Conference News

There will be no eNews during Thanksgiving Week. We will pause to give thanks for many  blessings and pray for those struggling during this season.    Foundation Honors Beattys: The United Methodist Foundation of Western PA honored longtime Jumonville President Larry Beatty and his wife Jaye Beatty with its Founders' Day Award. It was presented during a luncheon on Friday, Nov. 15. Read more Pittsburgh Creche: The Christian Leaders Fellowship, an ecumenical group of bishops and denominational ... read more

Volunteers from several Kane District churches are pitching in to deck the halls (and rooms) of Olmsted Manor for the Christmas season. They'll be ready to welcome the public at Open Houses scheduled for Dec. 1 and 8.  Grace Lenox is coordinating the effort. She has worked with Olmsted staff on decorating the Manor House since her husband, the Rev J. Patrick Lenox, became Kane District Superintendent in 2014. This year, she invited some district churches to get involved in the effort.  "They ... read more

United Methodists in Western Pennsylvania and Eastern Germany have completed their 2019 Advent Devotional in English and German, which can be downloaded and copied.  Advent begins on Sunday, Dec. 1, 2019. The entries for each day contain scripture and the devotional thoughts in both English and German. Some Western PA clergy and laity, as well as Bishop Cynthia Moore-Koikoi, are among those who contributed meditations. The partnership, formed in 1988 before the fall of the Berlin Wall, has been... read more

The United Methodist Foundation of Western PA honored longtime Jumonville President Larry Beatty and his wife Jaye Beatty with its Founders' Day Award at a luncheon on Friday, Nov. 15. The Beattys retired in the Spring of 2019 after 37 years of service at the camp and retreat center, recognizable to many for the Great Cross of Christ which sits atop the mountain and can be seen from miles away. "Larry and Jaye have had a significant impact upon the Western Pennsylvania Annual Conference through... read more

Fire Damages Punxsutawney Church: The state police fire marshal was investigating the cause of a four-alarm fire that broke out Monday evening Nov. 11 at Albion Heights UMC in Punxsutawney. The blaze severely damaged a wood frame addition to the back of the red brick church, built in 1905. There were no injuries reported. Read more A Celebration of Life Service was held on Sunday at Calvary UMC in Pittsburgh for the Rev. Bob Richards, former Franklin DS, the first pastor of Charter Oak UMC, and ... read more

No injuries were reported in a four-alarm fire that broke out early Monday evening, Nov. 11 at Albion Heights United Methodist Church in Punxsutawney and severely damaged a wood frame addition to the back of the red brick church. The church was built in 1905.  Punxsutawney Fire Dept. photos "The fire was kept out of the sanctuary and we removed as much as we could from it," Punxsutawney Fire Chief Bryan Smith said in a Facebook post thanking all who came out to assist in fighting the blaze. ... read more

The Western Pennsylvania General and Jurisdictional Conference Delegation met on Saturday, November 2, 2019 at the United Methodist Conference Center, with Bishop Cynthia Moore-Koikoi as a special guest for the morning session.   Bishop Moore-Koikoi shared a message and presided over the sacrament of Holy Communion at the opening worship service.  The Bishop then shared information about what has been happening around the denomination as General Conference 2020 approaches.  A question and answer... read more

Looking for an intern? Apply now to provide field education for a Wesley Theological Seminary student this summer. To be approved as an internship site, a clergy person and lay person must be willing to meet with and mentor a student weekly. Wesley will advertise potential sites to their students if they receive your material by early December. If selected, you can join in the Conference's larger seminary internship program where funding, orientation and support are provided. For information, ... read more

Daylight Saving Time Ending: Unless you want to be very early for church on Sunday, turn your clocks back before turning in Saturday night. Daylight Savings Time officially ends at 2 a.m. Sunday.  Connellsville Ministries Burglarized: Someone threw a rock through front door glass at Connellsville Area Community Ministries early Sunday morning and removed a donation jar and safe, among other things. “Please join us in prayer for those who committed the crime. They are obviously in a difficult ... read more

Because of a recent increase in spoofed emails, your Conference Communications Team wants to remind you of the following information: Spoofing is when the sender’s name and/or email are altered to hide its true origin. Phishing emails try to entice you into disclosing personal information, such as your username, password or bank account details. These practices are used by virus and spam authors to make their emails look legitimate and lure people into clicking on links, downloading ... read more

Someone threw a brick through front door glass at Connellsville Area Community Ministries (CACM) early on the morning of Sunday, Oct. 27 and removed a donation jar and a safe, among other things. CACM is one of the Western Pennsylvania United Methodist Conference's six regional mission agencies. “Please join us in prayer for those who committed the crime. They are obviously in a difficult place and need help,” said a CACM Facebook post on Sunday.  On Monday evening, John Batronis, 54, of ... read more

Methodist Tower Mural: Methodist Towers, Inc., a non-profit corporation founded by the First United Methodist Church in downtown Erie, is the canvas for a spectacular 8-story-tall mural portraying resident Rudy Daniels, 71. The work by renowned Miami-based street artist Evoca2 (Elio Mercado) was completed recently. Read more and see photos Health Insurance Rates: The 2020 cost of health insurance for clergy appointed full-time to the local church will be $1413.00 per month or $16,956.00. That’s... read more

Farewell, Jessica Gamache! Conference Camping and Retreat Ministries Coordinator Jessica Gamache has accepted a position as Director of the United Methodist Camp and Retreat Ministries Association, effective November 4. Learn more See Camping Coordinator Job Posting at wpaumc.org/classifieds Appointment Change: The first appointment announcement of the “new” season is more of an adjustment than a change. The Rev. Chris Kindle will serve as associate pastor at Concord UMC while continuing to ... read more

Fifteen members of the WPAUMC Ethnic Clergy Caucus gathered October 14-15 for a retreat at the Hilton Garden Inn, Cranberry Township, PA. heard the Rev. Dr. Kendrick Weaver discuss the meditative practices of Jesus.  Dr. Weaver, who is himself a contemporary mystic, drew on scripture, the writings of Howard Thurman, and his own book Meditate like Jesus: Uncover the Meditative practices of Jesus, in his presentation. In addition to his teaching, he led the clergy  through meditative practice ... read more

Jessica Gamaché, camping coordinator for the Western PA Annual Conference, has accepted a position as Director of the United Methodist Camp and Retreat Ministries Association, effective November 4.  The position is new, made possible by a foundation grant awarded last spring.  Jessica was recommended by the Director Search Task Force after a 3 ½-month process that began with more than 300 initial applicants, was narrowed to 50 who completed essays and video requirements, and ended after three ... read more