A weekly news update from The Alaska United Methodist Conference | |
Churches of the Greater Northwest Area:
As you probably know, the Greater Northwest Area (GNW) will install its recently assigned Bishop Cedrick D. Bridgeforth on May 20, 2023, during a service livestreamed for the area from Juneau, Alaska. This event will also open several weeks of conferencing across the region.
To welcome Bishop Cedrick, the GNW Worship Team is commissioning a custom quilted stole using fabric from around the area. We are inviting each local church and ministry to send one 2"x2" fabric square in the color and pattern of your choice to:
Stanwood United Methodist Church
C/O Justin White
9809 271ST Street NW
Stanwood WA 98292
Please send your fabric square along with a short note including your name and the name of your church/ministry no later than April 15th. Every effort will be made to include every swatch, representing more than 400 churches and ministries Bishop Cedrick now shepherds in the GNW.
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Mission Team Leader Training
As we move into the post Covid time, UMVIM teams are starting to reconnect with their mission sites or finding new places to explore and serve those in need both domestically and internationally.
United Methodist Volunteers in Mission (UMVIM) is one way to put your Christian faith into action by organizing and leading a mission team. Mission teams address all kinds of needs in our world - disaster recovery, medical, immigration issues, education and many others. The possibilities are countless.
To help prepare you to lead a mission team, join us on Saturday, April 22nd for the next Team Leader Training. This will be virtual from 8:00 a.m. – 12:30 AK. You will learn about the mission lifecycle from planning through returning home, including the nuts and bolts of leading a team, why we serve, cultural aspects, health and safety concerns, resources, and more.
For team leaders who have already been trained, there is a Team Leader Training Refresher on April 13th from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. AK This will include a brief review of the UMVIM Team Leader Training, updates on resources, insurance, and other team requirements and a question-and-answer period.
To register for the Team Leader Training on April 22nd go to https://forms.gle/qNSUPS6Zik6fgGjMA
To register for the Team Leader Training Refresher on April 13th go to
https://forms.gle/YbKQ6K4qvJYNaS91A
For more information contact: Ronda Cordill at umvimwj@gmail.com.
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Annual Conference Related News | | |
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REGISTRATION IS OPEN!
You are warmly invited to attend the 52nd session of the Alaska Annual Conference, June 4-6, 2023 at Fairbanks First United Methodist Church.
There is a MEMBER registration for any Lay Members to Annual Conference, Alternate Members attending, Clergy, and a few more.
The IN PERSON GUEST registration is for guests and anyone else that wants to attend that has no voting privilege.
Even if you are participating via ZOOM, we ask that you register so that you will be able to receive the proper links when it is time.
If your child(ren) will be attending with you, please register them on the CHILD CARE registration form.
As always, if you have any questions, please contact the conference office.
MEMBER Registration
IN PERSON GUEST Registration
CHILD CARE Registration
Hotel Information
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Ministry Display Requests
If your United Methodist related organization would like to have display space during this year's Annual Conference, please submit the request to the Conference Office for consideration.
Display requests are due May 7, 2023
Display Request
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Award Nominations
If you know someone who has an exceptional ministry for evangelism - expressed in word, sign, or deed - please consider nominating them for a Harry Denman Award. Any Youth, Lay, or Clergy can be nominated.
Do you know a Lay Person who has gone above and beyond in various areas of ministry and or service to their local church? Now is your chance to nominate them for the Outstanding Lay Person of the Year.
Let's recognize the amazing people in our conference!
Nominations are due April 23, 2023.
Harry Denman Award (Youth, Lay, & Clergy)
Outstanding Lay Person of the Year
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Petitions
Do you have any legislation you would like to bring to the floor of the Annual Conference? This is your one time of year to implement change to matters that pertain to the Alaska Conference or the greater United Methodist Church.
Petitions are due April 23, 2023.
Petition form
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Dates & Information
We want to keep the preliminary dates announced for clergy sessions, annual conference sessions and special-called sessions to consider church disaffiliations in front of you. More details on each session will be forthcoming.
Alaska Specific information is:
- Service of Installation for Bishop Bridgeforth & GNW Opening Session, May 20, livestream only from Aldersgate UMC in Juneau
- Alaska Clergy gathering, May 25, online only
- Alaska Conference Session, June 4-6, hybrid from First UMC Fairbanks in Fairbanks
- GNW Closing Session, June 15, livestream only
- Alaska Special Called Session, May 6, online only
Read more of this story on the GNW News site.
Below are some tentative dates related to the Alaska Conference Session. Please note that some of the dates may shift a little:
- Reports Due - April 15
- Publish Pre-Conference Handbook - May 1
- Registration Closes - May 16
- Memorial Information Due - May 16
FORMS ARE NOW POSTED ON THE CONFERENCE WEBSITE FOR ANNUAL CONFERENCE!
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Greater Northwest Area News | |
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S.L.A.M. trips to offer GNW Area youth an opportunity to learn about native culture and perspectives
Youth (grades 7-12) and their leaders from across the Greater Northwest Area are invited to come together for a unique opportunity to get to know one another as they learn about and serve the Yakama community July 16-21 for a S.L.A.M. trip (Students Learning About Mission) on the Yakama Nation reservation in Wapato, Washington.
Learn more on the GNW website.
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Bishop Cedrick invites everyone to NLI Boise
Less than one month away, Bishop Cedrick Bridgeforth is inviting laity and clergy to attend the Northwest Leadership Institute at Boise First United Methodist Church (Cathedral of the Rockies) April 26-27. Bridgeforth, along with newly-elected WJ Bishops Dottie Escobedo-Frank of the California-Pacific Conference and Carlo Rapanut of the Desert Southwest Conference, will talk about what a post-pandemic church can look like or be like. They'll be joined by Bishop Jos Therakan of the Episcopal Diocese of Idaho and Rev. Duane Anders, lead pastor at Boise First UMC. Group workshops are also planned.
Learn more and register on the NLI website.
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New Lay Servant Ministry Course offered
Lay Servant Advanced Course: The Method of Our Mission (UM Polity)
May 9 - May 25, 2023 (Thurs & Tues 5 - 7 PM AKDT)
Register by May 2
To register, email Emily Kroen and provide your Name, Address, Phone # and your local church setting.
This course is available through Zoom. The only cost is the book.
To find out more information or ask questions email Emily Kroen.
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Easter: A kid-friendly explanation
Using simple and relatable language, without oversharing, is key to helping children understand the multilayered, complex Easter story.
Read
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Creativity meets the sacred
Discover new perspectives on Christ's final hours through United Methodist artists' interpretation of the Stations of the Cross using a variety of mediums.
Be inspired
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United Methodist Communications releases 2022 Annual Report
United Methodist Communications has released its 2022 Annual Report highlighting the agency’s communications initiatives and activities on behalf of The United Methodist Church around the world.
These numbers highlight some of the agency’s accomplishments in 2022:
- 16.5 million web page views
- 1.72 million social media followers
- 316,000+ newsletter subscribers
- 695,000 messages sent/received through UMConnect text messaging services
- 17% increase in overall giving to United Methodist Connectional Giving
- 84.5% increase in online chat sessions at Ask the UMC
Learn more about the agency’s work over the past year by viewing their annual report at: https://www.ResourceUMC.org/UMCom-Reports.
Read the entire press release
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Native American Ministries pastor and leader kit
Explore these resources to learn how and why United Methodists celebrate Native American Ministries Sunday. Invite your faith community to give generously, knowing that half of the gifts remain in the conference to support local Native American ministries; create programs and resources; and educate and support seminary scholarships for United Methodist Native Americans. Core resources are available in multiple languages. Native American Ministries Sunday is April 23, 2023.
Download now
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Church reimagines Charles Wesley hymns
Northside United Methodist Church worship leader Matt Jackson reimagined how some of Charles Wesley’s traditional hymns could sound with a modern melody. The result is “The Faith We Sing,” a short album featuring recordings of “O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing,” “Soldier of Christ Arise” and “Love Divine, All Loves Excelling.” People can listen to the album wherever they stream music.
Read the story
Listen to the album
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Give your conversation a fresh start this spring with discussion guide
The world is entering a season of revival and new beginnings. As United Methodists, we are called to root ourselves in Christ and become a reclaimed, revived and renewed people of God. Dive into conversation with other United Methodists with this discussion guide. Offering relevant Scripture readings and conversation starters, it will help you discover more about who Christ is calling you to be in this moment for the church and for the world.
Download guide
Learn more
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Methodist-affiliated university closing
The board of trustees of Iowa Wesleyan University announced that the United Methodist-affiliated school will close at the end of this academic year. In a press release March 28, financial challenges were cited as the reason, including increased operating costs and the rejection of a proposal for federal COVID-19 funding.
Read the press release
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Donate to UMCOR US disaster response
Recent storms and tornadoes throughout the Mississippi Delta region caused massive destruction. More than 25 people died with dozens more injured. Amid this devastation, The United Methodist Church is responding with love and compassion to help rebuild lives. Your gift to UMCOR ensures that communities have the resources they need to rebuild and restore.
Give now
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4: Mission District Task Force meeting
6: Professional Church Worker check-in
7: Good Friday - Office Closed
9: Easter Sunday
10-17: Lisa on vacation
18: Tax Day
20: Leadership Team meeting
25-27: Cabinet Meeting in Idaho - Christina and Lisa attending
27: Mission District Task Force meeting
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1: First Day of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month
4: Leadership Team meeting
5: Cinco de Mayo
6: Alaska Special Session
14: Mother's Day
20: Bishop Bridgeforth's Installation & Annual Conference Opening Session
25: Mission District Task Force meeting
29: Memorial Day - Office Closed
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Submissions - If you have an article or event that you would like to share with the rest of the conference, submit it to the conference office by Tuesday at 9:00 am for consideration.
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We acknowledge that the Methodist Church is complicit with and rooted in the colonization of Alaska and recognize that we live in that ongoing legacy. We lament the harm and trauma that our faith community causes. John Wesley, founder of the Methodist Movement, summarized God’s directives with three Rules: do no harm, do good, and attend to the ordinances of God. We also celebrate the grace, the love, and the good that our church does that calls us to re-imagine mission through intentional discipleship with one another.
We will live into the transition to a Mission District committed to:
Alaska Conference Values
- The love of God, neighbor, and self, demonstrated by the deliberate embracing and valuing of differences, the leveling of imbalances between people and systems, and the intentional dismantling of inequities in whatever forms they present themselves.
- Healing, grace-filled mission with communities and churches that prioritizes local experiences and shares resources across time and distance through equitable relationships.
- Living into connectionalism by belonging to and trusting in one another to nurture relationships that celebrate the gifts each of our communities bring, allowing us to move forward in a decolonized way.
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