Stanley Tam Memorial Fund

To honor Stanley Tam's memory by continuing the evangelistic work that he was so passionate about, OMS has set up the Stanley Tam Memorial Fund. Stanley was passionate about his commitment to God and sharing the Gospel message. You may honor his legacy with a donation here.

A Tribute to Stanley Tam

Stanley Tam, a longtime OMS supporter, died April 16, 2023, at the age of 107. He was born on September 15, 1915, in Vallejo, CA, to Russell B. and Hazel D. (MacBeth) Tam, who both preceded him in death. Stanley grew up in Ohio during the Great Depression. To make ends meet, he first became a door-to-door salesman and later started several companies, including the United States Plastic Corporation (USPC).

While Stanley was selling products door to door, one customer, Mrs. Long, shared the Gospel with him and encouraged him to give his life to the Lord. Soon thereafter, Stanley attended a special evangelistic church service, accepted Jesus as his Savior, and changed his way of living.

Stanley then created a patented device called the Stanley Silver Collector to collect and clean the thousands of dollars’ worth of silver washed down drains in film labs. In 1936, he created States Smelting and Refining Corporation, a silver refining business.

In 1937, Stanley met Juanita Lindeman at a church he visited while selling his silver collectors in Rockford, Illinois. They married on January 21, 1939, nine months after their first date. God blessed them with four daughters: Rachel, Rebecca, Prudence, and Candace, as well as wonderful spouses for their daughters and dozens of grandchildren and great grandchildren.

Over time, Stanley’s silver refining business grew. Because of the Tams’ love for the Lord and hearts for evangelism, Stanley and Juanita made God a senior partner in their business, in which they owned 49 percent and God owned 51 percent, donating the majority portion of the business’ earnings to ministries like One Mission Society. Eventually, Stanley made God the sole owner of the business, giving 100 percent of the profits to missions through the Stanita Foundation, which the Tams created in 1952 and transferred to OMS in 1971.  

In 1955, Stanley transitioned from silver to plastics, and in 1962, he founded USPC, a business that earns millions of dollars each year for missions.

During his lifetime, in addition to his business successes, Stanley served as a trustee and trustee emeritus of OMS in the 1960s and 70s and was a pioneer in the development of Men for Missions in the 1950s. He also led more than 400,000 people to a personal faith in Jesus Christ. He wrote four OMS-related books: God Owns My Business, Stanley Tam’s Incredible Adventures with God, Every Christian a Soul Winner, and God’s Woodshed. He also gave more than $124 million to OMS both personally and through his business profits. Thanks, in part, to Stanley’s generosity, OMS and our partners reported nearly 8.7 million decisions for Christ during Stanley’s faithful years of giving.