Reflections on Bishop Burgo’s

Episcopal Address

Wasn’t it great to be together at Annual Conference? For me, Annual Conference has always been a time to connect with friends and colleagues, experience worship, and be inspired by great preaching and teaching. This year did not disappoint. 

In his Episcopal Address, Bishop Burgos gave us a clear mandate – We’re. Going. Forward. Together.  Unapologetically sharing God’s hope with our communities. We are going to move our focus from institution to relationship-building by shifting from silos to connections. We need to get out of the church and into our communities. Bishop Burgos also encouraged us to build relationships by shifting from competition to collaboration. He said,” We are going to explore collaborations across the Conference. Competition speaks about individual agendas—collaboration celebrates our shared mission.”

Bishop Burgos said we need to find a new way to look at church vitality by shifting from a culture of growth to a culture of impact. By that he meant our church vitality should not be measured by the number of people in the pews or the dollars in the plate, but by people who would tell how their lives are better because of the ministries of the local church. Your church.

One of the best ways we can inspire others to follow Jesus is by telling our story. Sadly, there are many people who can tell a story of how they were harmed by the church. We need to do better. Once there was a time of testimony in worship, where people would share how God was at work in their life. “Can you give God a praise?” was the question asked. Few people these days are willing to share how their lives are better because of their faith in Jesus and their relationship with other Christians. That needs to change, and it needs to start with each one of us. 

This week, I want to challenge you to think about how being in relationship with Jesus and other believers has changed your life for the better. Just one little story. Can you give God a praise? Then I want you to ask God to put another person in your path this week who needs to hear that story. A story of hope. A story of encouragement. A story of joy. There are so many people in our world who are lonely, who are looking for purpose and meaning. You have a great gift to share with people: The gift of being part of the Body of Christ and the people called United Methodist. We are far from perfect, but we have much to offer. I’m praying you will be able to share your story with one other person and invite them to join us on the journey.

I’m praying for you. Please pray for me.

Grace and peace,

Sherri

Note From District Lay Leader

Hello, United Methodists of Upper NY… and more specifically the Mountain View District! At our June Annual Conference, a new logo and branding was revealed. Did you detect the difference?  The logo is no longer the Upper New York Annual Conference.  We will now refer to ourselves as The United Methodists of Upper New York. It’s subtle, but as Bishop Hector points out, one of our shifts is from institutions to people. We’re putting people first over institutions. As we move forward together, we want to showcase people who are fulfilling the vision of living the gospel and being God’s love to our neighbors in all places. Faithful friends, we have much to celebrate and we have much more work to do. We need to roll up our sleeves and head into our communities to offer Christ to others. We need to step out of our church walls and join forces with our fellow United Methodists across town, in the area, and throughout the Conference to share Christ’s transforming love. We are better together as we make the journey forward. May it be so!

Blessings for your journey,

Ann Welch Wood

Visiting the District Office

The office is generally open Monday-Thursday.

We would appreciate if you would PLEASE CALL FIRST before coming to the office. We occasionally work remotely and would not want you to make an unnecessary trip to the office to find that we are not in.

Please call 607-962-8047 or email the office at

mountainviewdistrict@unyumc.org

2023 Appointment Announcements

Click here to read the letter of how the processes for appointment discernment, retirement announcements, expressing interest in open churches, and transitioning churches.



Click here for the announcement of appointments

Here is the link to Livestream Recordings from Annual Conference 2023 (individual events)

• Opening Worship
• Episcopal Address
• Memorial Service  

Click here

Reminder: 2023 Annual Conference Survey

Time is running out to complete the survey about your experience at the 2023 Annual Conference session. All evaluations must be done by June 20. If you have already completed the survey, the Sessions Team values your input.

We Have A New Logo For Upper NY

Below you will find the link for the unveiling video along with links to download. Click here

New Superintendency Administrative Assistant Structure

to Begin July 1

As previously announced, United Methodists of Upper New York will begin a new structure for District Superintendents and District Administrative Assistants (AA's) on July 1, 2023. Each of the six District Superintendents (DS's) will serve two Districts and each will have an Administrative Assistant. Additionally, all District AAs will transition to working remotely (within the next six months) and collaboratively with one another. The phone numbers and emails for the District offices will remain the same until further notice.

The six AAS and the Districts they are assigned to are as follows:

• Lynn Moon will serve the Niagara Frontier and Cornerstone District under the leadership of DS, the Rev. Carlos Rosa-Laguer.

Patti Gridley will serve the Genesee Valley and Mountain View Districts under the leadership of DS, the Rev. Suzanne Block.

• Betsy O’Flynn will serve the Finger Lakes and Crossroads District under the leadership of DS, the Rev. Dr. Sherri Rood.

• Rosemary Dilorio will serve the Binghamton and Oneonta Districts under the leadership of DS, the Rev. Bon-Kolvik-Campbell.

• Tammi McAdam will serve the Northern Flow and Mohawk Districts under the leadership of DS, the Rev. Mike Weeden.

• Carrie Boyer will serve the Adirondack and Albany Districts under the leadership of DS, the Rev. Debbie Earthrowl.

We express our utmost gratitude to Anne Hutchins, Teresa Wood, Cindy Muder, and Charlie Camp for their remarkable 52 years of dedicated service as District AAs. As they embark on the next chapters of their lives, we extend our heartfelt wishes for an abundance of blessings to come their way.

Adirondack District Offering Lay Servant Courses

Please remember that you MUST Attend ALL class times & dates to receive credit.

All registrations and course fees must be in by the DUE DATE

For a registration form or more information, contact Arlene Schmidt at arlenedschmidt@gmail.com

Advanced Course: Heritage: Living Our United Methodist Beliefs

Registration opens May 2

Mondays: June 12, 19, 26, July 10 & 17: 6-9 p.m.

Zoom: Fee $15

Facilitator: Pastor Bruce Hazard

Basic Lay Servant Course

Registration opens May 2

Thursdays: June 15, 22, 29, July 6 & 13: 6-9 p.m.

Zoom: Fee $15

Facilitators: Paula McMahon, CLM & Jacqueline Kim, CLM

Advanced Course: Discover Your Spiritual Gifts

Registration opens June 1

Tuesdays: July 11, 18, 25, August 1 & 8: 6-9 p.m.

Zoom: Fee $15

Facilitators: Jacqueline Kim, CLM & Paula McMahon, CLM

Advanced Course: Leading Worship

Registration opens June 19

Mondays: July 31, Aug. 7, 14, 21, & 28: 6-9 p.m.

Zoom: Fee $15 

Facilitator: Pastor Bruce Hazard

Advanced Course: Leading Prayer

Registration opens July 13

Thursdays: August 24, 31, Sept 14, 21 & 28: 6-9 p.m.

Zoom: Fee $15

Facilitator: Jacqueline Kim, CLM

Advanced Course: Polity

Registration opens July 25

Tuesdays: September 5, 12, 19, & 26: 6-9 p.m.

Zoom: Fee $15

Facilitator: Pastor Bruce Hazard

Advanced Course: Discover Your Spiritual Gifts

Registration opens August 24

Thursdays: October 5, 12, 19, 26, & Nov 2: 6-9 p.m.

Zoom: Fee $15

Facilitator: Jacqueline Kim, CLM

Advanced Course: Called to Preach

Registration opens September 26

Tuesdays: November 7, 14, 28, Dec. 5 & 12: 6-9 p.m.

Zoom: Fee $15

Facilitator: Jacqueline Kim, CLM

Opening to Grace 2023 Retreats

Co-director of the Mountain View District Lay Servant Ministry and Gestalt Pastoral Care Minister, Deaconess Susan Sihan, RN.

These retreats will be Hybrid In Person and Online.

• Sept. 14-16
• Oct. 26-28

Click here for flyer and more information

2023 Safe Sanctuary Trainings

The UNY Safe Sanctuaries Team has scheduled four, 3.5 hour Zoom basic trainings in 2023. There will also be Training of Trainers sessions.

The Basic trainings take place 9 AM to 12:30 PM, Saturdays: Aug. 5 and Nov. 4.

The Training of Trainers will be 9 AM to Noon, Saturday, Oct. 7.

The Basic training is for all clergy and anyone working with children or vulnerable adults. The Training of Trainers is for anyone who would like to become a church or District Safe Sanctuaries trainer in the UNY Conference. You need to have taken the Basic Training first.

If you need training between these dates, or would like to host an in-person training, please contact the District Office or send an email to the Safe Sanctuaries team, safesanctuaries@unyumc.org.

Registration for the February training will open Jan. 4. Look for the link in upcoming announcements.

For more information regarding Safe Sanctuaries, visit the Conference website: Click here. To view the poster, click here.

New York Releases Revised Sexual Harassment Prevention Model Policy & Training

May 2023/By Tracy Rickett, UNY Human Resources Generalist

The New York State Department of Labor (DOL), in consultation with the New York State Division of Human Rights, recently released a

revised sexual harassment model policy. At the same time, the DOL released a revised model sexual harassment prevention training, which includes changes similar to those made to the policy.

Click here for full news article.

Mandatory Workplace Posters to be Available Electronically

New York employers are required to make all mandatory workplace posters – both federal and state – available to employees electronically, either on a website or by email. Employers are required to provide notice to employees that the documents required for physical posting are also available electronically. Each NYS employer is required to provide both the physical poster in the workplace and digital versions. They can be located at the 2 websites listed below – one for federal posters and one for state posters.

Attention Churches

If you are considering…

Buying or selling a church building, a parsonage or other church property,

including land, or Undertaking major renovations to existing properties, or

Building a new church, parsonage, education building

or an addition to an existing building,

There are certain procedures that must be followed. 

The Book of Discipline - Chapter Six - Church Property

(page 733 in the 2016 version)

describes in detail the requirements that must be met in

order to do these things.



Please contact the District Office

607-962-8047

mountainviewdistrict@unyumc.org

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