Newspaper Article

Who pays for pastor's Rolls?
By Bill Alnor
Delaware County Daily Times July 21, 1986

The Rev. Frederick Drummond claims he gave his Rolls Royce to the Church of Our Saviour, but the man who leases the car to Drummond disagrees.

"He pays for it using checks drafted from the church treasury," said Don Van Staat, manager of the Essex Leasing Co. of Essex, Conn.

In a recent interview with the Daily Times, Drummond said he gave away his 1963 Silver Cloud Rolls Royce in 1985 to the church over the objections of members of his congregation. The controversial minister denied that he still drives the car.

Drummond has been leasing the car since Nov. 5, 1982, with an option to purchase the automobile.

Drummond's payments on the car are $744.92 per month, a spokeswoman for the Essex firm said.

Van Staat said that a number of lease payment checks Drummond sent him were drafted from Durawood of Delaware Inc., a now defunct kitchen remodeling firm. The official said that Drummond identified himself as a partner in the Durawood firm, and on his credit application dated Sept. 20, 1982, Drummond indicated he was "owner of Durawood of Delaware, Inc."

Drummond denies any involvement with the company.

A number of companies have filed suits against the Durawood firm alleging that -- the company its debts and owed them thousands of dollars.

A number of former church members have told the Daily Times that Durawood was almost entirely staffed by church members who were recruited under the belief that the profits were to be used to send missionaries around the world. Instead the Daily Times has learned that officers of the corporation and Frederick Drummond, who bragged from the pulpit that he was "chairman of the board of a nationwide company," received expensive cars, they claim.

Former members say Drummond fired whomever he pleased from the Durawood firm, including its president, David Durham one week, and replaced him with Richard Price, only to fire Price a short time later, and put Durham back in the helm.

The former members claim no missionaries were ever sent out.

Drummond also told the Daily Times that he signed the title of the car over to the church. But Van Staat said that couldn't be true since his firm holds the title.

The official added that he repossessed church member David Durham's Rolls Royce in April following a litany of problems, including non-payment of lease payments. Durham is the brother-in-law of Drummond's wife, Lorraine, and a registered officer of the Durawood Company.

Durham explained that the repossession was voluntary after he encountered problems with the Essex firm.

"After three years of having the automobile I never had proper registration," Durham said. He also added that he pressed for voluntary repossession after the car developed extensive mechanical problems and the Essex firm did nothing to help clear them up.

"That car had nothing to do with Dr. Drummond," Durham said. "It had everything to do with me."

Former members who have left the Concordville-based church say that during a sermon in December 1985 Drummond displayed what appeared to be a car title, declared he didn't want his Rolls Royce any longer, then placed the paper into the offering basket.

(According to former members this was preceded by a ringing sermon to persuade church members to give their money and possessions to the church so the bills could be paid. Some were seen to take rings off their fingers and place them in the offering basket.)

During a sermon Drummond delivered on May 25, 1984 to his congregation - a month after refinancing his Rolls Royce lease - he declared that he had given his home and his possessions to the church.

"I've sold my home and possessions for this church," Drummond thundered. "I've done all that I can do! God give me some men and some women who will follow suit, or the ministry is done for," he said.

Numerous former members have said that Drummond had told them many times that he has given everything to the church. .

However, according to courthouse records, the property known as the Buena Vista Mansion purchased by Drummond and his wife, Lorraine on Nov. 13, 1981 is still deeded under Drummond's name, and there is no record of any transfer of the property to the church.

Instead, Drummond has personally listed the property for sale at an asking price of $495,000.