Church Conferences, the annual business meeting for all UMC congregations will begin in September.  Districtd Superintendent Hank Stringer or Assist. to the Superintendent Jim Waugh will lead each of the cluster sessions. In addition, Hank Stringer will meet with seven congregations for individual church conferences.

Each of the cluster church conference events will follow the same format:

3:00 pm Mtg with members of P/SPR Committees

3:30 pm Plenary with worship and preaching

4:30 pm Church Conference Sessions

Click HERE for a updated schedule of the church conference sessions.

Big Island, VA - Pepsi is granting 1.3 million dollars in September to fund ideas that will refresh the world. The Society of St. Andrew's approach to feeding the hungry will certainly refresh the world of those in need. 

You can help feed the hungry by voting every day in September for the Society of St. Andrew in the Pepsi Refresh Everything Project, Food & Shelter-$250,000 category.

Each month a different group of ideas submitted from all across the country to the Pepsi Refresh Project are voted on in selected categories by people nationwide. The "ideas" that get the most votes are granted the prize money to help fulfill their goals. The Society of St. Andrew's (SoSA) hunger relief ministry is in the September voting cycle. If they come out on top the money will provide an additional 9 million servings of fresh, nutritious produce to those in need. 

Starting September 1st at 6:00 A.M. and every day in September, go to SoSA's website,
www.endhunger.org, and click "VOTE TO FEED 9 MILLION HUNGRY AMERICANS". You'll link directly to the Society of St. Andrew's listing on the Pepsi Refresh Project website where you can vote once each day throughout the month.

 The "idea" that gets the most votes wins the money, so plan to vote for SoSA every day and tell everyone you know to vote, too. On SoSA's homepage you can: opt-in for a daily email reminder with a direct link to vote; get the number for texting your vote; get a widget with the "vote" link to post to websites and emails; find instructions for sharing the idea on your Facebook and Twitter pages.

For more information about the Society of St. Andrew's nonprofit hunger relief programs - Gleaning Network, Potato & Produce Project, Harvest of Hope, and Hunger Relief Advocate Initiative - call 800-333-4597, go to
www.endhunger.org, or email  sosainfo@endhunger.org.

United Methodist Rural Fellowship, United Methodism's advocate for town and country ministry, will hold its annual legislative consultation November 9-12, in Tampa, FL. 

Laity and clergy are invited to the working consultation to draft legislation in support of town and country ministry for the up-coming 2012 General Conference. 

Sheraton Tampa Riverwalk will host the three-day event, which also includes a fund-raising auction and a general business meeting.  Cost for double occupancy, four meals, and snacks is $365.  (Commuter cost is $250.)

More information is available at www.umrf.org.  Registration may be done online at lyle@hintoncenter.org or by contacting Hinton Rural Life Center, POB 27, Hayesville, NC 28904.