79th Annual General Convention in Austin, Texas
The 79 th General Convention of The Episcopal Church will convene for nine days in Austin, Texas beginning on July 5 and ending on July 13. It will include worship, legislative hearings and the crafting of legislation by 26 different legislative committees, and of course debate and action in both houses. 
 
General Convention is the triennial gathering of clergy and lay deputies (four of each from every diocese) and all bishops in the House of Deputies and the House of Bishops, respectively. When we meet, we are the second largest legislative body in the world. Every piece of legislation must be passed by both houses for it to become the church's practice. We are a bi-cameral legislature, just like our federal system of governance.
 
Every three years, numerous communicants of our own diocese participate tirelessly as volunteers, helping the Convention accomplish an extraordinary amount of business in a relatively short period of time.
 
Deputation and involvement from within the Diocese of Ohio:
 
Deputies from Diocese of Ohio:
LAY                                                    CLERGY
Dianne Audrick Smith, Chair
The Rev. Gay Clark Jennings
William A. Powel III, Vice Chair
The Rev. Percy Grant
Jane Freeman
The Rev. Debra Q. Bennett
James Simon
The Rev. Evan Fischer
 
Alternate Deputies from Diocese of Ohio:
LAY                                                    CLERGY
Richard Pryor III
The Rev. Dr. Brian Wilbert
Dennis Coughlin
The Rev. Alexander Barton
Karen Neilsen
The Rev. Jeanne Leinbach

The Rev. Elizabeth Frank

Bishops from the Diocese of Ohio:
The Rt. Rev. Mark Hollingsworth, Jr. 
The Rt. Rev. Arthur B. Williams, Jr.
The Rt. Rev. William D. Persell

House of Deputies Legislative Committees - Diocese of Ohio representatives:
  • Constitution and Canons: James Simon, Chair
  • Safeguarding and Title IV: the Rev. Elizabeth Frank, Legislative Aide
  • The Episcopal Church in Cuba: Dianne Audrick Smith; Dennis Coughlin, Legislative Aide
  • Social Justice & United States Policy: Jane Freeman
  • Social Justice & International Policy: the Rev. Evan Fischer, Dispatch Liaison
  • Prayer Book, Liturgy, and Church Music: the Rev. Debra Q. Bennett
  • Ministry: the Rev. Percy Grant
  • Churchwide Leadership: William Powel
  • Dispatch of Business: the Rev. Evan Fischer
  • Resolution Review Committee: William Powel
House of Bishops Legislative Committee:
  • Constitution and Canons: the Rt. Rev. Mark Hollingsworth, Chair
Other Participants:
  • Chaplain to the Official Youth Presence: the Rev. Vincent Black
  • ECW Distinguished Woman from the Diocese of Ohio: Nancy Sherwin
  • Executive Assistant to the President of the House of Deputies: Betsey Bell 
  • UTO Booth for Bellwether Farm: Katie Ong-Landini
  • Media Coverage: Jessica Rocha
80 Nominees for Various Churchwide Offices:
  • President, House of Deputies: the Rev. Gay Clark Jennings
  • Church Pension Fund Trustee: James Simon
  • Governing Board of Examining Chaplains: the Revs. John Drymon and Rosalind Hughes
  • Executive Council: William Powel
  • General Theological Seminary Trustee: Dianne Audrick Smith
Volunteers: 
  • Betty Kondrich
  • The Rev. Mary Staley
  • Yorki Encalada
  •  Bill DiTirro
  • Dale Murphy
  • The Rev. Rosalind Hughes
  • Andy Bell
General Convention Resources:
Other (Independent) Resources:
Social Media:
  • Follow along with General Convention on social media with #GC79.
  • You can add a custom Diocese of Ohio General Convention Facebook profile frame. For directions, visit our Facebook page.