Retiring North Texas clergy offer some send-ups at their send-offs

The retirement speeches from clergy are one of the highlights of Annual Conference. Those stepping down from active roles come before the microphone full of emotions but also with funny stories and witty one-liners. Here are a few of them.

“Ministry, when done right, results in significant hair loss.” Leighton Bearden	“My 3-year-old granddaughter has a direct line to God. She walked over to a clergy woman after one service and said, ‘Bye, God!’” Kathryn Johnson, with husband Karrell
“When babies that I’ve diapered become elders, it’s time to go.” Georjean Blanton, with husband Michael Renquist	“My daughters call us a traveling sideshow. Mary is on the keyboard and flute, and I am preaching.” Ben Shinn
Albert Fisher recalled that he was once a supply pastor for four years. “I finally asked the district superintendent when will you find someone else? The response was, ‘When I start to look.’”	After serving 16 years in Buenos Aires, Betty Crowell, with J. Richard “Dick” Wilson and Donna Whitehead, joked that she would ask Madonna to change the words of the star’s song in the movie Evita to, “Don’t cry for her, Argentina.”

Photos by Wil Murphy.

Alfred White, a member of First UMC Coppell and the North Texas Conference’s Core Leadership Team, has been inducted into the Hall of Fame of the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics.

White went into the Hall of Fame under the category of Pioneer Award Recipients — Honoring Minority Firsts during the group’s meeting in June in Dallas.

He was recognized as the first African-American to be a commissioner of the Southern Conference and of an NCAA Division I conference that was not historically black.

White joined the Conference USA staff in July 2004 as an associate commissioner and has more than 20 years of experience in intercollegiate and professional athletics administration, holding positions as the commissioner of the Southern Conference (1998-2001) and president of the National Basketball Association Development League’s Asheville Altitude (2001-04).

He also served 15 years on staff at the NCAA in communications, promotions and corporate marketing. He was named the NCAA director of corporate marketing in 1997.

A jigsaw puzzle of a map of the North Texas Conference drew delegates to the booth of the NTC Center for New Church Development and Congregational Transformation during the Annual Conference.

Center Director Jim Ozier urged passers-by to stop and find their piece of the puzzle and fit it into place.

“Each of us has a part; we are each a piece of the puzzle, whether lay or clergy; young or old; Anglo or ethnic; from large churches or small; urban or rural — it takes all of us to put the conference together and reach the mission field of North Texas,” Ozier said.

Photo by: Sheron C. Patterson

Evelyn Glass, left, of Trinity UMC in Cedar Hill and Kristi Hassell of First UMC DeSoto stood before the Annual Conference to receive completion degrees from the General Board of Higher Education, Glass in Christian education and Hassell in music ministry. The laywomen invested five years of study at Perkins School of Theology at SMU to earn the degrees and will serve in their local churches.

We United Methodists strongly believe in being among and serving the poor.

The Rev. Jay Cole of Crossroads Community Services conducts a class on food banks with Lucretia Facen, Andy Stoker, Karen Chraska and Mary Miriti.

Photo by: Wil Murphy

Mission Day, a part of Annual Conference events, offers participants an opportunity to learn more about being a disciple of Christ by taking on the attitude of Jesus.

This year, more than 100 people gathered June 6 to learn about becoming mission partners in a variety of ways. Some were interested in microfinance and microcredit that offer a way out of poverty for crafts workers and others. Some tackled hunger, while others learned to bear witness in our school districts as helpful servants.

Planning for the Mission Day usually begins in January, a full six months in advance. One of our primary goals is to offer a variety of opportunities, reflecting the different interests and passions of our churches.

The Rev. Jan Davis, left, and the Rev. Alexandra Robinson share a hug before the volunteers disperse to the various Mission Day locations.

A lot of thought is given to what is “trending” in mission work.

By putting churches in contact with each other, they can network and share ideas.

This is one of the best takeaways from the Mission Day.

Volunteers wash the collard greens they harvested at the Paul Quinn College farm. The community garden is in an area of South Dallas considered a food desert because there are limited options for fresh fruits and vegetables for the residents.

Photo by: Sheron C. Patterson

For example, last year the Rev. Rick Davis and his wife, Tracy, went to the session on community gardens at Chapel Hill UMC in Farmers Branch.

Now, one year later, the Davises’ church, Morris Memorial UMC in Chico, has broken ground on its own community garden.

After attending last year’s session, “we are seeing the fruits of that involvement today,” Tracy Davis said.

This is why Mission Day exists: not because the work we do in one day is so substantial, but that it plants the seeds for transformation.

An NTC intern from the Lydia Patterson Institute in El Paso prepares to dunk a bunch of radishes.

Photo by: Sheron C. Patterson

This Year's Focuses

The sessions offered this year include:

• Microfinance and Microcredit
• Crossroads Community Services
• Partnering Together: The Church and the School System
• Seven Loaves Food Pantry
• Texas Food Bank: Hunger Class
• C.C. Young Retirement Community
• Paul Quinn College farm

Watch for another chance to participate next year at Annual Conference.

One community, one person, one choice could be the catalyst needed to change the world. On May 6, First UMC Allen took part in Change the World Weekend, a national initiative of The United Methodist Church.

Mason Turner of First UMC Allen helped make meals for Kids Against Hunger. The meals were then shipped to the Send Hope mission in Honduras.

More than 350 church members participated in 25 projects as varied as collecting books for summer reading for elementary school students and doing yard work for elderly residents.

Children made cards to send to U.S. troops in Afghanistan and to residents at local nursing homes.

Youth washed cars in return for food donations for the local food pantry.

Families cleaned Allen roadways and nature preserves, and sorted donations for women’s shelters, day camps and homeless shelters.

Volunteers packaged food kits for the hungry in Honduras, assembled care packages for soldiers overseas, delivered meals to shut-ins and more.

The Rev. Kory Knott got the crowd going by tossing the balls to the surprised but delighted delegates.

The Plano Convention Centre was converted into a panorama of sights, sounds and action during the Nehemiah Group presentation on Monday, June 4.

Led by the Rev. Paul Rasmussen of the Cornerstone ministry at Highland Park UMC in Dallas, the Nehemiah Group is a task force of clergy and lay people who spent the last year studying and evaluating the Annual Conference experience in the North Texas Annual Conference.

The goal of the task force was to research and offer a more engaging, meaningful annual meeting for North Texas United Methodists.

The Rev. Kory Knott, senior pastor of Argyle UMC, started the presentation with green stress balls in his hands.

Soon almost everyone in the auditorium had the balls in their hands and were throwing them in the air and into large nets that were carried across the aisles. Laughter and glee erupted, with members of the Annual Conference caught up in child’s play.

This was part of the plan.

Annual Conference should have a fun element, the Nehemiah Group says.

An Annual Conference delegate catches one of the stress balls hurled into the audience.

Photos by: Sheron C. Patterson

Next came presentations set to music, videos and song.

This was all a part of the Nehemiah Group’s strategy to demonstrate to Annual Conference members what their future gatherings could be like.

Over the past year, the Nehemiah Group identified nine values that our Annual Conference sessions should include: quality production, pace and flow, inspiring presenters, great music, fun, valuable content, creativity, inspiring worship, and participation.

The presentation closed on an even higher note.

Kate Miner, music director of Munger Place UMC, belted out the mega hit “Don’t Stop Believing” as the youth choir of Custer Road UMC in Plano sang along and clapped.

There was electricity in the air and smiles everywhere.

After discussion among the delegates, the Nehemiah Group’s proposal was accepted. Expectations are high for future Annual Conferences. Delegates want to leave energized and inspired.