2020 Oregon-Idaho Annual Conference

The 2020 Oregon-Idaho Annual Conference was held on Sept. 16, in two, two-hour settings via Zoom Webinar to conduct the essential business of the conference.

This virtual gathering of essential-only business was held after our combined Greater Northwest Episcopal Area in-person gathering in June was cancelled due to COVID-19 concerns.

Bishop Elaine JW Stanovsky presided over the virtual conference gathering and guided us through three themes: Do No Harm – Fighting COVID-19; Do Good – Dismantle Racism; Stay in Love with God – Reimagining Life Together.

Highlights of the gathering was a worship presentation that combined recorded videos and a liturgy live with Bishop Stanovsky to set the stage for the times we are in and the work we have before us. Bishop Stanovsky made special notice of the fact many wildfires were burning across the Greater Northwest Area as we were gathering virtually and mentioned specific disaster response funds set up by both the Oregon-Idaho and Pacific Northwest Conferences.

An essentials-only conference meant that we simply dealt with the necessary items needed to continue functioning until Annual Conference 2021. This meant we had to suspend and adjust our rules for this virtual setting. In addition to this we adopted our budget, equitable compensation plan for those serving in our churches, health and pension benefit adjustments, voted on the closure of six United Methodist churches in our conference and approved our nominations report and recommendations.

In addition to the essentials-only business, we were able to hear reports from our Board of Lay Ministries, Camp & Retreat Ministries, Abundant Health Ministries, LGBTQ+ advocacy, communications staff, and our General Conference delegates. We will send the same delegation to General Conference 2021 as was voted on for the now-postponed GC 2020: Rev. Wendy Woodworth, first-elected clergy delegate. Jan Nelson, first-elected lay delegate. Other clergy: Rev. Donna Pritchard, Rev. Jeremy Smith, Rev. Anna Cho, Rev. Julia Nielsen, Rev. Daryl Blanksma. Other lay delegates: Mark Bateman, Kylie Nelson, Carter Lysbeck, Lydia Henry.

Because we did not hold a conference session, clergy voted during their session in June to elect to full membership as elders the Rev. Ric Shewell and the Rev. Dylan Hyun and elected the Rev. Jenny Hirst as a deacon in full connection. Additionally, six candidates were elected as provisional elders within the Oregon-Idaho Conference: Kalina Malua Katoa, Thomas Orquiza-Renardo, MiKyung Mia Park, Jayde Rasband, Gigi Siekkinen and Fungalei Taufoou.

We honored 11 retiring clergy who have served The United Methodist Church and this conference faithfully for 319 years, collectively. We also, briefly, honored clergy, retired clergy and clergy spouses who moved on to eternal life since Annual Conference 2019.

It is the intention of Bishop Stanovsky to hold ordination, commissioning and memorial services to honor these individuals and sacred traditions when the Greater Northwest Episcopal Area hopefully gathers in June 2021 in Puyallup, Wash.

Membership stands at 23,031 people in the Oregon-Idaho Conference, down just 3 percent from the previous year. Worship attendance stood at 10,619 (not counting online attendance), which was also down 3 percent. Church school attendance rose slightly to 2,654. Professions or reaffirmations of faith for 2019 stood at 373, down 47 from 2018. Adults and young adults in small groups attendance was 5,941, down 368 from the previous year. Worshippers engaged in mission for 2019 was down significantly at 8,061 – with more than 11,000 worshippers engaged in mission in 2018.

— Kristen Caldwell, director of communications