Day 2 News: Thursday, June 17

 

A strong start, a stronger finish
    The second day of the North Georgia Annual Conference began with a sudden burst of energy with 152 early risers competing in a 5K run. The day ended with the sounds of clapping and cheering as hundreds of volunteers celebrated the completion of a meal assembly project for Stop Hunger Now.
    When the work was done, more than 200,230 meals were ready to be sent to feed school-age children in Nicaragua.
    “This is something that people really get excited about,” said John Page, associate pastor of Athens First UMC, who helped organized the effort. “There is a great deal of joy and enthusiasm that is evident. I have overheard people saying this is the kind of project they want to bring to their churches.”
     Indeed, approximately 250 volunteers – some in shirts and T-shirts, others still in suits from conference – went about their two-hour shifts with obvious joy. The cheered whenever a gong rang out, signifying another 5,000 meals had been completed, and occasionally broke into song.
     Three conference rooms, with a combined length of approximately 40 yards, were needed to set up accommodate the tables of volunteers.
       Teams of workers, each with thin blue hair nets or baseball caps, carefully measured out packages filled with rice and soy protein, fortified with 21 essential vitamins and supplements.
And the winners are . . .
    Brad Slavens was top finisher in the Fourth Annual 5K event in 18:13.1 Tim Emmett of McDonough was second in 21.12.2.
    Rachel Hagnes of Athens was the top woman, finishing in 21:31.7. Of 152 starters on the warm, humid morning, 122 finished the race.
An unqualified success       
The verdict is in: Conference workers and delegates continue to voice their approval for the new online registration process, which kept lines and confusion to a minimum. A total of 2,329 delegates pre-registered online. As of Thursday afternoon, 184 delegates registered and paid on site. The registration team is expecting more delegates to arrive and register as late as Friday morning.

SESSION THREE

Generosity Summit planned
The Office of Connectional Ministries invites you to a conference-wide Generosity Summit September 11 at Peachtree Road UMC. The celebration of stewardship will include dynamic success stories and workshops on stewardship campaigns, capital campaigns, financial management, faith decisions and more.
For more information go to www.ngumc.org/enough.

Treasurer's Report (Part 1)
Keith Cox, Conference Treasurer, presented the first component of the Treasurer's Report. Highlights included:
• 2010 Membership - 356,279 (up 2,185)
• Professions of Faith - 6,622
• Average Attendance - 127,547 (down 3,323)
• Average Church School Attendance (down 3,240)
• 669 churches paid 100 percent apportionments in 2010.
• District with the highest apportionments paid: Athens-Elberton District which paid 93.4 percent.

He acknowledged four of the primary fiscal challenges this year:
• Unfunded liabilities - $90 million
• Simpsonwood
• Lack of Conference Reserves
• Declining Apportionment Payment Percentages

Interim Report of the Annual Conference Task Force
Henry Bowden, chair of the Annual Conference Task Force, presented initial findings of the task force. The 17-member group divided major tasks into two groups, the Simpsonwood Retreat and Conference Center and other issues relating to ministerial compensation.

They first focused on Simpsonwood. Highlights included:
• The task force employed business consultants to study the Retreat Center operations.
• A dept of $6 million was due to SunTrust Bank in April of this year. Just six weeks ago the Georgia United Methodist Foundation agreed to refinance the entire debt.
• The Task Force has preliminarily concluded that the long-range operation of the Retreat Center at Simpsonwood is not financially viable.
• The Task Force has studied alternative uses for the Simpsonwood property and approached the board and management of Wesley Woods Senior Living, Inc. about the possibility of using the property for a continuing care retirement community. Wesley Woods is performing preliminary research on need for a CCRC in the Norcross area.
• A motion was made, and approved, to empower the Task Force to seek a legal ruling on whether the Conference may legally divide or sell the property.
• For more details, read the memo from the Task Force to Bishop Watson on handbook pages 132-135.

Celebration of small membership churches
The Parish Life Committee of the Office of Connectional Ministries lifted up the vital ministry of small membership churches and acknowledged that 75 percent of North Georgia churches have 150 or less in worship.

Georgia United Methodist Foundation
On January 1, the North Georgia UM Foundation and South Georgia UM Foundation merged to form the Georgia United Methodist Foundation. Highlights from the report included:
• A new addition of Socially Responsible investments 
• The Foundation awarded 31 $1,000 scholarships to United Methodist students this year
• More information on the Foundation is available at www.gumf.org.

Recognition of retirees
The conference celebrated the ministry of 23 retiring clergy. They represent a cumulative 640 years of service. The retirees are:
Ed Cook
Al Cunningham
Roy Daniels
Ron Fearneyhough
Joe Hassell
Charles Moon
Walt Pledger
Wayne Williams
Ben Abney
Les Connell
Avery Dodd
Emile Ennis
Ferris Hardin
King Harris
David Hicks
Wayne Hopper
Joy Ledoux
Mary Gene Lee
DeDe Leetch
Ann B. McCord
Laurence McCullough
Patricia Pace
Woodrow Williams

SESSION FOUR

Service of Remembrance
Praying in unison, the North Georgia Conference said, "We bless your holy name, O God, for all your servants who, having finished their course, now rest from their labors." The mission offering was collected at the service raising $92,000 for the Central Conference Pension Initiative.

The Conference recognized the following laity who served on conference or district committees, clergy spouses and clergy:

Laity
Earnesteen Camp
Jonathan Adams
Alvin "Al" John Rowe, Jr.
Jean Scruggs
Brenda Jones
Tom Bell

Deceased Spouses
Else Branham
Wife of Rev. Lee Branham
 
Ida Mae Crane
Wife of Rev. Lawrence Crane
 
Caroline Drinkard
Wife of Rev. Eugene Drinkard
 
Linnie Lou Jernigan
Wife of Dr. Allen Jernigan
 
Charley Temple Lewis
Wife of Rev. William Harold Lewis
 
Mary Nysewander
Wife of Dr. Dwight Nysewander
 
Lois Phillips
Wife of Rev. James Phillips
 
Mary AnnPollard
Wife of Rev. Randy Pollard
 
Cynthia Reamsnyder
Wife of Rev. Terry Reamsnyder
 
Freddie Robinson
Husband of Rev. Minnie Robinson
 
Phyllis Taylor
Wife of Rev. Russell C. Taylor
 
Patience Tinsley
Wife of Rev. Carroll Tinsley
 
Cheryl (Cheri) Witt
Wife of Rev. Andy Witt
 
Deceased Clergy
(May 2009-May 2010)
 
Bobby Lee Anthony
Mack Driver
C.W. Edwards
Bond Fleming
Curtis D. Gillespie
Reynolds Greene
Allan Kirton
Robert A. Lanford
Beth Luton
Marcus Martin
John Wesley Pace
Emmett Rappe
Dan Rice
Gordon Thompson

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75th anniversary of the Upper Room
Sarah Wilke, publisher of the Upper Room, joined the North Georgia Conference to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the publication. This year the Upper Room will publish the 1 billionth copy.  To view the video or learn more about the Upper Room, visit www.upperroom.org/75.

Council on Finance and Administration Report
The $25,295,067 budget proposed by the Council on Finance and Administration was approved by the Annual Conference. This represents a decrease of $614,933 over the 2010 budget.