September 19, 2016/Volume 15, No. 15

Conference News

Graves Installed as Alabama-West Florida Episcopal Leader

Bishop David W. Graves was officially installed as resident bishop Sunday afternoon, September 11, 2016. A capacity crowd filled the beautiful cathedral sanctuary of Montgomery FUMC in Cloverdale Park. The processional included the AWF district superintendents, CORE leadership team, visiting bishops from other conferences and college presidents. The cathedral choir of Montgomery FUMC, under the direction of Dr. James Seay, performed a pre concert while guests arrived. Dr. Jeremy Pridgeon, senior minister at Montgomery FUMC, welcomed those in attendance. The day was also significant to Pridgeon as it was his first Sunday in the pulpit in his new appointment. Full story here. Click here to see photos by Luke Lucas.

Service of Worship and Welcome held for Graves Family

Clergy, laity and friends of the Alabama-West Florida Conference gathered this evening, Sunday, September 18, 2016, at Crosspoint UMC in Niceville, FL, to welcome Bishop and Mrs. Nancy Graves to the area. A service to welcome the Graves was held in the sanctuary and hosted a capacity crowd from around the conference. Many who attended were from along the I-10 corridor in the conference. The Graves’ daughter, Casey, and grandson, Brooks, were special guests in attendance from Kingsport, TN. Full story here. Click here to see photos from the event.

Conference Holds On-boarding Sessions

Throughout the course of the week, three on-boarding sessions were held in the Alabama-West Florida Conference. These sessions are being led by Claire Bowen, a lay person in the North Georgia Conference, who specializes in this process when a new person is named to a corporation or large organization like a United Methodist conference. She is a lifelong United Methodist and a member of Peachtree Road UMC in Atlanta, GA. Full story here.

Bishop Harvey Expresses Gratitude to AWF Conference

Bishop Cynthia Fierro Harvey, resident bishop of the Louisiana Conference, expressed her sincere appreciation for the extravagant generosity shown by the AWF Conference in regards to the Louisiana flooding. Click here to read letter.

Around the Conference

Guest Commentary: Dr. Darren McClellan

Yesterday evening, I had the opportunity to participate in a service of celebrating the episcopal assignment of Bishop David William Graves at First United Methodist Church in Montgomery. Gathered tightly in the good company of those across our Annual Conference, this particular worship experience was a first for me, and one which I shall not soon forget. It was commonly referred to as an “installation service,” but I must confess going in that I was not exactly sure what that would entail. I know how bishops of the United Methodist Church get nominated, elected, and appointed, but how are they “installed?” Surely there was more to it, I thought, than the replacement of an old appliance with the new. Full commentary here.

Graves and Bryars Participate in Wesley Cup Festivities

Bishop David Graves had the honor to give the invocation at the Birmingham-Southern College and Huntingdon College football game on Saturday, September 10, otherwise known as the Wesley Cup. The Wesley Cup is awarded each year to the winner of the annual rivalry between the two private Methodist colleges in the state of Alabama. Dr. Larry Bryars, senior pastor at Frazer Memorial UMC, also participated in the pregame activities by flipping the coin prior to kickoff. The Alabama-West Florida Conference was well represented at this wonderful event.

Planning Session Held for Annual Conference 2017

The AWF Annual Conference planning team met Thursday, September 8 at Aldersgate UMC in Montgomery, AL. The team consists of the bishop, conference lay leader, conference secretary, district superintendents, conference staff and other leaders. Although conference is nine months away, the planning and perfecting is a year-round process. The group is already crafting an agenda and making exciting changes that will be announced soon. The team also looks forward to announcing the missional giving recipient for next year's conference in the coming weeks.

Huntingdon Expands Leadership Academy for High School Students

Huntingdon College President J. Cameron West announced today the hiring of Sophy Shore to direct an expanded Huntingdon Leadership Academy in 2017. In 2015, the College received a $600,000 grant from Lilly Endowment, Inc., to expand the Huntingdon Leadership Academy, a summer leadership development program for high school students exploring religion and service vocations. More here.

Connectional News

Clergy Age Trends In The United Methodist Church: 1985-2016

(Lewis Center) - Growth among young elders remains modest but relatively steady, according to the Clergy Age Trends in the United Methodist Church report released today by the Lewis Center for Church Leadership of Wesley Theological Seminary. The annual report is prepared with assistance from Wespath, formerly the General Board of Pension and Health Benefits of the United Methodist Church. More here.

Bishops Overrule Nonconformity Resolutions

(UMNS) - Two bishops, in separate rulings, have voided two resolutions in the Northeastern U.S. that called for defying church restrictions on gay and lesbian individuals. The rulings come after a summer that saw multiple conferences say they would defy the denomination prohibitions related to homosexuality. More here.

Resources

News from the Fiscal Office: New DOL Overtime Rules

On May 18, 2016, the Department of Labor (DOL) announced its changes to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) “white collar” overtime exemption rules. The final rule strengthens protection for workers by increasing the standard salary level for qualification for overtime exemption from $455 per week ($23,660 per year) to $913 per week ($47,476 per year). There were no changes to the professional duties test to determine if individuals earning at least the standard level qualify for exemption. Full details here.

Charge Conference Forms Online

Charge Conference forms for the 2016 year are on the conference Website. Many forms allow you to choose from a fillable pdf and/or a fillable Microsoft Word or Excel document. Should you have questions about these forms, please contact your district office.

World Communion Sunday

Our church is at its best when we reach out to sisters and brothers in need. World Communion Sunday calls the church to reach out to all people and model diversity among God's children. United Methodists relate to World Communion Sunday by celebrating communion with other Christians around the world on this special Sunday. Churches are also encouraged to receive an offering to support ethnic undergraduate and graduate students. Our gifts often enable first-generation students to attend college. More here.

UMCom Offers Digital Advertising Grants

(UMCom) - United Methodist Communications is now offering 150 digital advertising grants to local United Methodist churches for Advent. The pre-designed, online ads with a Rethink Church message will link to the church website. The ads will be purchased and placed by United Methodist Communications and will help raise community awareness of churches. The application for the Advent grants is open now until Oct. 1 or all ad grant slots are filled. Read press release.