news stories
UNY pastor produces videos with Peace with Justice grant
March 21, 2016 / By UNY Communications / .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
The Rev. Dana Horrell – an elder of the Upper New York Conference appointed to extension ministry as executive director at the Faithful Citizen, Inc. – has been producing a series of 3- to 5-minute long instructional videos that answer the question, “How can church leaders demonstrate sensitivity to people with racial and class differences?” The videos are designed for social ministry providers and new church planters in …more
CCYM to celebrate Day of Prayer at UP!WORD
March 18, 2016 / By Kathleen Rubino / .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
On April 23, in the midst of UP!WORD – held April 22-24 at the Holiday Inn in Liverpool – the Conference Council on Youth Ministry (CCYM) has planned many moments of prayer for the 2016 General Conference session and The United Methodist Church in general to coincide with the Upper New York Conference’s Day of Prayer. Emily Lasher, the worship chair of CCYM, said the worship team has been …more
Bishop Webb pens Ministry Shares letters
March 16, 2016 / By UNY Communications / .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Editor’s note: Corrections have been made to the fact sheet that accompanied the letters sent to churches from Bishop Mark J. Webb. Please click here to review an updated version. The Upper New York Conference has faced some challenges reconciling the difference between the ministries agreed upon at the 2015 Annual Conference session and the funds received to make those ministries possible. As the final Ministry Shares figure for 2015 …more
Sharing lunches, communion in the streets of Syracuse
March 15, 2016 / By Kathleen Rubino / .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
It’s 8 p.m. on a Thursday night at Wholely Grounds Café, located at The ROAD at West Genesee United Methodist Church in Syracuse – Peanut Butter Jelly Time, as they fondly call it. Members and volunteers are busily at work, smearing peanut butter and jelly on bread, counting bags of chips, granola bars, and fruit, and snapping open brown paper lunch bags that will soon be filled. …more
Saying goodbye to Nicaragua
March 15, 2016 / By the Rev. Alison Schmied
It’s early Sunday morning. We are on the old yellow school bus, driving toward the airport. Salsa-like Christian praise music plays over the radio, and we occasionally catch a word: Jesus, alleluia, gloria a Dios. This is the first leg of our return trip to the United States after a week at Project Chacocente, located near Masaya, Nicaragua. It is helpful that the journey …more
CRM names new director at Skye Farm
March 15, 2016 / By UNY Communications / .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Upper New York Camp & Retreat Ministries is excited to announce Ryan Siver has accepted the position of Director at the Skye Farm Camp & Retreat Center in Warrensburg. Siver began working for the Conference on March 14. “Ryan has a vast knowledge of Camp & Retreat Ministries, having grown up in the Iowa UMCRM and having worked seasonally at Aldersgate 10 years ago,” said Mike Huber, Director of UNY …more
Experts discuss human sexuality at Liverpool UMC
March 9, 2016 / By Kathleen Rubino / .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
More than 150 people attended – and more than 300 live-streamed – the Upper New York Conference Human Sexuality Task Force’s forum on “Human Sexuality and Biblical Interpretation” March 5 at the Liverpool United Methodist Church. The event featured guest speakers the Rev. Dr. Bill T. Arnold, professor at Asbury Theological Seminary in Kentucky, and the Rev. Dr. Althea Spencer-Miller, professor at Drew Theology School in New Jersey. &ldquo …more
CRM names new Manager of Operations
March 8, 2016 / By UNY Communications / .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
The Upper New York Conference Camp & Retreat Ministries (CRM) is pleased to announce that Scott Henderson will serve as the CRM Manager of Operations. His first day at the Conference will be March 14. The position of CRM Director of Program and Outreach was reconfigured into the position of Manager of Operations. Because of this transition, Henderson will focus on administrative and management details related to the overall CRM operation, …more
Using project management in the church
March 7, 2016 / By the Rev. Vincent Howell
Projects are a part of the work of ministry in any local congregation. They range from updating the parsonage when a new pastor is assigned to developing a new ministry to grow youth programs, hosting a holiday meal for the homeless, and planning programs during the Advent season. Yet, many times, we do not call this work a “project,” and as a result, how they are managed varies …more
Watch the live stream for the forum on “Human Sexuality and Biblical Interpretation” at 1 p.m.
March 4, 2016 / By UNY Communications / .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
To watch the live stream, click here. The stream will not be “on air” until a couple of hours before the event. The event officially begins at 1 p.m. on Saturday, March 5. Join the conversation using the hashtag #March5Forum on Facebook or Twitter. …more