news stories
From the Desk of Bishop Webb: Northeastern Jurisdictional Conference
November 7, 2022 / By Bishop Mark J. Webb
The following note was sent to the Upper New Conference on Nov. 7, 2022 on behalf of Bishop Webb. Dear Friends in Christ, Last week, Jurisdictional Conferences gathered throughout the United States to engage in holy conferencing and to complete the important work of discerning and electing bishops of The United Methodist Church. The Northeastern Jurisdictional Conference, of which Upper New York is a part, met in College Park, Maryland Nov. …more
UNY delegates meet their new bishop, Hector Burgos
November 4, 2022 / By Shannon Hodson / .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
“I was almost asleep, but I was so excited;” this was the Rev. Hector Burgos’ response when he found out, after 2 a.m., on Friday Nov. 4, 2022, at the Northeastern Jurisdictional Conference, that he was assigned as bishop to the Upper New York (UNY) Conference and would be starting Jan. 1, 2023. Rev. Burgos was just elected as bishop of the Northeastern Jurisdiction on the third ballot during the afternoon …more
Bishop Mark J. Webb’s retirement celebrated at the NEJ Conference
November 4, 2022 / By Shannon Hodson / .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Bishop Webb will be retiring from the Upper New York Conference on Dec. 31, 2022. There will be an open-house style celebration and farewell gathering at the UNY Conference Center at 7481 Henry Clay Blvd. in Liverpool on Saturday Nov. 19 from 1-4 p.m. All are welcome and you can come and go as you please. The tentative schedule is as follows: 1 p.m. Gathering begins – open-house-style fellowship …more
GCSRW celebrates 50 years of ministry with launch of new resource
November 1, 2022 / By UNY Communications
The General Commission on the Status and Role of Women is marking its 50th anniversary with the release of the Welcoming a Woman Pastor learning module. The self-paced, online resource guides local churches through the onboarding, orientation and set-up process when introducing a female pastor appointed to serve their congregation. “Despite women being ordained in our denomination for more than 50 years, many continue to find the orientation to a …more
The Buffalo 10 Scholarship—just the beginning
November 1, 2022 / By Shannon Hodson / .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Buffalo is the seventh most segregated city in the country for Black Americans, based on as 2020 study conducted by the Brookings Institute. Eighty-five percent of Black Buffalonians live on the East side of the city, where the racially motivated mass murder took place at the Tops grocery store on May 14, 2022. The East Side of Buffalo has been racially segregated for over 70 years and this neighborhood has been plagued with poverty …more
Adrienne Demin receives the 2022 Denman Award
October 25, 2022 / By UNY Communications
On Sunday Oct. 23, the Rev. Cathy Stengel presented the 2022 UNY Conference Harry Denman Evangelism Award to one of her congregants at Pendleton Center UMC, Adrienne Demin. The Harry Denman Evangelism Award honors United Methodists who bring people into a life-transforming relationship with Jesus Christ. Each year, the Upper New York Conference works with the Foundation for Evangelism to recognize and honor one lay and clergy member for their …more
The Rev. Dr. Sherri Rood urges UNY Conference leaders to lace up their sneakers
October 18, 2022 / By Shannon Hodson / .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
On Oct. 2, 2022, the Rev. Dr. Sherri Rood was officially welcomed as the Mountainview District Superintendent. Bishop Webb’s introduction to the Rev. Dr. Sherri Rood Upper New York Area Resident Bishop, Mark J. Webb, introduced Rev. Dr. Rood as the new District Superintendent (DS) for the Mountainview District. He explained that the Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church allows an elder to serve an additional …more
Seven ordained and one commissioned and AC2022
October 13, 2022 / By Shannon Hodson / .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Becoming an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church requires several years of discernment with the assistance of their local United Methodist congregation, District, and Conference Board of Ordained Ministry; it requires a master's degree and a period of supervised service in their ministry with a mentor to encourage them. On Oct 8, at the 2022, Upper New York Annual Conference’s Service of Commissioning and Ordination, in his sermon …more
Voices heard and not heard at the AC2022
October 9, 2022 / By Shannon Hodson / .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Monitoring reports are presented at Annual Conference to understand whose voices are heard and whose voices are not heard on the floor of Annual Conference. To conduct these reports, when speakers come to the floor, they are asked to identify their gender, race, whether they are clergy or laity, their District, and their church This year, Annual Conference was held virtually—as opposed to appearing at a microphone on …more
Pastoral appointments celebrated at Annual Conference
October 9, 2022 / By Tara Barnes, Director of Denominational Relations, United Women in Faith
Upper New York Resident Bishop Mark Webb took time Saturday Oct. 8 during the 2022 Annual Conference to recognize and celebrate the clergy appointments that began July 1, 2022. “You have been called by God and chosen by the people of God for leadership in the church,” he said to the conference’s clergy. “This ministry is a blessing, it’s a privilege, and it’s a serious …more