August 2, 2024

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Summary Report on the

2024 Virginia Annual Conference

Karen Junker, Lay Leader at Centenary United Methodist Church

Dear Centenary Family,

I was honored to attend the 2024 Virginia Annual Conference as Centenary’s lay delegate, held June 20 - 22, 2024. The conference theme was “A Conference in Three Movements” with Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson, as the officiating bishop.

This theme emerged from the belief that there are three principal movements of the Holy Spirit taking place in the present era of the church:

1. The theological movement from prevenient grace to sanctification. This is the movement of the Holy Spirit in the human heart.
2. The historical movement of Methodism captured in our past, lived in our present, and pointed toward our future. This is the movement of the Holy Spirit in the church.
3. The missional movement from gathered spaces into all the world. This is the movement of the Holy Spirit in community.

Walk-in Ministry News

Centenary’s Walk-in Ministry has been helping those in need for decades with its central program - lunch on Fridays. Another service provided by this ministry that everyone may not be aware of is direct aid for a limited number of recipients. Most requests involve keeping recipients housed such as rent assistance, help with security deposits and utility payments. Requests must come through the city social service case workers. Payments are not made to the recipient but to the landlord, Dominion Energy, etc.

This program has guidelines to make sure our funds are used wisely and help those in actual need. Individuals requesting assistance must reside in the city of Richmond and have a city case worker. There is a $250 limit per person. We limit our help to late rent payments, security deposits, overdue utility bills, such as electricity, gas and water, ID cards, birth certificates and non-narcotic prescription drugs. The budget for this program is $5,000 per year, divided into $1250 per quarter.

In the first half of 2024 we have helped eleven individuals with rent assistance, one to obtain an ID card from the DMV and one to obtain a birth certificate from the Health Department.

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