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Today, in Holston Conference News Briefs for June 22:

Wednesday on the Webexclusive – Florida Hurricane Recovery Continues @ holston.org

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TOP STORY: Urgent reponse for TennCare ministry

Following the passage of a resolution at the Holston Annual Conference on June 15, church members based in Tennessee are urged to move quickly in order to help thousands of TennCare subscribers at risk for losing their health insurance.

The resolution's most immediate objective is to encourage congregations to help TennCare subscribers fill out necessary forms by July 6 -- to help them keep their coverage. The upcoming July 1 edition of The Call will provide more information on how churches can help these TennCare enrollees.

In the meantime, churches are urged to attend training events or to sponsor training events to help TennCare disenrollees.

Crucial info from the National Association of Social Workers

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Another Annual Conference, come and gone

The 2005 session of the Holston Annual Conference concluded last week with a spirited Sending Forth message from Bishop James Swanson and the fixing of appointments for about 700 clergy.

A complete wrap-up of the four-day meeting at Lake Junaluska will be provided in the upcoming July 1 edition of The Call. In the meantime, a summary is available on the United Methodist News Service site here , or you may download daily on-site reports from The Call here.

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BTW, lose anything at Annual Conference?

In the conference office in Knoxville, we have two red leather-bound Bibles, one set of GM car keys, one leather eyeglasses case, and one cell phone, all of which were found in Stuart Auditorium during Annual Conference. If you believe any of these items might belong to you, contact Anne Travis or Eric Glass at (toll free) 1-866-690-4080.

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Three new 'Safe Sanctuaries' training dates added

This fall, Holston churches are required to have child-abuse prevention policies in time for their 2005 charge conferences. The children's ministry office has added three new "Safe Sanctuaries" training dates to aid congregations in preparing their policies and procedures. The dates are: June 25 at St. Luke UMC, Chattanooga District; July 10 at Hiltons Memorial UMC, Big Stone Gap District; and July 11 at St. Paul UMC, Wytheville District.

Find out more about the new training dates

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What's new with Holston's UMM and UMW?

These summer events are sponsored by the conference United Methodist Women and United Methodist Men:

* July 28-30: Holston Conference School of Christian Mission, Munsey Memorial UMC, Johnson City, Tenn. Contact: Judith McQueen, dean, at (865) 579-5086

* Aug. 19-20: Spiritual Gathering for Men, Days Inn, Johnson City, Tenn. Contact: Jim Ball, president, at (276) 686-5284 or e-mail.

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He speaks well of us in Georgia: Who said that?

"He described the Holston Conference as both mission-minded and socially conscious, particularly around issues such as poverty, environmental justice and health insurance. Holston United Methodists have given $632,000 to tsunami relief, Swanson said, and each year churches participate in a conference-wide project whereby members prepare buckets packed with school supplies and foodstuffs for [Africa]."

--From a recent article, "South Georgia Welcomes Home James Swanson," appearing in the Wesleyan Christian Advocate. Bishop Swanson returned to preach at the South Georgia Annual Conference's opening worship earlier this month.

Visit the Wesleyan Christian Advocate site

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Your online calendar: Remember these dates

F.U.E.L. Sabbath retreat for youth workers, October 14-16

New event announcements appear here. Visit our upcoming events page for other events. Be sure you have the newest Acrobat Reader or you may not be able to view PDFs.

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This message is from the Holston Conference Communications Office.