This is W. E.! 9_14_2021
This year's Church Conferences for the Washington East District will be hybrids (in-person and virtual) meetings as announced. If you have questions or concerns about your church conference please contact the district office The Zoom links for Church Conferences were emailed to clergy, church administrators. Pastors and Administrators, please contact
or call 410-309-3439 if you have not received the Church Conference Schedule with the ZOOM links. Kindly distribute the Zoom link to ALL your church members and church leaders so that they can participate.
Please ensure all your documents are uploaded into Arena by October 1, 2021.
Helpful tips:
• Need a copy of your church's 2020 Church Conference Reports? Log-in to Arena as the church > choose Church Conference Forms > Scroll to the bottom of the page to find the Prior Year Submitted Reports
• Missed the 2021 Church Conference Training Tuesday webinars? Playback the recordings now -- https://www.bwcumc.org/events/training-tuesdays/
• Visit the 2021 Church Conference webpage to find forms, worksheets, an agenda, a checklist and the schedule -- https://www.bwcumc.org/administration/church-conference-forms/
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EVENTS
September 15 (10am) -- 2021 Church Staff Workshop
The past 18-months have been extra challenging! When you combine staying on top of work with caring for family, friends, and church members, it has been easy to neglect your own well-being. Join us by Zoom as we welcome Dr. Deborah Haskins who will walk us through self-care and how we can focus on our own wellbeing. Dr. Haskins was recently awarded the National Council on Problem Gambling’s Monsignor Joseph Dunne Lifetime Award for Advocacy. She was celebrated for her pioneering work and unparalleled advocacy in problem gambling counseling, trauma-informed care, adverse childhood experiences, community mental health, grief and loss, health equity, faith-based work and more. This event is free but registration is required. Sign-up by August 30 and complete the assessment poll -- https://arenaweb.bwcumc.org/default.aspx?page=3452&event=5985
September 18 (10 am) -- ROCK 2022/Youth Rally Planning Meeting (BWC Mission Center)
This year, youth from the BWC will be joining young people from the Peninsula-Delaware Conference at their youth rally, January 7-9 in Ocean City. Learn more about ROCK -- https://www.bwcumc.org/rock/
The Committees on Native American Ministries for the Baltimore-Washington and Peninsula-Delaware conferences are hosting several events this fall.
"Racism and the Native American Community," hosted by the UMC Asian American Language Ministries Plan will be held Sept. 21 at 8 p.m. This month’s webcast will center on the voices of Native Americans and contemporary challenges to confront racism in public policies. Register.
A documentary and discussion on “The Wellbriety Journey to Forgiveness” will be Sept. 23, from 7 to 8:30 p.m.The documentary gives a voice to first-hand accounts of abuses at Indian Boarding Schools, the impact it had, and how to move forward to forgive the unforgivable. Learn more.
A Day of Remembrance and Action will be held Oct. 6 when United Methodists remember the forced relocation of Native American children to boarding schools — many of them run by churches. See a Map of Church-Run Indian Boarding Schools. Learn more at Boarding School Healing and Justice for our Children, Healing for Our Communities. Also read a Call to Truth-Telling and Repentance, endorsed by the NEJ Native American Ministries.
The second in a five series webinar will explore: “Stealing the Earth: “Whose Land? The Doctrinal Legitimization and Theft of the People’s Land" on Oct. 13 at. 1 p.m. Register for the Zoom webinar.
September 21-23 & March 8-10, 2022 -- Living Well Initiative Clergy Care Retreat
The Center for Vital Leadership will host a seven-month, pilot program that offers clergy the opportunity to thrive. What do you do when you want to take your ministry to the next level? The program is comprised of two retreats, Sept. 21-23, at Camp Manidokan, and March 8-10, 2022, at West River Camp and Retreat Center, as well as monthly cohort meetings between the retreats to process their learnings and support each other throughout this journey. The $700 registration fee, matched by the Baltimore-Washington Conference, covers the full cost of the two retreats, the seven-month journal, and review instruments designed to create a personalized pastoral development plan. 3.3 CEUs will be offered. Register and get more information -- https://arenaweb.bwcumc.org/default.aspx?page=3452&event=5977
September 28 -- Bishop’s Listening Session on the Southern Region
On September 28 at Westphalia UMC in Upper Marlboro, MD, Bishop LaTrelle Easterling will hold a listening day on the Southern Region. The gathering will take place in-person, and the conversation will also be aired in real time on a Zoom webinar. (Online participants will be able to submit questions to the bishop.) The clergy will meet from 2 to 4 p.m. Laity will meet from 7 to 8:30 p.m. However, all of these sessions are open if you are not able to meet at your designated time. The time with the bishop on the regions will include worship, a presentation by Bishop Easterling as she shares her vision for the church, and a question-and-answer and listening session.
Whether you are attending in-person or online, registration is required for these events. Physical distancing and other COVID-19 precautions will be observed and attendance will be capped so that we do not exceed the capacity for attendance.
October 25-27 -- Register for Annual Conference
The 237th Session of the Baltimore-Washington Conference, scheduled for Oct. 25-27, will now be held entirely online. All voting members who wish to attend the online conference must register by midnight on September 27th. A mandatory training session on voting will be held Oct. 19 at noon and Oct. 21 at 7 p.m. Participants will sign up for the training during registration. This decision was made out of an abundance of caution to address the potential threats raised by COVID-19 and the Delta variant. Questions? Contact A
. Members will consider seven resolutions that have been submitted by groups and individuals in the BWC, and the proposed 2022 budget.
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REQUEST AND RESOURCES
Church Stat Reports are Available in Arena
Statistical data submitted via EZRA, the data collection system of the United Methodist Church, can now be viewed in Arena. And, Arena users can view 2017-2020 reports for their church if they serve in one or more of the following roles:
• Chair or President of a local church, district or conference committee
• Church Pastor
• Church Administrator
100 Man Mission to Support the NEJ United Methodist Men
Men’s Ministry Specialists will lead this effort and be supported by Conference Men who have a love for God and their fellow men. To do this 100 GENEROUS Men are needed to pledge to the NEJ, fifty cents per day, or $15.00 a month for 12 months, or a total of $180.00 per year. These men pledge to send their contribution MONTHLY to their UMM conference treasurer, who will forward one-half of these funds to the Northeastern Jurisdiction Treasurer, Mr. John Conklin. The conference will retain the other half for their expenses and to purchase education materials to support the NEJ efforts. Learn more here -- https://www.bwcumm.org/100man-prayerwalk