On Friday, February 10, the Center for Faithful Business hosted 40 guests in the Nickerson Studios at Seattle Pacific University for the third Frank Haas Integrity in Business Award event. Family, friends, colleagues, pastors, and more came together to celebrate Steve Bell, founder of Bellmont Cabinet Company, and his efforts to lead with integrity in business.

Ross Stewart, Dean of the School of Business, Government, and Economics (SBGE) at Seattle Pacific, welcomed those who were gathered and offered opening remarks for the evening.

“Business is a conduit of God’s grace,” Stewart noted, remarking on how Steve’s Influence was immediately recognizable upon his visit to the Bellmont Cabinet Company workshop.

Jeff Van Duzer, Former Dean of SBGE, shared the history of the Center for Faithful Business and the purpose behind the Integrity in Business Award, from his personal friendship with Frank Haas. Steve Bell uniquely personifies Haas’s vision for this award, Van Duzer explained.“‘Do good work and do it right,’ Frank would say. Steve does both.”

In a conversational interview, Al Erisman, Past Executive in Residence of SBGE, invited Steve to share how he became involved in the cabinet-making business and his father’s influence on his life’s work.

“My father came to Seattle Pacific College, as it was then called, in 1938. He taught me to be a man of my word. ‘The only thing you can take with you through life is the value of your name,’ he used to say. ‘Choose well.’”

Steve shared vulnerably about the significant challenges he faced in business, and the ways his wife, Carolyn, encouraged his pursuits when it could have been tempting to give up. Steve went on to share his understanding of business as a calling.

“My dad was a pastor,” he shared. “But I felt called into business. This business turned into our ministry. People know that Bellmont Cabinets is a company of integrity.”

Several notable figures in Steve’s life were invited to share their reflections on Steve’s approach to faith and work. These individuals included Rev. Harvey Drake, Jr., Founder and President of Urban Impact; Ken Mitchell, Pastor of New Community Church; and Steve’s two sons: Casey Bell and Tyler Bell, CEO of Operations and CEO of Sales and Marketing at Bellmont Cabinet Company, respectively.

“Faith, business, family—these were never compartmentalized for us,” Casey Bell reflected. “They were always together.”

With gratitude for his leadership in the areas of business and faith, and for the ways he embodies the Center for Faithful Business’s values, CFB Executive Director JoAnn Flett presented Steve Bell with the 2023 Frank Haas Integrity in Business Award to a room filled with applause as guests rose to their feet.

Smiling as he quoted Psalm 37:4, Bell shared with those gathered a biblical text that has guided his life:
“Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.”
“It’s about finishing. Being resilient. Being persistent,” Bell said. “We wanted to make sure everyone who experienced Bellmont experienced Christ.”

Before closing the evening in prayer, Interim SPU President Pete Menjares offered concluding reflections.

“God has created this tender-hearted businessman who has surrendered his life to Christ. You’ve honored the Lord in your work and in your life.”

Congratulations to Steve Bell, recipient of the 2023 Frank Haas Integrity in Business Award. We are inspired by your leadership in business, your persistence in the face of profound challenges over decades of work, and by the model of an integrated faith your life offers.