For more information, contact:
Haley Walker Klein
501-664-8632
hklein@methodistfoundationAR.org
LITTLE ROCK, ARK. (January 27, 2021)- The Methodist Foundation for Arkansas will host Arkansas author John Grisham as its February guest speaker for its ongoing speaker series, “In Conversation Together.”
Born in Jonesboro, Arkansas, Grisham is an American novelist, attorney, politician, and activist, best known for his popular legal thrillers. There are currently over 300 million John Grisham books in print worldwide, translated into 40 languages. Nine of his novels have been turned into films (The Firm, The Pelican Brief, The Client, A Time to Kill, The Rainmaker, The Chamber, A Painted House, The Runaway Jury, Skipping Christmas), as was an original screenplay, The Gingerbread Man. The Innocent Man (October 2006) marked his first foray into non-fiction, and Ford County (November 2009) was his first short story collection.
In October 2020, he released A Time for Mercy, the third story involving the characters established in his first novel, A Time to Kill, and further follows Jake Brigance’s story, a Mississippi small-town lawyer representing a minor accused of murder.
Grisham devotes his time to several charitable causes, including his Rebuild The Coast Fund, which raised $8.8 million dollars for Gulf Coast relief in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. He serves as the local Little League commissioner. The six ballfields he built on his property have played host to over 500 kids on 40 baseball and softball teams. He is also a long-time member of the Board of Directors of The Innocence Project, a non-profit organization working to reform the American criminal justice system using DNA science to exonerate wrongly convicted individuals.
The Methodist Foundation for Arkansas began the “In Conversation Together” speaker series in October 2020, sparked by pandemic isolation from family and friends. Each month, the Foundation invites participants to an hour-long conversation with well-known philanthropists, leaders in religion, popular motivational speakers, and others as they share their work, stories, and visions. “Many of our friends have expressed that they are lonely, and appreciate the Foundation staff checking on them,” said Janet Marshall, the Foundation’s Vice President of Development. “This opportunity has allowed our friends to hear from some special people, to learn new things, and to have something to look forward to each month.”
“In Conversation Together” gathers online on the third Thursday of each month from 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. CST. The Foundation hosts the calls from our facility in Little Rock. Upcoming “In Conversation Together” speakers include Master Gardener Janet Carson (March); former Arkansas Razorback and motivational speaker, Anthony Lucas (April); and Chelsea Clinton, author, economic and global health advocate (June). For more information about The Methodist Foundation for Arkansas and the “In Conversation Together” speaker series, visit https://www.methodistfoundationar.org.
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The Methodist Foundation for Arkansas manages over $215 million in endowment funds and other charitable assets that benefit local churches and other United Methodist ministries. The MFA is one of the largest United Methodist Foundations in the country. Founded in 1963, it is responsible for over 800 funds that support United Methodist ministries.