The Current Week in Review
December 15 2017
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Interim Director of Administrative Services named
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Bishop Frank J. Beard and the Conference Council on Finance and Administration have announced that Rick King has been named as the interim director of administrative services and conference treasurer, effective Jan. 1.
King, who serves as the Chief Financial Officer of the General Council on Finance and Administration, will be assisted by Elizabeth Redding who also works for GCFA as the Director of Treasury and Investment Management.
As the Chief Financial Officer for GCFA, King has oversight into the GCFA budget and general oversight in GCFA's role in the development of the quadrennial budget for The United Methodist Church.
Redding’s department at GCFA provides accounting and payroll functions for some of the general agencies and support of all
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general agencies for employee health insurance benefits, insurance reporting, and management of employee flexible spending accounts.
King and Redding were on-site Dec. 12-13 to plan for a smooth transition. They greeted conference staff and they were introduced at the Conference Center.
With the application deadline of Dec. 4 past, applicants and their submissions are being screened. It is anticipated that interviews will be conducted in early 2018 with a final selection made thereafter.
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Bishop announces times of conversation around
A Way Forward
Making a Way Forward Conversations will be held at the following locations. Please register on-line by clicking the link below for the location you wish to attend. There is no cost, but registration is requested to ensure adequate space for the expected crowd:
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IRS announces business mileage rate for 2018
at 54.5 cents per mile
The Internal Revenue Service Thursday issued the 2018 optional standard mileage rates used to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business, charitable, medical or moving purposes.Beginning on Jan. 1, 2018, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:
- 54.5 cents for every mile of business travel driven, up 1 cent from the rate for 2017.
- 18 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes, up 1 cent from the rate for 2017.
- 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations.
The business mileage rate and the medical and moving expense rates each increased 1 cent per mile from the rates for 2017. The charitable rate is set by statute and remains unchanged.
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Delay in Conference Journal publication
Due to technical issues, the 2017 Journal-Yearbook has been delayed.
The Conference Secretary is working to resolve the problem so that it can be sent to the printers and CD's can be duplicated and distributed after the first of the year.
Thank you for your patience.
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Clergy directory in the mail
Copies of the 2017 Clergy Directory were mailed out Thursday from the Conference Center.
If you had your photograph included in the clergy directory, you should receive a copy in the mail.
The print run was sufficient to provide a directory to persons who had new photos taken or supplied a photo for the directory.
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Covenant Keepers 2018
Online registration is underway for Covenant Keepers 2018 at the Regency Conference Center in O'Fallon. The Revs. Rudy and Juanita Rasmus will be the keynote speakers with the praise band from Christ Church in Fairview Heights leading the worship. Deadline for registration is Jan. 19.
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6-8
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
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Sexual Ethics Training
The mandatory quadrennial sexual ethics training will be held at three sites across the conference. Sites for the training are at Mt. Vernon West Salem Trinity UMC, Springfield First UMC and Peoria First UMC. This training is required for persons who are appointed or assigned to a local church
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Tommie L. Hood, elder brother of Bishop Frank J. Beard, died December 12, 2017. Tommie resided in Chicago, Illinois.
The family plans to hold a private memorial service. Bishop Beard expresses his appreciation for all for your kind expressions of sympathy and prayers during Tommie's extended battle with cancer. The Bishop is requesting prayer for two sisters, Nora and Pearl, as they continue to fight their battles with brain cancer. Please keep the Beard family in your thoughts and prayers.
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Carol Russell update
Carol is now eating soft solid foods: soft fruit and vegetables, ground meats, pastas, scrambled eggs, french toast, etc. No more puree foods. She requires thickened drinks. (Just in time for Advent, eggnog is acceptable)
She improves physically with each day, gaining increased use of her left side. She also improves in cognition.
She moves from Cape Girardeau Rehab Tuesday, 19th, to Carbondale for extended rehab at Neuro Restorative -20 minutes from home.
We hope to have her home in February.
Thank you for your prayers. Carol and I are deeply moved by your care.
Roger Russell
Cache River District Superintendent
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The Current:
Year-End Giving and 2018 Five-Star Mission Guide
The January 2018 issue of
The Current should be arriving early next week. This issue focuses on year-end giving and provides the 2018 Five-Star Mission Challenge booklet.
This is an issue you may wish to keep throughout the year as it provides Advance numbers for proper channeling of offerings.
Click on the cover above to view the January issue. To save it, right-click and choose "Save Link As..." and direct where you want it saved on your computer.
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Commission on A Way Forward issues resource
The Commission on a Way Forward and the Council of Bishops have provided a booklet that listed some of the resources that the Commission has been using as part of its preparation for the interim report it released in October.
The booklet also contains a page on the three proposed sketches of the models that bishops are using to have conversations in their respective areas.
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The Conference Center will close for the Christmas holiday at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 21 and will reopen at 8 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 2.
This will be the last issue of The Current Week in Review until Friday, Jan. 5.
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United Methodist Center Contact Information
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USPS (U.S. Postal Service)
P.O. Box 19207, Springfield, IL 62794-9207
Office Phone: 217-529-2040
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UPS and FedEx deliveries only use the street address:
United Methodist Center
5900 S. 2nd Street
Springfield, IL 62711
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