e~Aurora
A weekly news update from The Alaska United Methodist Conference
Conference News

Bridgeforth brings experience, collaborative mindset into new role as bishop of the GNW Area


Bishop Cedrick Bridgeforth will bring his skills of collaboration, outreach, pastoral care, communication, clergy coaching and more to his role as the episcopal leader for the Greater Northwest Area. | Read more of this story on the GNW News site.

Bishop Rapanut ready to be an authentic leader in the church


As he begins his journey as a bishop in the Western Jurisdiction of The United Methodist Church, Bishop Carlo A. Rapanut reflects on how his roots as a Filipino American impacted his call to ministry and the leadership he’ll provide the people of the Desert Southwest Conference beginning Jan. 1, 2023. | Read more of Bishop Rapanut's story on the Western Jurisdiction website.

Disaster Preparedness

GNW Disaster Preparedness + Response releases new video, learning guide for local churches


The Greater Northwest Area Disaster Preparedness + Response team has put together a video and learning guide that you can utilize in your local church to talk about this importance of this ministry as it applies to our collective work of serving our communities. | You can find the video and learning guide on our GNW website.

Giving Tuesday is rapidly approaching!


Giving Tuesday is a global generosity movement unleashing the power of radical generosity. There are several United Methodist related projects that would love your gifts of generosity, including places within our own state, on Tuesday, November 29, 2022!


Alaska Churches - Advance #931027

Birchwood Camp - Advance #931068

Downtown Ministries, First Ketchikan - Advance #3020487

Girdwood Chapel - Advance # 931007

Unalaska Outreach and Community Ministry - Advance #931855

Willow UMC - Advance #931511

Willow Church & Community Ministry - Advance #931520


Donate here on Giving Tuesday

Church and Clergy Profile forms due Dec.1


With the transition to retirement for our Bishop and the start of our new Bishop, all Clergy and Churches are being asked to update their profiles. Several weeks ago, a follow up email went out to clergy with instructions on how to access the People Portal. Once you have successfully logged into your personal People Portal, you will find your Clergy Profile form to the left. If you have problems, please contact the conference office and I can assist you. In addition to the Clergy Profile, this Biographical Information form needs to be filled out and returned. | PDF | Word


Each Church Profile also needs to be updated and that will be done through the Church Dashboard. Once you are on your church dashboard, you will find the Church Profile link to the left. 


Both of these profiles need to be completed online through these means. They are to be completed by December 1, 2022. Both the Church Dashboard and the People Portal can be accessed from the Conference website at the bottom of the page.


If you need assistance, please reach out to Crystal. She can help you with login information if needed.

Auction has started, come bake cookies!


Silent Auction

The Birchwood Camp Annual Auction is almost here! Bidding started yesterday, November 14th, and will end on November 20th at 6pm AKST.


Bid on handcrafted items, collectibles, vacation rentals, fun family packages, and more! Your donation will help complete the flooring project in the Lodge. You may also choose to send kids to future camps by donating to the Scholarship Fund. Click this link to view and explore the auction site.


Winter Youth Break-Away Camp

Registration for Winter Youth Break-Away is now open. January 4th-7th. For 6th through 12th graders. Register here.


Annual Community Cookie Baking Party

Birchwood Camp's Annual Community Cookie Baking Party is December 11th, 2022

Click here to register your family or here for more information

National and International News

Do you know the giving opportunities you have within the UMC?


From Special Sundays and the Advance to Annual Conference Sundays and local church celebrations, the opportunities to express generosity are endless! Use these simple one-page documents to learn about the multiple giving opportunities in the United Methodist Church and share with your congregation.


Download the resources

Native American relations to be studied


A study committee at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary will research the United Methodist-related seminary’s relations with Native Americans in the Midwest. The goal is to recommend a set of actions to pursue for the sake of justice and repair. 


Read the press release

Pastoral letter on bishop's continued suspension


California-Nevada Conference Bishop Minerva Carcaño remains under suspension although her suspension is being reviewed by the committee on investigation, writes the conference’s Interim Bishop Sally Dyck in a pastoral letter. The committee on investigation is the body that recommended her suspension after jurisdictional leaders initially did so for 60 days following confidential complaints. The jurisdiction's committee on episcopacy will consult with the committee on investigation to see if the recommendation that the bishop be suspended still holds. The episcopacy committee reassigned Carcaño to the California-Nevada Conference after bishop elections last week.


Read the letter

Give Love encourages yearend giving


Global Ministries, the worldwide mission and development agency of The United Methodist Church, invites churches and individuals to give love, joy, hope and peace through a denomination-wide yearend giving campaign. The United Methodist Committee on Relief, the denomination’s relief arm, is part of Global Ministries. 



Read the press release

To give

November is Native American Heritage Month


While The United Methodist Church observes Native American Ministries Sunday on the third Sunday after Easter, United Methodists are also encouraged to celebrate Native American Heritage Month in November. Also this month, United Methodists elected the denomination's first Native American episcopal leader, Bishop David Wilson.


See the worship resources

UM News: South Central elects Wilson as bishop

11 Facts about Native People in Society and The Church

Devotions available for Advent to Epiphany


As part of its FastPrayGive program, WesleyMen is offering an Advent through Epiphany devotional guide for Nov. 27 through Jan. 6. Wesley Men is an affiliate of the World Methodist Council. FastPrayGive is a global grassroots movement to end hunger by the means of grace.


Learn more and order guide

Organ donation gives United Methodist second chance


If you routinely check that organ/tissue-donor box on your driver's license, you may not give it a second thought. For United Methodist Jennifer Loud, however, that simple gesture saved her life. After receiving a double lung transplant in 2020, Loud is determined to seek and fulfill God's purpose every day.


Read the story

Empowering families by reimagining missions


After more than 20 trips to Africa to work primarily with vulnerable children who often lived in orphanages, Laura Horvath has determined that centuries-old wisdom about caring for underserved areas may need reimagining. On the latest episode of the "Get Your Spirit in Shape" podcast, Laura shares how the lessons she learned while working with communities across the world have led her to engage in a radical initiative to unite and empower families.


Listen to the podcast

Conference Calendar

15-17: GNW Cabinet meeting

17: Mission District Task Force/Leadership Team meeting

20: Charge Conference - Christ First UMC

21: Charge Conference - Ola Toe Fuataina Samoan Fellowship

24: Thanksgiving - Office Closed

25: Office Closed

27: Charge Conference - Anchor Park UMC

28: Charge Conference - Anchorage Korean UMC

29: Charge Conference - UMC of Sitka

1: Professional Ministries Unit meeting

1: Charge Conference - Homer UMC

4: Charge Conference - First UMC Fairbanks

4: Charge Conference - Every Nation UMC

5-8: Cabinet Meeting

11: Charge Conference - UMC of Chugiak

13: Charge Conference - St. John UMC & First UMC Anchorage

15: Charge Conference - First UMC Ketchikan

24: Office Closed

24: Christmas Eve

25: Christmas Day

26: Office Closed

31: New Year's Eve

Upcoming Clergy Birthdays


November 27 - Laura Krauss


December 23 - Christina DowlingSoka

Conference Office
907-333-5050

Superintendent - Christina DowlingSoka

Director of Connectional Ministries - Lisa Talbott
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.
Submit news articles here!
Values Statement
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
  1. 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.
  2. Healing, grace-filled mission with communities and churches that prioritizes local experiences and shares resources across time and distance through equitable relationships.
  3. 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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