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Bishop Beard is one of the Bishops elected at the recent Jurisdictional Conference that was held in Peoria. Please welcome Bishop Beard and his wife to IGRC. For information on the other Bishops in the North Central Jurisdiction, go to Episcopal Assignments for NCJ. A Celebration of Service will be held for Bishop Beard on September 11 at Springfield First at 3:00 pm. It is suggested that to help Bishop Frank and Mrs. Melissa Beard begin to discover the state of Illinois and the Illinois Great Rivers Conference in particular, that each district fill a basket with items unique to your district. The baskets will be displayed on tables during the celebration service and reception. ( It is suggested that fresh flowers and berries NOT be included in these baskets due to allergies.) Some of his favorite things are popcorn, oatmeal raisin cookies, dry roasted nuts. He likes cooking and fishing. His favorite color is Chicago Bears Blue. Mrs. Beard collects buttons to make jewelry and she likes royal blue. They both love antiquing and flea markets. We are asking that if your church would like to provide anything from your town or local area to go in the basket, that you bring it to the District office no later than noon on Wednesday, September 7. This will allow us time to prepare the basket for display. It is not required that every church participate, but if you would like to, and have some unique item to represent your church and locality, it would be welcomed. |
If you are not already receiving the newsletter and would like to receive this, send an email to the District office to let us know and we will be glad to add you to the list. This is sent normally one time each month, but there is no set date for it to be published. If you have news that would be of interest to the entire District, send us an email and we will try to add it to the next one, or at least we can send the information out to our pastors and churches via email.
We thank you for making pledges for Africa University. .As you probably know by now, The goal was surpassed! The donations were given in honor of Bishop and Mrs. Keaton. However, if you still have donations to send, you may send your donations to the Conference Treasurers office and write in the memo line, AU Making Dreams Possible #6980. A Big THANK YOU to all that contributed toward this effort.
The new United Methodist Handbook is now available in an easy-to-read and share digital format.
The handbook is among the best resources for laity providing leadership, people new to the United Methodist Church and clergy who occasionally get stumped by a question.
You can download the Handbook for off-line reading, or print pages for as you may need or want them. This is an excellent resource and there is no cost.
It is available at http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/unitedmethodist/handbook/
The West-Side District Retired Clergy group meets at the Lighthouse Restaurant in Rochester at 11:30 a.m. on the second Monday of each month.
Retired Ministers, spouses and Retired clergy widows are invited to attend. Everyone will order from the menu. While waiting for the food, announcements and prayer requests will be heard. If you have a prayer request or a concern, you can contact the District office or any of the Retired clergy. Any Retired Clergy or spouse in the general area are welcome and invited to attend. Reservations are NOT needed.
The East-Side District Retired Clergy group meets for lunch the third Wednesday of each month at Camp One-Way at noon.
All Retired Ministers, spouses and Retired clergy widows are invited to attend. From I-72, take exit 122 and travel South for 2 miles. Watch for the Mt Auburn sign and turn left. Go 3.5 miles to the Mt. Auburn blacktop (Christian County Hwy 2), turn left and go 3 miles. You will see Camp One Way's main building on the right.
To make reservations or ask questions, call Don Ferrill 217-935-3502 or Claude Mosher 217-877-6192.
If you are not already receiving the District newsletter via your e-mail, please send the district office your name and e-mail address so you can be added to our list. This will be coming monthly and will have timely information about events in the district as well as an article from Conference Superintendent Terry Harter.
For a listing of items for sale or to be given away, go to the Classified section of the IGRC website. If your church has news you would like to see posted here, send it to the District Office.
Effective September 1, 2016, Illinois Great Rivers Conference has a new Bishop. For more information on Bishop Frank Beard, please follow this link.