Roe Messner

Ronald Roe Messner (born August 1, 1935) is an American building contractor who has built more than 1,700 churches, including several megachurches.

Roe Messner
Born
Ronald Roe Messner

(1935-08-01) August 1, 1935
OccupationBuilding contractor
Spouses
Ruth Ann Messner
​
(div. 1993)​
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1993; died 2007)​
      Carol Wynn Herrman Messner
      ​
      ​
      (m. 2009; died 2021)​
      ChildrenRichard, RoeAnn, Ron, Robin
      Websiteroemessner.com

      Having divorced his first wife, he married televangelist Tammy Faye Bakker in 1993 after her divorce from husband and PTL Club founder Jim Bakker.

      Early life

      Messner grew up in Waldron, Kansas, on the Kansas-Oklahoma border. He founded Messner Construction in Andover, Kansas, and began building churches.

      Heritage USA

      Roe Messner gained fame with the construction of Heritage USA in 1978 at the behest of Jim Bakker. In 1987, he and his first wife, Ruth Ann, wrote a book titled Building for the Master.[1] He was reportedly the person who produced the money for the $265,000 payment to Jessica Hahn to cover up a sexual assault. Messner later billed PTL for work never completed on the Jerusalem Amphitheater at Heritage USA, thus playing a behind-the-scenes role in the downfall of the PTL Club. [2] Revelations of the payoff invited scrutiny of Bakker's finances, prompting him to be charged with fraud. In Bakker's fraud trial, Messner testified for Bakker's defense, asserting that Jerry Falwell had attempted to take over PTL and its associated cable television network by dispatching Messner to the Bakker home in Palm Springs, California to make an offer to "keep quiet".

      According to Messner's testimony, Tammy wrote the offer on her stationery, listing a $300,000-a-year lifetime salary for Jim, $100,000 a year for Tammy, a house, and a year's worth of free phone calls and health insurance. However, Messner said Bakker wrote on it: "I'm not making any demands on PTL. I'm not asking for anything."[3][4] Falwell denied making any offer. In the messy bankruptcy of PTL, Messner was listed as the single biggest creditor of PTL with an outstanding claim of $14 million. In court papers, the new operators accused Messner of $5.3 million in inflated or phony billings to PTL.[5]

      Marriage to Tammy Faye

      Messner divorced his first wife in 1993. At about the same time, Tammy Faye divorced Bakker. Messner and Tammy Faye were married in and lived in Rancho Mirage, California.[6]

      In 1996, Roe was convicted of bankruptcy fraud, having claimed to owe nearly $30 million to over 300 creditors in 1990. As he faced sentencing in 1996, he said he could not afford to treat his prostate cancer because he lacked health insurance.[7] He was sentenced to and served 27 months in prison.[8]

      Messner published Church Growth by Design, another book on church building, in 2003.[9]

      Tammy Faye Messner's death

      Messner and Tammy Faye moved to the gated community of Loch Lloyd, Missouri, a suburb of Kansas City, in 2007. Tammy Faye died from cancer on July 20 that year; her last public appearance was a taped interview on CNN from their home the day before. Her ashes were interred in the Messner family plot in Waldron, immediately next to Messner's mother.[10]

      Roe Messner himself is known to have received a diagnosis of prostate cancer in the past, though he told Larry King that his doctors had told him that he would not die from the disease.

      Notable churches
      Dream City Church in Phoenix, Arizona

      Messner is reported to have been the biggest church builder in the United States. On August 7, 2007, he told Larry King that he had built 1,784 churches in 47 states.[10] Messner supervised construction of the churches but was not the architect. He has designed and/or built over 1,800 churches in all 50 states.[11]

      References
      1. Messner, Roe; Messner, Ruth Ann (1987). Building for the Master: By Design. RAM Media Incorporated. ISBN 0-940609-00-2.
      2. "Testimony: Baker knew about Hahn being paid off". Pacific Stars and Stripes. Associated Press. September 16, 1987. "available via newspaperarchive.com".
      3. "PTL link puts church builder Roe Messner in public eye". Kansas City Star. Frederick, Maryland: The News-Post Leader. June 17, 1987. "available via newspaperarchive.com".
      4. "Bakker witness says Falwell offered hush money". The Capital. Associated Press. September 26, 1989. "available via newspaperarchive.com".
      5. "PTL accuses builder of theft conspiracy". Daily Inieiligencer / Montgomery County Record. Associated Press. September 10, 1987. "available via newspaperarchive.com".
      6. Meeks, Eric G. (2012). "location 377". Palm Springs Celebrity Homes: Little Tuscany, Racquet Club, Racquet Club Estates, and Desert Park Estates Neighborhoods (Kindle ed.). Horatio Limburger Oglethorpe. ASIN B00A2PXD1G.
      7. Louie, Elaine (March 21, 1996). "Chronicle". The New York Times. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
      8. Gates, Anita (July 22, 2007). "Tammy Faye Bakker, 65, Emotive Evangelist, Dies". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 27, 2018. Retrieved June 26, 2018. closed access
      9. Messner, Roe (September 2003). Church Growth by Design: A Complete Guide for Planning and Building Churches to God's Glory. Send The Light Distribution LLC. ISBN 0-9745015-0-6.
      10. Larry King Interview - CNN - August 7, 2007
      11. "Roe Messner & Associates, Inc. - America's Church Builder". roemessner.com. Retrieved 2022-02-24.
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