A look at elected delegates for the 2012 North Central Jurisdictional Conference from the Detroit Conference

• By RJ Walters, Editor • 

At the 2011 Detroit Annual Conference and West Michigan Annual Conference delegates were elected for the 2012 General Conference and 2012 Jurisdictional Conference.

The 2012 General Conference will take place in Tampa, Fl. from April 24 to May 4 and the North Central Jurisdictional Conference will run from July 17-21 in Akron, Ohio.

The conferences will work to set policy and direction for the church, as well as handle other business of the global and national church. General Conference is the only entity that speaks for The United Methodist Church.

Detroit Conference Jurisdictional Conference clergy delegates

Rev. Sherry Parker
Age: 52 Church: First United Methodist Church of Brighton
# of times elected: General Conference – 1; Jurisdictional Conference - 1
Parker has served actively on the Board of Ordained Ministry, as well as a variety of other conference and district committees. She is particularly interested in the conference petitions that involve restructuring brought to light by the Call to Action Report in 2010, hoping that prayerful changes will be made to equip the church for future ministry growth.

Rev. JD Landis
Age: 56-65 Church: First United Methodist Church of Midland
# of times elected: Jurisdictional Conference – 2
Landis is well-known throughout the conference for fostering a local church environment that encourages young people to consider their call to ministry. In 2010 Swartz Creek United Methodist Church received the Culture of Call Award from the Foundation of Evangelism under his leadership.

Rev. James Tuttle
Age: 56-65 Church: Saline First United Methodist Church
# of times elected: General Conference – 3; Jurisdictional Conference - 6
Tuttle has a special affinity for all ages of the church having worked as a youth pastor before moving onto his career as an associate pastor and then a senior pastor. He has held conference leadership roles on youth councils and committees and has long been involved in recreation and camp ministries as well organizations like the Conference Board of Ordained Ministry and Conference Board of Pensions and Health Benefits.

Rev. Marsha Woolley
Age: 40-55 Church: Newburg United Methodist Church
# of times elected: Jurisdictional Conference – 1
Woolley has taken an active role in conference leadership through positions like the Program Chair for the Detroit Annual Conference and the chair of the Conference Board of Ordained Ministry. She said the diminishing resources and mounting financial issues in local churches will allow conference sessions to “re-imagine how best to do what we do best.” Woolley believes the ongoing conversation on who is “fully included” in the denominational circle is important as well, and should be handled with integrity, grace and openness.



Detroit Conference Jurisdictional Conference lay delegates

Lee Donley
Age: 74 Church: Oxford United Methodist Church
# of times elected: Jurisdictional Conference – 1
The current North Central Jurisdiction United Methodist Men President is passionate about representing men’s ministries that engage people in local churches. He said he expects there to be a lot of debate about the issue of homosexuality and how it pertains to clergy and lay leaders in the UMC. “This is a very sensitive issue,” he said. “My hope is that it will be dealt with in accordance with Biblical values and standards.”

Diane Brown
Age: 50 Church: Ypsilanti First United Methodist
# of times elected: Jurisdictional Conference – 2
Brown has a keen interest in the structure and management of the United Methodist Church, evident by her role as the Chair of the Detroit Annual Conference Reference and Daily Procedure Committee the past five years. She said along with a bevy of social action-related issues and a discussion about how to grow local congregations, she hopes conference addresses how churches can enhance their efficiency in an era of budget cuts. She said people need to strive to have compassion and push for inclusion during conference debates.

Ruby Anderson
Age: 56-65 Church: Scott Memorial United Methodist Church
# of times elected: Not available
She has been the conference president of United Methodist Women and served the district in a bevy of roles in her 30 years of service at Scott Memorial UMC. She was a mission ambassador to Sudan in 2009-10 and has a long history of missional work in Liberia.

Linda Schramm
Age: Over 65 Church: Sandusky First United Methodist Church
# of times elected: General Conference – 2; Jurisdictional Conference – 3
Schramm has held a laundry list of district and conference leadership positions the past four decades including the conference’s president of United Methodist Women. She has been a member of Sandusky FUMC since 1975.


Also:
A glance at the Detroit Conference delegates elected for the 2012 General Conference
A glance at the West Michigan Conference delegates elected for the 2012 General Conference

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A look at elected delegates for the 2012 General Conference from the Detroit Conference

• By RJ Walters, Editor •

At the 2011 Detroit Annual Conference and West Michigan Annual Conference delegates were elected for the 2012 General Conference and 2012 Jurisdictional Conference.

The 2012 General Conference will take place in Tampa, Fl. from April 24 to May 4 and the North Central Jurisdictional Conference will run from July 17-21 in Akron, Ohio.

The conference will work to set policy and direction for the church, as well as handle other business of the global and national church. General Conference is the only entity that speaks for The United Methodist Church.

Detroit Conference General Conference clergy delegates
Rev. Melanie Carey
Age: 46 Church: Detroit Renaissance District Superintendent
# of times elected: General Conference - 1
The district superintendent for the newly formed Detroit Renaissance District is a major player in Hispanic/Latino Ministries at a national level and she believes strongly in the connectional heritage of the church and inclusion for all people. She said a restructuring of the denomination is inevitable but as changes are rolled out she hopes the UMC doesn’t “throw the baby out with the bathwater” and forget its roots completely. Carey said discussions at conference should focus on how local churches can utilize vibrant missions and ministry to get new people plugged into communities.

Rev. Joy Barrett
Age: 52 Church: Chelsea First United Methodist Church
# of times elected: General Conference – 6
Making her conference-record sixth trip to General Conference Barret continues to have a heart for all people and she desires for ministry to be a means toward helping people deepen their relationships with God. She said General Conference should help determine how transformation and abounding grace can be spread by the UMC without being institutionalized, falling prey to long-held structural conventions that no longer are plentiful. She also hopes to be part of discussions that center around strengthening the Midwest, as the North Central Jurisdictional Conference prepares to merge an Episcopal area and lose one bishop.

Rev. Ed Rowe
Age: Over 65 Church: Central United Methodist Church (Detroit)
# of times elected: Not available
Rowe is a tireless advocate for the poor, marginalized, the GLBT community and working class citizens. He has served on a plethora of boards and committees in the Detroit Conference and he has long focused on inclusiveness and bringing peace to socially volatile issues.

Rev. Charles Boyaue Jr.
Age: 40-55 Church: Second Grace United Methodist Church (Detroit)
# of times elected: Not available
The Liberian native has a unique global perspective of the church and is the founding scribe of the Detroit/Liberia Conference Partnership Agreements. He also helped build a health clinic in Detroit that serves more than 4,000 people annually. Boyaue is passionate about urban ministry and connecting with other local churches to increase the impact of ministries in the city.

Detroit Conference General Conference lay delegates

Jacqueline Euper
Age: 63 Church: Owosso First United Methodist Church
# of times elected: General Conference – 5; Jurisdictional Conference - 6
The former Project Director for the Flint District currently serves on the Michigan Area and North Central Jurisdictional Committees on Episcopacy. Euper believes the number one issue that will be tackled at the conference is church growth, “as the denomination figures out how to turn this ship around.” She said downsizing some boards and agencies at the global level may be necessary to operate more efficiently as the church attempts to follow through with its mission.

Ang Hart
Age: 26 Church: Scott Memorial United Methodist Church
# of times elected: General Conference – 2; Jurisdictional Conference - 3
The Detroit Conference Director of Youth and Young Adults said she feels she has a pulse on what is happening with the up-and-coming generation of churchgoers in the UMC and she hopes to bring to light their unique viewpoints and inspirations. She said she is less concerned with the specific petitions that will come before her at conference and more interested in the gathering brining people to a deeper understanding of their purpose in the church and their walk with Christ.

Paul Thomas
Age: 35 Church: Bay City First United Methodist Church
# of times elected: General Conference – 1; Jurisdictional Conference - 1
The Detroit Conference Director of Communications believes his shrewd knowledge of the Book of Discipline and organizational makeup of the general church will help him make an impact at conference. Thomas said the potential restructuring of the UMC in response to the Call to Action Report set forth in 2010 is the greatest issue to be dealt with in Tampa in his opinion.

Wayne Bank
Age: 66 Church: Lexington United Methodist Church
# of times elected: General Conference – 2; Jurisdictional Conference - 2
Bank’s wide-ranging experience includes serving in five different local churches in three districts and involvement with the General Board of Global Ministries and General Board of Church and Society. He said the recurring debates about crucial social issues and the structure of the global church need to be dealt with in a Christ-like manner that addresses all opinions and voices.




Also:
A glance at the West Michigan Conference delegates elected for the 2012 General Conference

Read More