Tuesday's Daily Call
A report of the events which occurred on Monday, June 10th
Holston surpasses $7.8 million goal
After riding his bike down the aisle, the Rev. Rae Mullins hands Leonard Fant a check, bringing the pensions campaign total to $8,001,287. Leaders for the Legacy of Commitment campaign announced yesterday that more than $8 million in pledges had been received for pastors' pensions.
The news came during an upbeat presentation ending with a standing ovation for Bishop Ray Chambexrlain and gratitude expressed to congregations.
"You are the heroes. With all my heart, I say thank you," Campaign Director Ron Hammond told clergy and lay representatives of 931 churches during the Monday morning session of the 2002 Holston Annual Conference.
Leonard Fant, chair of the campaign's board of directors, led the audience through the effort's three-year history. He announced that the bicycle fund raiser in early April had drawn $56,000 in commitments. On April 28, nearly $1.6 million was raised for Retired Ministers Sunday alone.
At one point pretending the campaign had fallen short of its goal, Fant hammed it up by dabbing at his eyes with a handkerchief and feigning tears.
"Bishop, I can't believe this. We didn't make it," he said to a smiling Chamberlain.
Moments later, the Rev. Rae Mullins surprised the audience by riding his bicycle down the aisle, handing over a check that would take the campaign $201,287 beyond its $7.8 million goal. Mullins was one of several Holston pastors who rode bikes during the recent fund raising effort.
Later in the presentation, the audience applauded Chamberlain after Hammond said, "He is the granddaddy of this campaign. Without [him], this campaign wouldn't have happened."
In other news, the first full day of Annual Conference concluded ahead of schedule and with little deliberation following potentially controversial reports:
- Mai Bell Hurley, chair of the Council on Finance Administration, proposed a $15.58 million budget for 2003, refl ecting a 3.2 percent increase over 2002. She also reported that a $3 million pensions liability would not be removed from the budget until 2004, since many pledges were made over a three-year period and have not been realized. "It would have been great to follow the Legacy of Commitment by saying we're going to remove the [liability] from the 2003 budget," Hurley said. "But you wouldn't want us to do it unless we had the resources to do it."
- The conference swiftly voted to approve a Camping Master Plan presented by team leader Wayne Andrews. The plan was formed over two years and will focus on developing four camps (Buffalo Mountain, Dickenson, Lookout, Wesley Woods) under conference leadership. Three other camps (Ahistadi, Ft. Blackmore, and Laurel) will no longer be managed by the conference but will allow district mission and ministry to emerge. A $250,000 defi cit will be repaid over a 10-year period by using earnings from a camp endowment at $25,000 per year, Andrews said.
- The conference voted to adopt Judicial Council revisions of the Ministry Design as presented by Chancellor Jay Garrison and Discipleship Team Chair Jean Henderson.
- Twenty-one retiring clergy and their spouses were honored during a touching "Transitions" ceremony. This year's ceremony played off the "Refl ecting The Light" theme. Ministers lit candles, passing them to ordinands who in turn pinned on retirement pins.
- The Rev. Kim Goddard, director of the Wesley Institute, delivered the morning sermon during the "Memorial Service of Resurrection with Holy Communion." Urging members to follow Elijah's lead and deliver "twice the spirit," Goddard referred to deceased clergy Reid Wilson, Jim Hankins, and Billie Mustard: "May we be so bold to pray for twice their spirit."
- Music highlights included a harmonica duet by Walter Barton and Bob Ergenbright during the Memorial Service. Steve Martin played "Amazing Grace" on the bagpipes. Liturgical dancer Melanie Rasnake participated in an emotional service for retiring clergy along with soloist Jill Burnett Dickerson. In the evening Service of Ordination, First-Centenary Chancel Choir from Chattanooga sang with a brass choir.
- Youth attending last January's annual youth retreat, Resurrection, addressed the ministry of controversial speaker Shane Claiborne.
"We found ourselves hanging on every word," said Anna Chrysostomides, 16, member of Central UMC, Wytheville District. "We heard things we didn't want to hear for the very fi rst time." Chrysostomides said Claiborne's "radical" message inspired her youth group to raise $300 for a local food ministry.
- The conference celebrated new and relocating congregations, age-level ministries, and nurture ministries, among others. Following a sermon by youngster Cory Stidham of Hiltons Memorial UMC and a presentation by Hams for the Hungry crusader Matthew LeSage, Children's Ministry Coordinator Claudia Howard challenged members to plan "children's days" in their churches. "A child shall lead us," she said, quoting scripture.
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