Alexander, Williams Elected by General Secretaries Table

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 30, 2008

Contact: Diane Denton
(615) 742-5406 (office)
(615) 483-1765 (cell)

Alexander, Williams Elected by General Secretaries Table

NASHVILLE: Neil Alexander, president of United Methodist Publishing House, has been elected by the General Secretaries Table to serve as chairperson.

The Rev. Robert Williams, chief executive of the Commission on Archives and History, will serve as secretary.

The General Secretaries Table is composed of the top executives of the 13 general boards and agencies of The United Methodist Church.

"We are in covenant to pursue a shared vision with urgency for significant results to strengthen and extend the Church's mission. We are collaborating with renewed awareness of our accountability with other leaders, particularly as we move forward with the four 'areas of focus' for The United Methodist Church," said Alexander.

Those focus areas include:

• Developing principled Christian leaders for the church and the world
• New places for new generations - starting new churches and renewing existing ones
• Engaging in ministry with the poor
• Stamping out killer diseases by improving health globally

Other members of the table include the Rev. David Adams, Commission on United Methodist Men; Barbara Boigegrain, Board of Pension and Health Benefits; M. Garlinda Burton, Commission on the Status and Role of Women; the Rev. Jerome King Del Pino, Board of Higher Education and Ministry; the Rev. Karen Greenwaldt, Board of Discipleship; Erin M. Hawkins, Commission on Religion and Race; the Rev. Larry Hollon, United Methodist Communications; Terry Bradfield, Council on Finance and Administration; Bishop Felton May, Board of Global Ministries; Bishop Fritz Mutti, Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns; and Jim Winkler, Board of Church and Society.