News

There are changes afoot! If you remember the ethics policy changes from the 2022 Annual Conference, you’ll know that you will have three requirements, which are just a bit different from the past: Disclosure Form This is now a biennial rather than annual form, and will include a statement asking you to affirm that you have read the Sexual Ethics Policy for Clergy and Lay Pastoral Leaders in the previous two weeks. It will be due in May. Background check This will happen biennially, in May. ...

Growing up in rural Alabama, it was Bishop Cedrick Bridgeforth’s grandparents who made sure he got to church – even on the days he didn’t want to be there. But it was in the church, Lakeview United Methodist and Oakville Baptist churches that he found purpose – even on the hard days. After serving in the U.S. Air Force and earning a bachelor’s degree in religion from Samford University and a master of divinity degree from Claremont School of Theology, he has found the joy, purpose and calling ...

United Women in Faith, formerly United Methodist Women, of the Oregon-Idaho Conference will host its annual celebration and all-member leadership training Oct. 21 – Oct. 22 at Boise First UMC and will feature United Women in Faith’s global president,  ‘Ainise ‘Isama’u, as a special guest speaker. Individuals can attend in person or over Zoom, if needed. The registration form covers both options. There will be times of worship, celebration, learning, meals and more.  “If you are participating ...

Lay Servant Ministries BASIC (Foundation) Class THURSDAYS OCTOBER 20th, 27th NOVEMBER 3rd, 10th, 17th from:  6:00-8:00 pm ON ZOOM You will need to order your book:  Lay Servant Ministries by Sandy Zeigler Jackson and Brian Jackson  ISBN# 978-0-88177-626-3 It can be purchased from Cokesbury and also on Amazon. This course is a foundation for all courses in Lay Servant Ministry. You will need to attend all 10 hours for credit and complete a survey  at the end of the class in order to receive ...

This year marks 100 years since outdoor ministry began at Suttle Lake Camp. A Labor Day Weekend event will celebrate the generations of campers and leaders that have passed through the forest 14 miles west of Sisters, Oregon in the Deschutes National Forest. Beginning as an outdoor adventure for Methodist Church of Madras members in 1920, the first of many Epworth League Institutes in 1922 provides a beginning marker for ministry to youth and adults over the century. From that outpost beginning,...

Dear Annual Conference Members,   We are hopeful that our Western Jurisdictional Conference will meet in November 2022 to elect bishops. We anticipate selecting four individuals to consecrate as bishop who, together with Bishop Oliveto, will lead the West in this next chapter of our life together.   The WJ committee on episcopacy, in collaboration with the jurisdictional leadership team, inter-ethnic coordinating committee, and first elected delegates, are inviting the annual conferences of the ...

Clergy and lay-persons assigned to the local church: Are you carrying too much in this season? Struggling to balance caring for your community, church, family, and self? Trying to find your way in the new normal? You are not alone and this workshop is for you. Three clergy coaches share simple practices to ease the burden and give time to go deeper and gain support. If you are longing for a deeper transformation, you'll have the opportunity to engage the topic of overwhelm in ongoing coaching....

For the last six years of a 30-plus year career as an ordained elder in The United Methodist Church, Rev. Dan Wilson-Fey has been ministering to the people of the Oregon-Idaho Conference as a steward of their financial resources. On June 30, 2022, Wilson-Fey will retire as the Oregon-Idaho Conference Treasurer and Benefits Officer – a slight turn in the path he started on 40 years ago toward a career in medicine. “I feel like I’m called to turn my attention to my family and projects around the...

There are two general education scholarships available through the Oregon-Idaho Annual Conference and applications for the 2022-2023 academic year are open now. Oregon-Idaho Conference Undergraduate Leadership Award ($800) A scholarship is awarded to one undergraduate student from each of the four districts of the Oregon-Idaho Annual Conference, a total of four $800 scholarships, annually. Applicants are evaluated primarily on their leadership or potential leadership skills. Financial need is ...

“Lay Servant Ministries: Living Our United Methodist Beliefs” will start April 13 and run through May 11 for anyone interested in participating from the Greater Northwest Area. The class will be taught by Rev. Dr. Scott Allen of Kuna UMC in Idaho and Oregon-Idaho Conference Sage District LSM Coordinator Carole Sullivan. The four-week course will be held via Zoom every Tuesday evening from 6 to 8 p.m. The cost of participation is simply the purchase of the book “The United Methodist Way, Living ...