Alma Hunt (October 5, 1909 – June 14, 2008) was executive secretary of the

Southern Baptist Convention The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination, and the largest Protestant and second-largest Christian denomination in the United States. The wor ...

Woman's Missionary Union Woman's Missionary Union (WMU) is an auxiliary of the Southern Baptist Convention that was founded in 1888. It is the largest Protestant missions organization for women in the world. History Origins During the meeting of the Southern Bapt ...

from 1948 to 1974. Hunt was born in

Roanoke, Virginia Roanoke ( ) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 100,011, making it the 8th most populous city in the Commonwealth of Virginia and the largest city in Virginia west of Richmond. It is lo ...

. She was an ordained minister of the Rosalind Hills Baptist Church where she vocally opposed the Southern Baptist Convention's prohibition of women in the role of church pastors or military and prison chaplains. Hunt graduated in 1941 from State Teacher's College (now

Longwood University Longwood University is a public university in Farmville, Virginia. Founded in 1839, it is the third-oldest public university in Virginia and one of the hundred oldest institutions of higher education in the United States. Previously a college, Lo ...

) in

Farmville, Virginia Farmville is a town in Prince Edward and Cumberland counties in the U.S. state of Virginia. The population was 8,216 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Prince Edward County. Farmville developed near the headwaters of the Appomattox R ...

. In 1947, she earned a master of arts degree at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

William Jewell College William Jewell College is a private liberal arts college in Liberty, Missouri. It was founded in 1849 by members of the Missouri Baptist Convention and endowed with $10,000 by William Jewell. It was associated with the Missouri Baptist Conventi ...

, where she served as dean of women in 1945–48, awarded her an honorary doctorate of humanities, and in 1999 the

University of Richmond The University of Richmond (UR or U of R) is a private liberal arts college in Richmond, Virginia. It is a primarily undergraduate, residential institution with approximately 4,350 undergraduate and graduate students in five schools: the School ...

awarded her an honorary doctorate of divinity. One of Hunt's first initiatives after being chosen to head the WMU was to support the formation of the women's department of the

Baptist World Alliance The Baptist World Alliance (BWA) is the largest international Baptist organization with an estimated 51 million people in 2022 with 246 member bodies in 128 countries and territories. A voluntary association of Baptist churches, the BWA account ...

, and also the BWA's interdenominational North American Baptist Women's Union. She served as president of the latter in 1964–67, and vice president of the former in 1970–75. From 1976 to 1985, Hunt served as consultant on women's mission work for the Baptist

Foreign Mission Board The International Mission Board (or IMB, formerly the Foreign Mission Board) is a Christian missionary society affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC). The headquarters is in Richmond, Virginia, United States. History Thousands ...

which named her an honorary emeritus missionary in 1987. In 1998, the WMU of Virginia and the Baptist General Association of Virginia named the Alma Hunt Offering for Virginia Missions in her honor. Several facilities have been named in her honor, including: the Alma Hunt Museum at WMU headquarters in

Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% fr ...

, which houses her personal missions archives; the Alma Hunt Library at the

John Leland Center for Theological Studies __NOTOC__ The John Leland Center for Theological Studies is a Baptist theological institute in Arlington, Virginia, with several satellite locations elsewhere in Virginia. Leland is partnered with the Baptist General Association of Virginia and t ...

in Northern Virginia; the Hunt Hall at CrossRoads Camp & Conference Center in

Lowesville, Virginia Lowesville is an unincorporated community in Nelson County, Virginia, United States. It lies along the path of the now-defunct Virginia Blue Ridge Railway.http://www.abandonedrails.com/article.asp?id=71 Hite Store was added to the National R ...

; and the Alma Hunt Cottage at Hope Tree Family Services (formerly known as the Virginia Baptist Children's Home) in

Salem, Virginia Salem is an independent city in the U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 25,346. It is the county seat of Roanoke County, although the two are separate jurisdictions. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combin ...

References

1909 births 2008 deaths Baptist missionaries from the United States Women Protestant religious leaders Female Christian missionaries Longwood University alumni People from Roanoke, Virginia Southern Baptists 20th-century Baptists Baptist missionaries in the United States Baptists from Virginia {{Christian-clergy-stub