Longtime supporter leaves large part of estate to Liberty

Liberty University has learned that it will be receiving a large portion of an estate from a major donor.

Oswald “Oz” Forsee of Okeechobee, Fla., passed away on Aug. 28, 2015, at age 91. He was a longtime supporter of Liberty, along with his wife of 65 years, Betty, who preceded him in death. Their $400,000 contribution to Liberty will endow scholarships for future generations of leaders who would not otherwise be able to obtain an education from Liberty.

According to a statement from the trustee of the Forsees’ estate, the couple had heard a young preacher, Dr. Jerry Falwell, share the Gospel on television in the 1960s and later tuned in to hear him cast a vision for a new college that God had called him to build. (Falwell founded Lynchburg Baptist College — renamed Liberty Baptist College and now Liberty University — in 1971.) On a trip through Virginia one fall in the late 1970s, the Forsees remembered hearing about the new college and visited campus. The trustee recounts their story of sitting on a bench and observing “something unusual” about the students. “One by one,” he said, “each student that passed by stopped and greeted them, some even taking the time to sit and chat. The entire experience was confirmation that this was a holy piece of ground that could be used by God to literally change the world.”

Oz Forsee grew up on a farm in rural Kentucky and spent his adult life working for W & W Supply Co as a salesman for animal health products in South Florida’s beef and dairy industries. According to the statement, although the Forsees never had children of their own, they always felt that God could use them to impact the life of young Champions for Christ.

• For more information on planned giving to Liberty University, visit www.Liberty.edu/Giving or call (800) 543-5309.