News

10/1/2015

The Annual Conference-wide Special Offering supporting Aldersgate Homes and Camp Collinswood is Sunday, October 25, 2015.             Aldersgate / Collinswood is a related agency of the North Georgia Conference advocating for the needs of persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Aldersgate reaches out to those whose abilities do not include independence and self-sufficiency and their families. We work to serve this population through advocacy, education, inclusiveness and ...

9/9/2015

Migrants form a crowd at the Keleti pályaudvar train station Sept. 2 in Budapest while waiting passage to Germany, Austria and other wealthier countries within the European Union where the laws on refugee protection are better. Photo by Daniel Peters for United Methodist News Service. Updated 9/12/2015 The General Board of Global Ministries has shared an update and information on the ways The United Methodist Church in Europe and at the international level is responding to the migration ...

7/30/2015

Crime Victims Advocacy Council (CVAC) will celebrate its 25th year in ministry with a dinner on Saturday, September 19, at North Druid Hills Country Club in Decatur. The event will highlight the faith-based nonprofit's efforts to help crime victims to heal. CVAC was founded by United Methodist clergy Rev. Bruce Cook, Rev. Melinda Jones and Rev. Frank Windom in 1989 and incorporated in 1990. Since then, the organization has provided support and advocacy for crime victims in metro Atlanta. ...

7/9/2015

Murphy-Harpst provides emotional, spiritual and physical safe haven to Georgia’s most viciously abused children. Offering round-the-clock therapeutic care, Murphy-Harpst enables children to heal and recover so that they can re-engage with society and lead productive lives. For nearly a century, Murphy-Harpst has successfully treated thousands of children by building the environment necessary to reverse the cycle of a lifetime of cruelty and neglect. A ministry of the United Methodist Church, ...

6/25/2015

Wesley Woods Senior Living Board announces Simpson Estates at Wesley Mountain Village. This naming of the existing cottage development for seniors in Blairsville, Georgia was approved at the annual board of directors meeting in May.   “Simpson Estates connects Miss Ludie Simpson’s hope of providing retirement housing for seniors with the Wesley Woods Senior Living mission, ‘To enable people to age with grace,’” stated Kenneth Weber, President and CEO.   Simpson Estates is located on the campus ...

5/15/2015

Note: Updated 7/14 to reflect the decision of the 2015 Annual Conference to allow Gwinnett County to keep the Simpson chapel in its current location. As the United Methodist Center offices prepare to relocate, many of the artifacts, furniture, and supplies from the Simpsonwood Retreat Center have already been moved off property and are being used in ministry settings around the North Georgia Conference. Soon after the close of the retreat center last year, a committee was established to plan ...

5/15/2015

By Laura K. Wise Global Ministries This week, 13 people answered the called to serve as missionaries with the United Methodist General Board of Global Ministries. Following three weeks of intensive training covering spiritual formation, cross-cultural awareness, team building, and conflict resolution, twelve of the thirteen new missionaries received a blessing as they prepared to live out their calling. Belmont United Methodist Church in Nashville, Tenn., hosted the blessing service on ...

5/8/2015

What are the commonalities shared among our neighbors to the south in the Caribbean, Central and South America?  What is the responsibility and opportunity  of the church to people with disabilities?  What does it mean to be happy in the Lord? These questions will be explored at Mission u, the mission education event of the North Georgia Conference, which will be held July 17-18 at Fayetteville First United Methodist Church.  For those who can come a day early, an optional, hands-on mission ...

5/7/2015

Bob Bruder-Mattson, president and CEO of The United Methodist Children’s Home, wrote the following open letter to faith communities during National Foster Care Month. Find more on National Foster Care Month at www.umchildrenshome.org/foster-care-month/. Right now, in your community, there are children who need your help. Georgia has more than 10,000 youth in its child welfare system and the number continues to grow. The shortage of foster homes results in children being separated from siblings ...

5/7/2015

The Athens-Elberton District will hold a 3-on-3 basketball tournament fundraiser for Imagine No Malaria on May 30 at Athens First UMC. Team from the District and beyond are invited to register for this fun day for a great cause. Players as young as fifth and sixth graders through adult teams will play in age and gender brackets. Register your team at http://athensfirstumc.org/nothingbutnets/. Details Date and Time: Saturday, May 30, 2015 8:00 a.m. Athens First United Methodist Church   ...

3/27/2015

With much joy and anticipation, the General Board of Global Ministries finalized the purchase of the Grace United Methodist Church property in Atlanta last week. Following a vote by Global Ministries’ board of directors in October 2014, the United Methodist mission agency announced plans to move its headquarters from New York City to Atlanta. The move is part of an overall plan to open regional offices in Africa, Latin America, and Asia. “I am excited to be moving toward this vision,” said ...

3/15/2015

Bishop B. Michael Watson, Bishop James King, and the Georgia Commission on Higher Education announce the appointment of Rev. Michael McCord as the next Executive Director of the Georgia United Methodist Commission on Higher Education and Campus Ministry. The appointment will be effective in June of 2015.    McCord will follow Rev. Cindy Autry who will retire in June.    McCord is currently Director of Campus Ministry Resources and Training for the United Methodist General Board of Higher ...

3/4/2015

Discipleship Ministries has officially become the new name of the general agency of The United Methodist Church known for years as The General Board of Discipleship, or GBOD. The name change, which includes new addresses for the website and agency personnel emails, was announced by Dr. Timothy L. Bias, General Secretary (chief executive) of Discipleship Ministries.   “The shift from General Board of Discipleship to Discipleship Ministries was an intentional decision to more clearly communicate ...

1/18/2015

Each year Bishop Woodie White writes a “Letter to Martin” (Martin  Luther King, Jr.) on the state of race relations and racial justice in America. Bishop White is a retired United Methodist Bishop, was an active leader in the Civil Rights movement, and continues to teach and work for racial and social justice. He is the Bishop in Residence at Candler School of Theology at Emory University in Atlanta where he teaches, preaches, and works to equip future leaders of the church for the ...

12/19/2014

Board Pleased with UMI’s Continued Success Insuring UM Churches   Nashville, Tenn. – Chuck Hamilton, President of United Methodist Insurance (UMI) is pleased to announce that UMI has selected Swiss Re (rated A+ by A.M. Best) as its new reinsurance partner, effective January 1, 2015. Swiss Re, the world’s second-largest reinsurer and founded in 1863, operates through offices in more than 25 countries.   “The new reinsurance arrangement with Swiss Re offers to UMI the tremendous experience and ...

12/18/2014

Georgia Interfaith Power & Light, Georgia’s only faith-based environmental nonprofit, has named Rev. Kate McGregor Mosley as Executive Director, effective January 1, 2015. GIPL engages the over 15,000 houses of worship across the state in sustainability, energy efficiency, and environmental stewardship as a witness to faith. Rev. Kate McGregor Mosley, a 2006 graduate of Columbia Theological Seminary and ordained Presbyterian minister, is a seasoned advocate for environmental concerns and ...

12/4/2014

Boynton UMC in Ringgold recently celebrated the results of its “Sowing Seeds Together All for God’s Glory” capital campaign directed by the Georgia United Methodist Foundation. Sixty individuals and families pledged $304,000 toward the renovation of its 25-year-old sanctuary and the construction of a new multi-purpose building. Additionally, another member paid off the $36,000 debt on the parsonage.   “As a result of our church’s generosity, more people will find Christ; more souls will be ...

12/4/2014

More than 100 college and seminary students from the North Georgia Conference received scholarships from the United Methodist Church's General Board of Higher Education and Ministry in the 2014-2015 school year.  In addition to the dozens of scholarships available from GBHEM, several students from North Georgia United Methodist churches attending UM-related institutions applied for and received a Conference Merit Award scholarship thanks to the generosity of North Georgia Conference churches ...

12/2/2014

Rev. George H. Grant, PhD, executive director of Spiritual Health at Emory Healthcare, is announcing that a business decision has been reached to close Emory Clergy Care (ECC) on December 31 of this year. The North Georgia Conference and ECC have partnered for many years to provide valuable counseling and consultation resources for pastors and their families.   Dr. Grant confirms that ECC is committed to a seamless transition of the functions of its office and has already made arrangements for ...

11/24/2014

Epworth By The Sea in St. Simons Island has extended an invitation to North Georgia  United Methodists to “Come To The Coast” for retreats, conferences, reunions and family vacations. Epworth offers a wide range of accommodations and is ideal place for rest, renewal and just great fun for all ages. Visit www.epworthbythesea.org to view accommodations, facilities and programs and retreats available for your church, family and friends. United Methodist Church groups of 10 or more receive a ...