Kriti Mehrotra
While there’s no denying Jerry Lamon Falwell Jr. was born into a distinguished family in the evangelical Christian community in 1962, Becki Tilley (born 1967) hails from a simple religious clan. However, upon tying the knot for love in 1987, they were gradually able to help one another grow to such an incredible extent that they truly became known as The First Family of evangelicism. Though it’s been a while since they’ve fallen from grace, as explored in Hulu’s ‘God Forbid’ — so now, if you simply wish to learn more about their professional experiences, we’ve got you covered.
How Did Jerry and Becki Falwell Earn Their Money?
It was while Becki’s elder sister was attending Liberty University with Jerry — established by his father in 1971 — that they met, just to reconnect romantically five years later despite their age gap. We specify this because not only was the former merely 13 at the time of their first encounter, but their personal and professional lives (thus money) have also always been rather intertwined. She was the one to propose after he’d graduated from the University of Virginia School of Law, leading to them marrying the same year and her dropping out of college to be a homemaker.
In fact, while Jerry went on to thrive in the world of real estate law in his home state of Virginia, the North Carolina native supported him as a stay-at-home mother of their three lovely children. He did eventually join his father to help pull Liberty University out of a massive financial crisis, just to soon find himself taking up the executive role of President upon Jerry Sr.’s passing in 2007. That’s when Becki evolved into the institute’s First Lady as well, a responsibility she was reportedly eager to have following two decades of minimal adult interaction, and that too via television.
Under Jerry and Becki’s leadership, Liberty allegedly went from a relatively small Christian school to an extremely renowned, well-maintained powerhouse with nearly 100,000 graduate students. The couple’s success hence skyrocketed as well, yet it’s imperative to note that “the line between where the Falwell family’s wealth begins and Liberty’s finances end” soon grew blurry. After all, no matter where the institute apparently invested or loaned its money out to, the Falwells were the ones to benefit, according to a detailed fall 2019 report in Politico Magazine.
Then there are also Jerry and Becki’s business endeavors as first-hand investors in properties as well as ideas (either separately or together), along with their political endorsements. The prime and the most public example of this is their support for Donald Trump throughout not just his 2016 presidential campaign but also in the ensuing years, no matter the issue.
Jerry and Becki Falwell’s Net Worth
While the exact figure Becki received from Liberty University as an annual salary (if at all) remains unclear, it has been publicly conveyed Jerry earned an astounding $1.25 million per year. That is, until 2020, when he handed in his resignation mere weeks after being placed on a paid leave of absence — it was ostensibly for posting a picture of him with his pants partially unzipped and his arm around his wife’s assistant, along with “various rumors and claims.”
Nevertheless, since Jerry reportedly parted ways with Liberty of his own free will, he received a severance package amounting to nearly $10.5 million. Therefore, as per our best estimates, the attorney and former academic administrator’s net worth as of writing is probably close to $100 million. As for his wife, because she supposedly continues to serve as a social worker as well as a political advisor, her sole individual wealth is in the range of $2 million.
Read More: Where Are Jerry and Becki Falwell Now?
