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Bishop Frank J. Beard has announced the appointment of Rev. Nic Showalter and Rev. Angie Eunjoo Lee as conferencesuperintendents, effective July 1.
"Both Rev. Showalter and Rev. Lee have the leadership gifts and graces that are respected and noted by their clergy peers," Beard said in making the announcement. "They also have strong connections with the laity that have served."
Beard has appointed Showalter to the LaMoine River District, succeeding the Rev. C. Douglas Rorex but Beard has also announced that Lee will be appointed to a district later in the appointment season.
"The Cabinet is being reorganized and reshaped in an effort to place superintendents in districts where their individual gifts might best be utilized," Beard said. "I will share the completed Cabinet assignments by the end of February."
Beard also alluded to this year's unusual appointment season where a large number of retirements, especially from larger churches, might also impact the makeup of the Cabinet. When asked if that means there may be additional superintendent vacancies as a result, Beard replied, "It's possible."
Read more...
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Clergywomen Lenten Retreat March 23
Bishop Frank J. Beard is inviting clergywomen and laywomen serving local churches to a Lenten Retreat March 23 at the Chiara Center, 4875 LaVerna Road, Springfield. There is no cost but registration is required prior to March 15.
Register online...
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2017 Annual Conference links
Several items related to the 2017 Annual Conference which will be June 8-10, at the Peoria Civic Center has been posted to the IGRC website.
The main page for the 2017 Annual Conference is: www.igrc.org/ac2017. Secondary pages are found to the right-hand menu area. Additional pages will be added as information becomes available.
Registration will open April 1. However, the following information is available now:
- Secretary's letter from Annual Conference Secretary Joy Caschetta. This letter along with an annual conference checklist will be arriving in the mail but you can view it online now.
- Annual Conference Checklist includes a list of deadlines, some of which have changed due to the shortened annual conference schedule.
- Hotel list of the Annual Conference block of rooms. Conferees are responsible for making their own reservations. Now is the best time to reserve your room. Rates are guaranteed through May 16, but rooms are assigned on a first-come, first-served basis.
- Request for Special Meals. Due to the shortened schedule and workshops being scheduled over the noon hours on Thursday and Friday, groups may have to choose alternate times for their special meals. Requests need to be made by March 6.
- Request for Display Space. Setup and tear down times have been modified to conform to the new schedule. Requests need to be made by March 27.
- Information on submitting reports/resolutions. Provides a summary on the process for submitting items for consideration by the Annual Conference. Includes the deadlines, dates and responsibilities.
- Information on A/V and tech support. Information for presenters at the Annual Conference. Includes deadlines to ensure third-party items work with the equipment and those who seek help for creative assistance by IGRC Communications. Deadlines are strictly enforced! Plan early!
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LifeTouch Studios is now setting up online appointments for clergy to have their photos taken at the 2017 Annual Conference on June 8 and 9.
A new clergy directory will be produced this year. Clergy who had their photos taken at Covenant Keepers 2017 will not need to have them taken again.
There is no cost for having one's photo taken. Persons will receive a free 8 x 10 or wallet size photos and clergy photo badges can be purchased at the time of the shooting.
Click the photo to the right to be taken to the appointment page.
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'Hidden Figures' mathematician raised Methodist
United Methodists in White Sulphur Springs remember Katherine Coleman Goble Johnson - the main character in the movie "Hidden Figures" - counting steps as a child.
Sara Carter and Carolyn Bond, members of St. James United Methodist Church, recalled that Johnson grew up near the church. Johnson attended St. James Methodist, which was then an African American church and was the predecessor of the current St. James.
"She definitely was known for counting her steps. She knew exactly how many steps it was from her house down Church Street to St. James Methodist Church," Bond said. In the movie, Johnson is shown counting steps in the country.
Read more...
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Black History Month Resources
A group of Black History Month Resources have been posted on the IGRC website at: www.igrc.org/blackhistory.
Video resources produced by the Revs. Shane Bishop and Troy Benton in cooperation with Christ Church Communications are included as well as several videos and other resources from United Methodist Communications.
Another resource to consider is: www.soundtheology.org A courageous and creative radio program of the United Methodist Church preserved those voices, and a current collaboration digitizes those old audio tapes, making the prophetic voices heard again. Ralph Abernathy, Muhammad Ali, James Baldwin, and Julian Bond can be heard anytime on the website that makes these programs available to all.
You can hear the contemporaneous thoughts of Stokely Carmichael, Shirley Chisholm, Eldridge Cleaver, and Ruby Dee - thanks to a radio program called Night Call that United Methodist Communications created and ran in 1968-69. Night Call originated at a studio at Riverside Church in New York City.
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Free surgery for Ebola survivors
A partnership involving Emory University, Christian Blind Mission and other organizations is providing free cataract surgery to Ebola survivors at the Ruth and Lowell Gess United Methodist Eye Hospital.
The project also involves research to evaluate the persistence of the Ebola virus in the ocular fluid. This could help determine why so many Ebola survivors require eye surgery, Dr. Jessica Shantha, an ophthalmologist and Emory eye team member, told United Methodist News Service. Emory University is a United Methodist-related institution and the eye center is part of the university's School of Medicine.
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Year-end reports available online
EZRA - the on-line tool for local churches to report their year-end statistics - is now available. One church has already submitted all three tables! We will be sending out instructions and reminders, but if you want to get a jump on it, the website is
http://ezra.gcfa.org
The username for your church is the six-digit number assigned to your church by GCFA (it is the same number found on your remittance reports from my office). The initial password is password. You will be prompted to change the password when you enter the system for the first time.
Deadline to submit your reports is March 31, 2017.
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Conference Center closed Feb. 20
The Conference Center will be closed Monday, Feb. 20, in observance of President's Day. The Center will reopen at 8 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 21.
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Sincerely,
Paul E. Black
Illinois Great Rivers Conference
217-529-2848
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