In this edition of GPconnect:
ANNOUNCEMENTSKansas Area United Methodist Foundation announces new president and CEO
Conference offices closed Friday, July 4 for Independence Day
Contacting the Wichita office the morning of July 8
Lost and found items from our Annual Conference Session
EQUIP DISCIPLES
Have you seen the new UMC Handbook?
Holy Land study tour – Feb. 9-19, 2015
Chapel Hill UMC offers senior ministry lunch and learn event
Money and Ministry June 2014
Newsletter links
Small Wonders: a conference for laity and clergy in small membership churches
CLERGY EXCELLENCE
TiM associates gather in Lincoln, Neb.
MERCY AND JUSTICE
Countdown to Zero: Just Save One
Healing Communities event held in Wichita, Kan.
Micah Corps update
GBCS skeptical of Obama ‘actions’ on unaccompanied children, immigration
Sunday of Prayer for the Peaceful Reunification of the Korean Peninsula
New workshops added to Walking with Palestinian Christians conference
CLASSIFIED
Organ free to church in need
Madison Avenue UMC looking for pianist
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Kansas Area United Methodist Foundation announces new president and CEO
The Kansas Area United Methodist Foundation is pleased to announce the hiring of Alan D. Herndon as president and CEO of the foundation.
Herndon has a long history with the United Methodist Church growing up as a lifelong United Methodist. The son of a United Methodist Clergy person in Oklahoma, he has served in United Methodist higher education at Oklahoma City University and Saint Paul School of Theology in areas of recruitment, marketing, admissions and most recently, director of development for the Missouri United Methodist Foundation.
Herndon has a Bachelor of Science in psychology and a Master of Education/Professional Counseling from Oklahoma City University
Herndon is a member of Platte Woods UMC, in Platte Woods, Mo., where he has served as a lay member to the Missouri Annual Conference for the past seven years. As a member of the Missouri Board of Ordained Ministry and Heartland North District Committee on Ministry, he appreciates staying involved with those called into the ministry
Herndon and his wife, Elisha, have two children, Reese and Jake, who will be moving to Hutchinson in preparation for his July 14 start date. The Foundation looks forward to the many skills and experience that Alan brings to the position.
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Conference offices will be closed Friday, July 4 for Independence Day
The Great Plains Methodist Conference offices in Lincoln, Topeka and Wichita will be closed Friday, July 4, in observance of Independence Day. We wish everyone a happy, safe and blessed day.
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Contacting the Wichita office the morning of July 8
If you need to call or email staff at the Wichita office on Tuesday, July 8, please do so after 10:30 or 11 a.m. The Wichita office will be having maintenance performed to the voice and Internet services on July 8, from 8-10:30 a.m., and will be without those services for roughly 2.5 hours.
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Lost and found at our Annual Conference Session
Did you lose something at the Great Plains Annual Conference Session held in Lincoln, Neb? If so you may be in luck. Here is a list of items left at the event:
•Light weight green jacket
•Black chalice bag with gold emblem
•Navy blue hat
1.Two pairs of sunglasses
2.Black aviators
•Leopard/mint green
•Virgin Health Miles pedometer
•Canon camera cord
•Nikon camera battery
•Black mug
•Purple plastic covering, small
•Three books
1.“The Glass Castle” by Jeannette Walls
2.“We are the Church: Nebraska United Methodist Tell Their Stories”
3.“Flames on the Plains: A History of United Methodism in Nebraska” by Don W. Holter
If any of these items belong to you, contact Dana Reinhardt at dreinhardt@greatplainsumc.org or 402-464-5994 ext. 105.
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Have you seen the new UMC Handbook?
The new United Methodist Handbook is now available in an easy-to-read and share digital format.
The Handbook is among the best resources for laity providing leadership, people new to The United Methodist Church and clergy who occasionally get stumped by a question. It includes:
•United Methodist teachings,
•church structure and organization,
•denominational initiatives,
•what it means to be a worldwide church,
•connectional giving information,
•a glossary of United Methodist terms … and much more.
You can also download the Handbook for off-line reading, print pages for new member classes, leader training and other events and send it to others. We've provided a 19 mb PDF as well as a 60 mb PDF which may be preferred for printing.
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Holy Land study tour – Feb. 9-19, 2015
This tour of the Holy Land is a unique opportunity for clergy and laity alike. The “Study Tour Trip to the Holy Land” has been planned with the help of the Methodist Liaison to Palestine/Israel, the Rev. Kristen Brown. In accordance with United Methodist resolutions concerning travel in the Holy Land, the trip will be led by Palestinian and Israeli guides to offer a “dual dialogue” look at the issues affecting this troubled land.
Carol Garwood from St. Paul UMC in South Sioux City, Neb., will be the team leader and point of contact for additional information regarding the trip. This will be Carol’s fourth trip to the Holy Land, her second serving as team leader. Carol states “When Rev. Kristen Brown and I were discussing and planning for this trip, it was our hope that possibly people who may serve as delegates to General Conference in 2016 may be interested in participating, as well as pastors and lay leaders. However, the trip is open to anyone who would like to gain more knowledge of the situation in the Holy Land as well as to experience the holy sites.”
While participants will take some time to visit the traditional “holy sites”, such as the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem and the Sea of Galilee, much of the focus will be on interacting with local Christians (sometimes referred to as the “Living Stones”).
View the flier for additional information. You can also contact Carol Garwood at 1212 Dakota Ave., Dakota City, NE 68731 or at jbcjsc@aol.com.
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Chapel Hill UMC offers senior ministry lunch and learn event
Rick Eberhard, director for senior ministries for the Chapel Hill UMC, in Wichita, Kan., has announced they will be hosting a lunch and learn seminar with Wichita attorney Jason Brock on Monday, July 13, 2014.
The lunch and learn seminar will be held at 11:30 a.m., in the fellowship hall at the church located at 1550 N. Chapel Hill Drive in east Wichita. A light lunch will be served. Brock will be discussing Kansas health care directives such as durable power of attorney, living will, DNR-do not resuscitate directives and more.
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Money and Ministry June 2014
The June 2014 edition of Money and Ministry, features a book by J. Clif Christopher titled “The Church Money Manual.” Adam Hamilton, senior pastor at Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kan., penned the following endorsement:
“This book should be required reading for every seminary student, every local church pastor, and every layperson involved in the stewardship ministry of his or her church, regardless of the denomination.”
Gary Beach, treasurer and director of administrative services for the Great Plains Conference, said about the book:
“Clif has, in this book, tried to address many of the questions and concerns he has heard during his years of work in the field of stewardship. The book is a collection of his essays on such things as capital campaigns, debt, pastors’ knowledge of donors and money, planned giving, a church’s expectation of its members, tithing and how to lead it, help for hard times, plus lots of other topics. Each is addressed in his down-to-earth style that leaders in stewardship and finance (as well as clergy) can study and struggle with in terms of its application to their own context for ministry.”
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Newsletter links
•Christian Copyright Solutions: June 2014
•Big Garden: July 2014
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Small Wonders: a conference for laity and clergy in small membership churches
Laity and clergy from churches with 75 people or fewer in worship needing resources and ideas for vital ministry will want to attend the Small Wonders conference. If you have ever been to a workshop and thought, “This is great – but it’s not feasible in our congregation,” this is the conference for you! The sessions are intended to create an experience that will help you in your congregation when you get home.
The conference will be held Friday, Oct. 10, at 5 p.m., through Saturday, Oct. 11, at 5 p.m., on the campus of Kansas Wesleyan University in Salina, Kan. Save the date and go to GreatPlainsUMC.org/SmallWonders for more information including names of speakers and a list of workshop topics.
•Download the event flier.
•Register online.
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TiM associates gather in Lincoln
Transition into Ministry (TiM) associates met at St Mark’s UMC, in Lincoln, Neb., on June 24-26, to welcome three new associates.
The time together was spent time setting learning goals with the mentoring pastors, engaging in hands on mission work in Lincoln and talking about ministry. Bishop Scott Jones shared his thoughts about clergy leadership and the TiM program. He said that the intent behind the TiM program is to give the TiM associates the best start as they transition into full-time ministry in the local church, and that we expect to learn some things that should be applicable to everyone coming into ministry.
The retreat closed with worship and the commissioning of the associates and mentoring pastors.
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Countdown to Zero: Just Save One
AIDS conference to be in Denver, Co., Sept. 11-13
Four United Methodist bishops, an international medical AIDS specialist, two seminary professors from Zimbabwe and Kenya, local United Methodist pastors, a Muslim woman, and persons living with HIV will be among featured speakers at the upcoming equipping conference for HIV & AIDS ministries here, Sept. 11-13.
The conference, “Countdown to Zero: Just Save One,” will emphasize how to prevent HIV infections and deaths from AIDS. It builds on the motto of UNAIDS: “Getting to Zero: No new HIV infections, no discrimination, and no new AIDS deaths.”
The Great West District featured an article about the conference in their monthly newsletter.
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Healing Communities event held in Wichita, Kan.
The prison ministry teams at St. Mark UMC and Dellrose UMC worked together to host the first Healing Communities event in Wichita Kan. The teams worked together to gather resource material, speakers, food and door prizes for the event that provided information to returning citizens and their families.
The event, held at St. Mark UMC in Wichita, Kan., on June 21, welcomed 43 returning citizens (including family and friends) – 20 women and 13 men. The speaker from Oxford House, a self-run, self-supported, addiction recovery center, and Pastor Laura Broyles from New Haven, a short-term center for women transitioning out of the jail/prison system, were able to address the needs for four homeless persons who needed immediate help with their circumstances. Four persons wanted letters written to persons in jail/prison, and one wanted someone to go with them to court.
Employment resource materials and insightful employment community contacts were also provided. Cheryl Stevenson from United Methodist Open Door explained the broad and multiple services provided to the community. She had pamphlets available and was present to discuss specific situations with attending participants. Vic Chavez, AD/program specialist in the educational opportunity centers program at Wichita State University, gave a presentation on the services provided by TRIO, for those who need GED and further higher training and/or education. TRIO is a set of college opportunity programs at Wichita State University, that motivate and support students from disadvantaged backgrounds in their pursuit of a college degree, Kelly O’Malia, community outreach coordinator for State of Kansas Child Support Services explained their services and desire to help persons with arrears and make plans to pay the support owed to children.
Oxford House representative, Justin Flores, gave his personal testimony and shared the workings of the Oxford House program. One valuable piece of information he shared is that a person incarcerated in jail or prison can contact the Wichita Oxford House Program 30 days before discharge to receive an application and eventually interview for housing. Nancy Jackson, licensed master social worker, presented information on how to expunge a criminal record and the returning citizen’s right to vote. A person with a felony can legally vote in Kansas after that person has served their sentence and are no longer under the custody of the Kansas Department of Corrections. The person must register and follow the voting guidelines that other Kansas citizens follow in order to vote.
There were a number of door prizes donated including tickets to the Wichita Wingnuts baseball game, hair braiding valued at $50, a $100 grocery gift card for Dillons and numerous $25 gift cards for gas at QuikTrip.
The participants were invited to a meeting on Saturday June 28, at 10 a.m., at St. Mark UMC for a follow up from the Healing Communities initial event. The teams’ goals are to
1.Provide information and resources to returning citizens, their family and friends
2.Write letters to persons in jail and/or prison
3.Attend court hearings, parole board meetings, or provide other support to the returning citizen, their family and/or friends.
If you are interested in being a part of this movement, contact Obadiah Blackmon at 316-258-5835 or obadiahblackmon@yahoo.com or Nancy Jackson at 316-990-2149 or nancyandjackie@yahoo.com. Learn more about Healing Communities at www.HealingCommunitiesUSA.com.
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Micah Corps update
Micah Corps share at Institute, a week long high school camp held at Baker University in Baldwin, Kan. Through the week of June 22-28, the Great Plains Micah Corps led workshops on immigration, children in poverty, environment and peace/nonviolence, coordinated games with a purpose (and fit in an interview with Bishop Jones). Check out photos and videos of their week at Facebook.com/MicahCorps.
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GBCS skeptical of Obama ‘actions’ on unaccompanied children, immigration
Humanitarian response needed for children fleeing Central America violence
The following was submitted by Andrea Paret, Peace with Justice coordinator, and includes excerpts of the GBCS statement.
The General Board of Church & Society (BGCS) of The United Methodist Church is concerned by President Obama’s announced plans yesterday to address the presence in the United States of unaccompanied children fleeing violence in Central America and his continued reliance upon deportations as a salve for the immigration reform the House of Representatives has obstinately refused to enact.
While we welcome the president’s request to Congress for additional funding concerning the humanitarian crisis of unaccompanied children, we are shocked that he would ask Congress to also grant the administration further power to expeditiously deport these innocent children. We condemn the administration's proposal for its emphasis on removing, detaining and denying these children access to life-saving protection.
The president's letter asking Congress to change current law to allow for the expedited deportation of children without due process is appalling and should be rescinded immediately.
Address underlying causes
Both President Obama and House leaders, in their respective announcements, have failed to address the underlying problems causing these children to flee. The violence in Central America has nothing to do with border security or interior enforcement in the United States.
The solution to this crisis lies in greater emphasis on addressing the root causes for the violence and forced migration. Areas for deeper analysis include, but are not limited to:
•Ensuring that respect for human and labor rights are a central component of all bilateral and regional trade negotiations, and
•Considering the implications of U.S. counter-narcotics policies that have negative impacts such as violence against women, human rights violations, and forced displacement.
We should seriously consider the asylum requests of those fleeing from the South. We should also respond to these children in a humanitarian manner instead of deporting them at a faster pace as the president has urged.
These actions would finally make the immigration policies of the United States consistent with the values of faith and humanitarianism.
•Read the full article.
Social-justice agency skeptical of Obama ‘actions’ on unaccompanied children, immigration
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - July 01, 2014
The General Board of Church & Society of The United Methodist Church is concerned by President Obama’s announced plans yesterday to address the presence in the United States of unaccompanied children fleeing violence in Central America, and his continued reliance upon deportations as a salve for the immigration reform the House of Representatives has obstinately refused to enact.
While we welcome the president’s request to Congress for additional funding concerning the humanitarian crisis of unaccompanied children, we are shocked that he would ask Congress to also grant the administration further power to expeditiously deport these innocent children. We condemn the administration's proposal for its emphasis on removing, detaining and denying these children access to life-saving protection.
The president's letter asking Congress to change current law to allow for the expedited deportation of children without due process is appalling and should be rescinded immediately.
Address underlying causes
Both President Obama and House Leaders, in their respective announcements, have failed to address the underlying problems causing these children to flee. The violence in Central America has nothing to do with border security or interior enforcement in the United States.
The solution to this crisis lies in greater emphasis on addressing the root causes for the violence and forced migration. Areas for deeper analysis include, but are not limited to:
Ensuring that respect for human and labor rights are a central component of all bilateral and regional trade negotiations, and
Considering the implications of U.S. counter-narcotics policies that have negative impacts such as violence against women, human rights violations, and forced displacement.
We should seriously consider the asylum requests of those fleeing from the South. We should also respond to these children in a humanitarian manner instead of deporting them at a faster pace as the president has urged.
A separate issue
On a separate issue, we support President Obama’ s announcement that he will take executive action to address the 11 million undocumented immigrants now living in the United States. We are skeptical, however, that his words will lead to much-needed alleviation from suffering. For far too long we have heard the administration claim that its deportation policy focuses only on immigrants deemed a threat to the United States. Over 2 million deportations later and innumerable families torn apart, we know this not to be true. It is time for action, not announcements.
Therefore, we strongly urge President Obama to:
suspend deportations,
end the Secure Communities program, and
allow all undocumented individuals to apply for deferred action.
These actions would finally make the immigration policies of the United States consistent with the values of faith and humanitarianism.
Bill Mefford
Director of Civil & Human Rights
General Board of Church & Society
The United Methodist Church
•Read the response from United Methodist Committee on Releif (UMCOR) and find out what you can do.
UMCOR Responds to Immigration CrisisJune 25, 2014—The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) responded today to a plea by the Southwest Texas Conference/Rio Grande Conference for emergency assistance to meet urgent needs of a “rising flow” of refugees crossing into the United States from Mexico.
In response to an appeal by Bishop James E. Dorff, who heads the joined conferences, Greg Forrester, UMCOR executive in charge of U.S. Disaster Response, expedited an emergency grant and told Bishop Dorff, “Our prayers are with you and the conference as you respond to this humanitarian crisis.”
Forrester indicated that UMCOR has been monitoring the situation at the border and the rising tide of need in its wake. He said he has been in contact with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Homeland Security, and White House Faith-based Initiatives to gauge an appropriate response.
According to the UMCOR executive, large numbers of women and children who have crossed the U.S./Mexico border and been apprehended by U.S. authorities there, have subsequently appeared on the steps of United Methodist border facilities and churches, and have received shelter, food, and other basic supplies. Read more here and here and here.
News accounts cite official figures of some 39,000 adults with children who have crossed the border since last October. Another 52,000 refugee minors have made the crossing on their own, without adult accompaniment, the reports said.
Earlier this month, President Barack Obama referred to the plight of the unaccompanied youths at the U.S. border as “an urgent humanitarian situation.”
‘A refugee crisis’
In a letter to UMCOR that detailed Bishop Dorff’s request, the Rev. Laura Merrill, a United Methodist district superintendent who oversees two districts at the border, described “a refugee crisis, with large numbers of women with children and unaccompanied children crossing our border in search of safe haven.”
Rev. Merrill said the communities of the districts she oversees “are all involved in interfaith response,” providing “welcome centers” that offer showers, a change of clothes, food, basic medical care and when possible, a place to sleep overnight.
“There is a great need for basic supplies for these sojourners,” she said. “We have no idea … how long this crisis will last, but there is every reason to believe it will extend through the summer.”
Rev. Edgar Avitia, Area Executive for Latin America and the Caribbean at the General Board of Global Ministries, of which UMCOR is a part, and a member of the affected conferences, reported that additional aspects of a broad response to the crisis continue to unfold.
These could include, he said, a partnership between First United Methodist Church of Laredo, Texas, and the Holding Institute, a United Methodist National Mission Institution, as well as efforts by Global Ministries and the National Plan for Hispanic/Latino Ministry.
In his message to Bishop Dorff, UMCOR’s Forrester recognized the work of United Methodists in the border area. “Thank you for being the church and offering UMCOR an opportunity to participate and meet the needs of those who have been relocated pending immigration appointments,” he wrote.
Your gift to UMCOR U.S. Disaster Response, Advance #901670, will enable UMCOR’s response to this and other emergencies.
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Sunday of Prayer for the Peaceful Reunification of the Korean Peninsula
The following was submitted by Andrea Paret, Peace with Justice coordinator.
At the first meeting since 2009 and since the 2013 appointment of a new leader for the Korea Christian Federation (KCF) of North Korea, an international group of church leaders from 34 countries, including North and South Korea, met to seek ways to advance reconciliation and peace on the Korean Peninsula.
"I believe this gathering of brothers and sisters of churches of various countries is a manifestation of the strong desire and will to pool efforts and actively contribute to the cause of peace and reunification on the Korean Peninsula," said the Rev. Kang Myong Chol, KCF chairperson, in his remarks to the group.
A recommendation is that the World Council of Churches encourages its nearly 350 member churches around the world to observe the Sunday before Aug. 15 each year, starting with August 10, 2014, as a "Sunday of Prayer for the Peaceful Reunification of the Korean Peninsula." Prayer resources will be made available.
The Reconciliation and Reunification Committee of the National Council of Churches in Korea (NCCK) will hold a “Peace Rally and Prayer for Peace on the Korean Peninsula” on July 25-26 in Washington, D.C. The NCCK will join with U.S. Christian denominations such as The United Methodist Church and Presbyterian Church (USA) to raise global interest and participation in the movement for peace and reunification of the Korean Peninsula.
Read more about the meeting.
Photo: Participants attending the World Council of Churches’ Korea consultation this month offer prayers for peace on the Korean Peninsula.
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New workshops added to Walking with Palestinian Christians conference
The United Methodist General Board of Global Ministries announced the full schedule of workshops for the upcoming “Walking with Palestinian Christians … for Holy Justice and Peace” conference. The Aug. 7-8, conference is being hosted and co-sponsored by Ginghamsburg United Methodist Church in Ohio.
Workshops will focus on biblical/theological perspectives; pilgrimage and presence; political, economic and social advocacy and actions; and involvement and positions within The United Methodist Church. Plenary speakers include Mike Slaughter, Ginghamsburg Church; Lynne Hybels, Willow Creek Community Church; Alex Awad and other Palestinian Christians, and Global Ministries’ Thomas Kemper. Bishop Ivan Abrahams, General Secretary, World Methodist Council; Bishop Gregory V. Palmer, West Ohio Conference; and Bishop Hope Morgan Ward, North Carolina Conference and president of Global Ministries, also will participate.
United Methodists from around the world — particularly those who undertake to visit the Holy Land — are increasingly aware of the political realities that affect Palestinians and Israelis. Legislation addressing the region is regularly introduced at the United Methodist General Conference, and is often accompanied by passionate conversation and debate. “Walking with Palestinian Christians … for Holy Justice and Peace” will bring United Methodists and Palestinian Christians together and provide opportunities for prayer, fellowship and study.
Global Ministries’ top executive Thomas Kemper says he is excited about the broad range of dialogue that he expects the workshops to foster. “While the topics are complex, this format gives us a framework to explore the situation through the unique lens of Palestinian Christians.”
Key staff and church leaders from across the Connection who want to be part of creating a just peace in Palestine and Israel are encouraged to register today.
•Read the full press release with the list of workshops.
•Read the conference website with registration details.
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Organ free to church in need
A Baldwin Organ, currently located in central Kansas, is available to a church - or individual - in need. This two-tiered organ, with foot pedals was purchased in the late 1970s and is in excellent condition. If interested or to see a picture, contact Joan Sutton at Joan_Sutton@hotmail.com.
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Madison Avenue UMC looking for pianist
Madison Avenue UMC in Derby, Kan., is in need of a part-time church pianist/accompanist for Sunday morning worship services in a small church. Responsibilities may also include accompanist for choir, including a Wednesday evening practice. Compensation is dependent on skill, training and experience. A live audition is requested. Skills required include accompanist experience and good interpersonal skills.
If you are interested, please send resume or questions to the Rev. Ed Friesen, Madison Avenue United Methodist Church, 900 E Madison Ave, Derby, KS 67037. You can also email maumc@sbcglobal.net or call 316-788-1073.
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Editorial Policy: The content, news, events and announcement information distributed in GPconnect is not sponsored or endorsed by the Great Plains Methodist Conference unless specifically stated.
Want to submit a letter to the editor? Email Kathryn Witte at kwitte@greatplainsumc.org
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