
In September 1972, he began dating Evelyn Ratcliff, whom he had known since early childhood as she was born in Kokomo, Indiana. Like Steve, she had also attended and graduated from Apostolic Bible Institute. Her parents were a part of the Assemblies of The Lord Jesus Christ (ALJC) and were managers of Blue Mountain Children's Home, owned by the ALJC. They were married December 17, 1972, in Blue Mountain, with the oldest resident of Blue Mountain Children's Home standing up with her, and Steve had the oldest boy from Tupelo Children's Mansion stand up with him. Over 100 children from the two homes were there. After their honeymoon, they also became house parents for 22 boys in Conqueror's Hall.
In April 1973, Steve and Evelyn moved to Oklahoma City to assist Robert Whalen at Southeast UPC. A year later, the congregation elected them pastor of the UPC in Hennepin, Oklahoma. A town of 100 with 50 attending a church of another faith and 28 in attendance their first Sunday. But revival happened, and in two years, over 150 were in attendance every service in a town of 100. But again, God had another plan.
February 26, 1976, Steve was elected two days before his 28th birthday as President and Evelyn as corporate Secretary/Treasurer of Tupelo Children's Mansion and immediately were parents to 67 children! He took his first child to Gateway College that year as a 28-year-old parent. Over the years, they raised almost 1,000 children.
Steve's Education includes:
1969 – Graduated Apostolic Bible Institute, Bachelor of Theology
2003 – Graduated Lifestyle Giving Mentorship Program
2013 – Certified as Fund Raising Management with School of Philanthropy, Indiana University
While in Mississippi, Steve served the district:
1977 – 1999 Section 2 Secretary
1978 – 1999 Secretary Long Range Planning Committee
1984 – 1999 Secretary District Men's Ministry
1987 – 1999 Chairman District Finance Committee
After 50 years of pastoral and administrative experience, including 26 years at Tupelo Children's Mansion, Steve and Evelyn founded Tupelo Christian Academy, Abundant Life Tabernacle, Erwin Maternity Care Center, and New Beginnings International, all in Tupelo, Mississippi. Steve also co-founded the "Worth the Wait" abstinence program that is now a national program used by 4,500 United Pentecostal Churches for youth.
While in Tupelo, Steve and Evelyn led the ministry of Tupelo Children's Mansion from one ministry with a campus of seven buildings and 22 acres, to four ministries with 28 buildings and 180 acres. They founded and administrated a Christian school, Tupelo Christian Academy, for 21 years. The school had an enrollment of 190 students, with over 90% of the graduates continuing to college. Also, they founded and pastored Abundant Life Tabernacle for 18 years, with the congregation averaging 240 upon their retirement from the ministries in Tupelo. Upon their retirement, there was only $40,000 owed on the entire increase of property and buildings.
One of their passions is still New Beginnings International Children's and Family Services (www.nbicfs.org), a ministry independent from the other ministries they led in Tupelo. New Beginnings included for over 30 years the "Erwin Maternity Care Center" (for girls in crisis pregnancy – the only such facility in the state of Mississippi) and the New Beginnings Adoption Agency, now International in scope. New Beginnings is the only adoption agency and maternity home in the United Pentecostal Church organization of over 4,500 churches in North America. The agency has helped save hundreds of babies from abortion and placed more than 1,500 children in forever families in the last 30 plus years. National Council of Accreditation accredited NBI and, as of January 2009, has established a relationship with Nepal's nation and opened the first New Beginnings overseas orphanage. In 2008, NBI also was key to forming the National Christian Adoption Fellowship. This fellowship is a co-op with nine other Christian adoption agencies in which they share 17 countries for families working with each agency.
Upon retirement from TCM, the City of Tupelo gave the Drurys the keys to the city and declared a day of appreciation and celebrated by the City officials. The Mississippi State Senate and the House of Representatives honored them with exceptional accommodation. Seven of the nine justices of the Mississippi Supreme Court honored them by coming to their retirement celebration.
The Drurys moved to Arkansas to pastor Apostolic Church in North Little Rock, Arkansas, but missed administrative work. In 2002, Steve accepted a new position in St. Louis with United Pentecostal Church International, as founder and longtime director of The Stewardship Group. Bro. Drury guided the ministry as it grew from two employees and an idea into a foundation, a loan fund, and an insurance company, as well as several other entities that blend business expertise, entrepreneurship, and evangelism. Collectively, The Stewardship Group now manages more than $100 million in assets.
“Through visionary leadership, hard work, and perseverance, Steve and Evelyn Drury have significantly advanced the mission of the UPCI and the kingdom of God,” said UPCI General Superintendent Dr. David K. Bernard. “It has been a joy to partner with them to develop and grow many initiatives that will bless the church from now until the coming of the Lord.”
Bro. Drury led The Stewardship Group for 21 years before retiring in 2023.