A Tribute to Hugh O. Maclellan, Jr.

This Saturday, the Chattanooga community will gather together to honor the life and memory of Mr. Hugh O. Maclellan, Jr.  

I first met Hugh O. Maclellan, Jr., when my family and I moved to Chattanooga, TN, as I began my tenure as the President of the Chattanooga Christian Community Foundation (now known as The Generosity Trust). 

The foundation that I was hired to run, the Chattanooga Christian Community Foundation, shared a common heritage with the Maclellan Foundation.  Our founder, Dora Maclellan Brown, was the daughter of the founder of the Maclellan Foundation.  She had established the Dora Maclellan Brown Charitable Trust in 1965 – a trust that morphed into a private foundation, which eventually became the founding assets upon which CCCF was established.    

It was January of 2000.  CCCF had a wonderful relationship with the Maclellan family and the eponymous foundation, and I was advised that one of the first meetings I had to schedule was with Mr. Maclellan.  We met in his corner office in the Maclellan Foundation, and I was immediately struck by several things. 

First of all, he wrote down almost every word I said.  Verbatim.  It was almost unnerving.  He explained to me that he remembered things better when he wrote them down.  And in subsequent meetings, he would pull out his notes and ask me about things we’d talked about months and years prior.  Yes, indeed, he remembered.  

Second, he told me at that time that he was moving towards giving away 90% of his income and living on 10%.  I was in awe.  He then told me that, in his estimation, he had never made a sacrificial gift.  He winked at me and told me that the amount that he and his wife, Nancy, were living on was very sufficient for what they needed.  I’ll admit to being in awe of what I considered one of the most generous plans I had ever heard.  

Third, I was humbled and impressed with his desire that the whole world would have the opportunity to hear the Good News of Jesus Christ.  His passion for evangelism, and his desire to invest in organizations taking the Gospel to the world.  

I’ve had a mentor through the years (a giant in the faith who passed away a few years ago) who taught me about what he called The Three Hugs.  I’d like to share that as I think about the man Hugh O. Maclellan, Jr.  Although these aren’t quite Biblically literal in the strictest sense of the word, I believe the principles remain true and are worthy of emulating. 

The first hug is that giant hug we all get from God the Father when we arrive in heaven, when he looks us in the eye, hugs us, and says, “Well done, good and faithful steward.  You were faithful on earth with what I entrusted to you…enter into your rest.”  

I believe that Hugh O. got that big hug from the Father on April 4th of this year.  I cannot think of another man who was a more faithful steward of all that God had entrusted to him – not only material wealth, but relationships, family, and the truths of the Kingdom of God.  Hugh O. was faithful. 

The second hug is directed back to the family and survivors remaining on earth.  I was taught to make sure you never do anything in your estate planning that will keep your kids (and grandkids) from hugging each other after you’re gone.  Hugh O. was faithful to invest in those relationships.  He is deeply missed and deeply loved, and the family he left behind is a testament to how he invested in them. 

The final hug occurs back in heaven, after the Father has hugged us and welcomed us home.  He then puts his big hands on our shoulders, turns us around, and points to the line that has formed behind us. 

“You see these people?  They are in heaven because of you.  You shared the Word with your lips; you gave financially to ministries that reached the lost; you invested in organizations focused on eternity; you helped to get the Bible translated and printed so they would have a copy in their own language; you supported missionaries who travelled the world sharing the Good News. 

And these people?  They are the eternal fruit of your labors; they are the crowns that you were sending on ahead.  And since we have all of eternity, and that’s a long time, they’d all like to come up and hug you and tell you Thank You.”  

On April 4, 2025, Hugh O. Maclellan Jr., got that big hug from the Father.  He was a faithful steward.  And I like to believe he is also meeting people from every tribe, nation, and tongue who are sharing eternity with the Triune God – and with him – because he faithfully gave and invested in eternity.  

Who will stand in the gap that’s been created by his passing?  May we all steward the resources entrusted to us – whether large or small – and invest in things that truly matter.  “They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.”  (1 Timothy 6:18 & 19) 

Jim Barber for The Generosity Trust