The lawsuit, filed by former adviser Philip Peterson, claims WaterStone—the sponsor of the Peterson Family Stewardship Fund—cut off his online access and halted a $1 million donation to Operation Mobilization, a Christian missionary group that had benefited from the fund for decades.
Gorden Peterson set up the $21 million fund in 2005 to support evangelical Christian causes, and the organization WaterStone, now known as Christian Community Foundation, became the legal custodian.
After Gordon’s death in 2019, his wife Ruth and son Philip served as advisers until Ruth’s death in 2021, after which Philip became sole successor adviser.
In March 2024, a Zoom call with WaterStone CEO Ken Harrison ended with the firm telling Peterson that further communication would cease, prompting him to seek board intervention.
Peterson’s complaint argues that WaterStone’s sponsorship agreement, which grants the firm ultimate control, nevertheless must honour his grant recommendations, and seeks a court‑ordered accounting and a transfer of the fund to another sponsor.
The court will hear arguments next month, potentially setting precedent for how donor‑advised funds balance sponsor discretion with successor adviser authority.