Friends and fans of Rev. Dr. “Biking” Bob are invited to gather to celebrate his legacy and learn from Friendly Planet Missiology (FPM) members opportunities to join the movement for promoting healthier missional initiatives.  All are welcome to bike from the breakfast to the Convention Center in time for the Celebration of Life Service.  Contact Lana and Glen Robyne at the Purdue Wesley Foundation or Taylor Denyer taylor@friendlyplanetmissiology.org for more information.  Meal will be held at Plainfield UMC 600 Simmons St Plainfield IN.  Doors will open and breakfast will be served at 7:30 am.  The program will begin at 8:15 am.

 

You are invited to join us for a time of fellowship and breakfast on Thursday, 9am in room #133 before the first session of Annual Conference begins.  If you cannot join us for breakfast, please plan to stop by and share in our time of fellowship. 

Educational Opportunities Tours invites current and past tour hosts and those interested in hosting pilgrimages to the EO Tours’ Luncheon.  Oberamergua Passion Play 2020 trips will be presented along with information on 2019 Holy Land, Journeys of Paul and Wesley Heritage tours.  Learn how you can enhance your ministry through hosting tours for your congregations with Educational Opportunities Tours.

 

You are invited to join President Lallene J. Rector for lunch.  President Rector will be discussing the seminary’s newest initiatives in continuing education, a one-year assessment of the new MDiv curriculum and the positive impact it is already making on current seminarians, and our newest degrees, concentrations, and tracks.  In addition, President Rector wants to hear from you!  We hope you will join us for lunch and for what promises to be an engaging conversation.        

                                                                                                                   

Come to 947 N. Pennsylvania Street for lunch, a tour and resident sharing. Free shuttles will be available from the north side of the Convention Center at the Maryland Street entrance. 

Alumni and Friends of Asbury Theological Seminary are invited to join us Thursday night at the Old Spaghetti Factory for an evening of connecting with friends and colleagues as well as catching up on the latest happenings at Asbury.  We will have a special guest from the seminary who will share a devotional, bring greetings from our president, Dr. Timothy Tennent, and the latest Asbury news.  Your meal includes salad, entrée, dessert and drink.  Contact George Wasson 502-550-0404 or george@faithpointchurch.org with any questions.

 

Extension Ministers (those appointed Beyond the Local Church) are requested to join Bishop Trimble for dinner. Spouses are welcome to attend at full price.    

                                                                                         

Enjoy dinner and learn more about Mission Guatemala’s work in Guatemala.  Mission Guatemala is an Indiana-based ministry providing medical and optical care, nutrition programs and educational support to children and families in the San Andres area of Guatemala.  The dinner will be held at Roberts Park UMC, 401 N. Delaware Street, with a meal provided by Hagerstown UMC.  Transportation is courtesy of Brownsburg Calvary UMC, and will pick up at the Convention Center’s Maryland Street entrance.  A free will offering will be received at the dinner to help Mission Guatemala further its work.

 

Alex Shanks, Regional Organizer for the North Central Jurisdiction of the Reconciling Ministries Network in The United Methodist Church, has served in local United Methodist churches in the West Ohio Annual Conference, as a nationally renowned spoken word poet, and as a faith organizer for Why Marriage Matters Ohio (a campaign to achieve marriage equality for same-gender couples).  Alex brings his passion for justice, advocacy, learning, and teaching to support reconciling and affirming United Methodists as they remain committed to their call.  Come hear him and share dinner with RMN supporters from across Indiana.

 

Enjoy food and fellowship with persons interested in Africa University.  Hear updates on the developing Small Farm Resource Center on the campus as well as students and graduates.

It’s Candler reunion time at Annual Conference!  Join other Candler alums for food, fellowship, connecting, and reconnecting at Buca di Beppo downtown, 35 North Illinois Street, an easy walk from the Convention Center.  Pope Francis is waiting to welcome us to the Pope Room, our traditional gathering spot.  We’ll each order off the menu once we get there and pay separately at the end of the event (although sharing dishes has been known to happen as well).  Current Candler seminarians and folks exploring seminary who want to learn more about Candler are welcome, too.  Contact Greg Pimlott for more information by phone, (812)897-3422, or via email, greg.pimlott@inumc.org.

 

This complimentary lunch is for all Certified Candidates from around the Indiana Conference who have been approved by their District Committee on Ministry for Commissioning in 2019 as a Provisional Deacon or Elder or approved for Associate Membership. Participants will receive packets with the information necessary for completion of this step of ministry, along with having access to Ministerial Services and Board of Ordained Ministry members to answer any questions.

 

This is an opportunity to celebrate the call and ministry of the laity from around the Indiana Conference.  All laity are invited to join in this time of connection to meet other laity from various districts, and meet other laity leaders.  The luncheon will provide engagement of conversation, hearing encouraging words from emerging leaders, while also reaffirming the important of laity to See All the People! 

 

Dr. Jeffrey Jaynes is hosting this luncheon at Buca di Beppo, 35 N. Illinois St. MTSO alumni and friends are encouraged to RSVP by emailing Claudine Leary at cleary@mtso.edu.

 

As always, those who gather are a wonderful resource for one another…networking and table talk sharing are expected.  Speakers include:  Karen Ujereh, speaking on the United Methodist Micro Finance Connection (UMMF) particularly in Malawi and ministry leadership from a children’s ministry receiving funding from the Bishop’s Christmas Offering for Children.

 

The United Methodist Foundation of Indiana will sponsor a luncheon for retired clergy and their spouses. Register online at www.UMFIndiana.org. For more information, contact Tammy Foster at tfoster@UMFIndiana.org or call 317-788-7879.

This is the sixth annual get-together for pastors, lay missioners and friends of Hispanic and Latino ministries. Testimonies and stories of lives that have been transformed for Jesus among the Hispanics will be shared. Dinner scholarships are available. For more information, contact Pastor Janie Reyes at janie.reyes@inumc.org.

February’s called General Conference in St. Louis will be a watershed moment for our church.  What impact will it have on our local congregations?  And how can we, as faithful laity and clergy, lead our local churches in this season?  Our panel of speakers will include UMCGC delegates and pastors who have been preparing their churches for this event.

Join us at Shapiro’s Deli, corner of Meridian & McCarty, at 7:30am.  Attendees will order and pay individually at the restaurant.