davis_keith200Rev. Keith Davis, 88, passed away Wednesday, March 11, 2015, at Mercy St. Charles Hospital in Oregon, Ohio. He was living in Pemberville, Ohio, southeast of Toledo.

Rev. Davis was a United Brethren pastor for 52 years, serving churches in Mermil, Bucyrus, Smithville, Bowling Green, North Baltimore, Fostoria, and Elmore. He served 25 years at Bethel UB church in Elmore and remained a member there. He also taught middle and elementary school for 22 years.

Viewing: 1-8pm Sunday, March 15, 2015.
Viewing location: Crosser Funeral Home, Elmore-Genoa Chapel, 19550 W. SR 52, Elmore, Ohio 43416.
Funeral: 11am Monday, March 16, 2015.
Funeral location: Bethel UB church, 2920 SR 590, Elmore, Ohio. Pastor Tim Sherman will officiate.

Pastor Davis was born in Wayne, Ohio on April 16, 1927. His father died while Keith was an infant. He grew up helping his mother and siblings on their farm, and selling the produce they raised. He also worked as a salesman for Firestone Tires and was a Fuller Brush representative. Keith received his pastoral schooling from Huntington University, and his B.A. in Education from Bowling Green State University.

Pastor Davis and his wife, Edna, were married in 1952; after nearly 60 years of marriage, she passed away in 2011. He is survived by his four children.

centralamericatraining900 central-america-training-march2015

Jeff Bleijerveld, Director of Global Ministries

Twenty-five leaders from United Brethren churches are gathered together this week in Masaya, Nicaragua. They have come from Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica.

The focus of our time is to become acquainted with the ministry of ETBIL (Educación Teológica Basado en la Iglesia Local). For the past two years, Felix Zaldivar and Celso Midence, regional trainers for Central America, have been working to implement this ministry in Honduras.

The ministry is focused on developing and multiplying disciples and leaders within the local church. This “in-service” approach is based on 2 Timothy 2:2: “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others.” This methodology used by Jesus and the early church contributed to the rapid expansion of the church.

This is the first time we have gathered all of our Hispanic leaders for a retreat of this nature. Pray that God will help us embrace the challenge to make and multiply disciples and develop the leaders needed to expand the ministry of the church throughout the world—from “Latin America” to the ends of the earth.

L-r: Bishop Phil Whipple, Terry Smith, John and Donna Authenreith, and  Marty Pennington.

L-r: Bishop Phil Whipple, Terry Smith, John and Donna Authenreith, and Marty Pennington.

Bishop Phil Whipple (left) with John and Donna Authenreith.

Bishop Phil Whipple (left) with John and Donna Authenreith.

John Authenreith was ordained by Bishop Phil Whipple on February 18, 2015. John is Worship Arts Pastor at Mainstreet UB church in Walbridge, Ohio. The ordination service was held at Mainstreet, with senior pastor Marty Pennington and associate pastor Terry Smith assisting.

John has served on staff at Mainstreet since 2006. He and the Mainstreet worship team led the worship singing at the 2007 and 2009 US National Conferences.

Marshall Woods, Jr., passed away the morning of Saturday, February 28, 2015. He is the father of Marshall Woods III (right), pastor of Mill Chapel UB church in Reedsville, W. Va. Marshall is also a cluster leader.

Viewing time: 4-8 pm Tuesday, March 3, 2015
Viewing location: Smith Funeral Home, Burlington, W. Va.
Funeral: 3 pm Wednesday, March 4
Funeral location: Knobley Church of the Brethren, New Creek, WV 26743-9712

Pastor Woods’ address:

704 Pensinger Blvd.
Oakland, MD 21550

HU students at the iNRB convention. Dr. Sherilyn Emberton, president of Huntington University, is front-center.

HU students at the iNRB convention. Dr. Sherilyn Emberton, president of Huntington University, is front-center.


The Intercollegiate National Religious Broadcasters (iNRB) recognized seven Huntington University students with awards for outstanding examples of radio, TV and film production. One team captured the “Film Award of Excellence.”

The students, all from HU’s Digital Media Arts Department, received the honors at the iNRB Student Production Awards Ceremony in Nashville, Tennessee, on Wednesday. February 25, 2015.

Juniors and film production majors Cassie Kasicki of Rockford, Ill., and Eric Luce of Salina, Kansas, won first place in the documentary film category for their entry titled “XO: What Defines You?” Their project also received the “Film Award of Excellence” within all the film categories.

Junior Eric Luce and senior Brianna Santiago, a broadcast-fusion media major from Goshen, Indiana, won first place in the TV/video: student production category for their “FDN News” entry.

Seniors and film production majors Rachel Larson of Lakeville, Minn.; Luke Myers of Franklinville, N. Y.; and Ethan Burch of Bloomington, Ind., won first place in the film: short film category for their entry titled “Infamy.”

Senior Carissa Taylor, a film production major from Angola, Ind., won second place in the TV/video: web production category for her entry titled “Thankful.”

“I am so proud of our students and how much work they put into their projects,” said Dr. Lance Clark (right), department chair and professor of digital media arts, film and communications. “Broadcast-fusion media students have stepped up their game with FDN News, and our Film Production student film ‘Infamy’ is a great, heartfelt story about forgiveness and moving on set in the post-World War II era. It shows an excellence in our digital media arts program and that our students can compete and win at the national level.”

First-place winners in each category were awarded $150 in prize money to be divided among team members, plus the opportunity to attend the 2015 NRB International Christian Media Convention in Nashville, Tenn. In addition to prize money, all first-place winners received a trophy and a certificate, along with $300, divided among team members, to cover transportation costs to the convention.

Twelve students traveled to the NRB convention this year along with Dr. Lance Clark and Dawn Ford, associate professor of digital media arts. All of the students competed in an onsite 24-hour media contest in film, TV news, and public relations.

The Huntington University website can tell you a lot more about the Digital Media Arts Department.

Don Merillat, a retired UB minister, was hospitalized over the weekend in Tampa, Florida. His condition was very serious. On Sunday, his wife, Carol, wrote, “Don is resting and the pain seems to be subsiding, but he is terribly confused. It partly may be drugs; they are taking him off of them. The infectious doctor was in today and they are going to be testing to see if and where there is infection in the body. One blood test came back that there was some infection. He has been retested. He has had pneumonia and we are in question about his kidneys and how much they may be playing a part in the confusion. Kidneys are not good.”

On Tuesday, Feb. 24, Carol added this message: “The doctors did blood work yesterday. There seems to be an infection in his body. Infectious people will be working on it. He was still very confused and realized that his mind was playing tricks on him. Hard to deal with. Much of this could be due to the drugs that they had him on for pain. He is on two different antibiotics by IV….He has been free from the horrific pain for a couple of days and they are giving him no pain meds as of yesterday.”

Please keep Don and Carol in your prayers.

Funeral arrangements have been finalized for Lettitia and Sundima Sinnah, who died February 10 in a parsonage fire in Baltimore, Md. Lettitia was the wife of Rev. Samuel Sinnah, pastor of the Brooklyn Park UB church in Baltimore, and Sundima was their 17-year-old son.

Funeral: Saturday, March 21, 2015.
Time: Visitation 10-11 am. Funeral 11 am.
Location: North County High School, 10 East 1st Ave., Glen Burnie, MD 21061.

A vigil will be held at the Brooklyn Park UB church on Friday night, March 20, from 7-9 pm. Bishop Phil Whipple will speak at the funeral the next day.

Lettitia’s mother and sister are coming from Sierra Leone. Efforts have been made to expedite the securing of passports and visas. The Ebola crisis complicates matters, though it’s uncertain whether any 21-day quarantine will apply in this situation. However, the funeral home could keep the body for a limited period of time, so they had to go ahead with scheduling the funeral.

How You Can Help

We invite you to help with some costs related to the funeral and the ongoing needs of the Sinnah family.

  1. Rev. Sinnah and his remaining son, Joseph, are currently living at a hotel. They will be relocating to an apartment, and will need money for furnishings and other costs.
  2. Travel costs will be significant for Lettitia’s mother and sister.

If you would like to help with these expenses, you can channel donations through the United Brethren National Office. Send checks to:

UB National Office
302 Lake Street
Huntington, IN 46750

Write checks to “United Brethren in Christ,” and include a note saying the donation is for Sinnah Family Relief. Note: these donations will NOT be tax-exempt.

A United Brethren History Course will be held May 4-5 in Akron, Ohio. This course is a requirement for ministerial licensing in the United Brethren denomination. However, people who just want to learn more about UB history are invited to attend.

During the past four years, 125 people have attended the course in 15 different locations.

Date: May 4-5, 2015 (Monday and Tuesday)
Time: 9 am – 4 pm each day
Location: Holiday Inn Express & Suites Airport, Akron, Ohio
Address: 898 Arlington Ridge East, Akron, OH 44512
Instructor: Daryl Elliott (right), senior pastor of Fountain UB church (Keyser, W. Va.).

Registration Cost

  • $200, if you are seeking a ministerial license.
  • $100 for everyone else.
  • $20 for “Trials and Triumphs,” a history of the United Brethren church. ($14.95 for the book, $5.05 shipping for US, $12.95 international). The book will be sent from the national office. Or, stop by the office and pick up a copy, to save shipping. You MUST have a copy of the book for the class. Order a copy from Church Resources at the National Office by calling toll-free: 888-622-3019, ext 301.

 

Note: $50 discount if you pay fully in advance!

Course payment must be sent one week prior to the class, unless other arrangements are made. Send to:

United Brethren in Christ
302 Lake Street
Huntington, Ind. 46750

Make checks payable to “United Brethren in Christ.”

Participants in the 2014 UB Youth Workers Summit.

Participants in the 2014 UB Youth Workers Summit.

This annual event is available to all paid youth ministry staff or the lead youth ministry volunteer in the church. About 25 youth workers typically attend.

Date: April 27-30, 2015
Location: Best Western Aku Tiki Inn,
2225 South Atlantic Avenue
Daytona Beach Shores, FL 32118

The Summit is a great time of networking with other youth leaders and being encouraged by others who are in the trenches of youth ministry. They enjoy the beach, the golf course, and incredibly beautiful weather, along with the chance to slow down and step away from the constant demands of youth ministry.

This year’s keynote speaker is Don Rosco. He will walk us through the life of Christ and how that can and should apply to our ministry today.

Registration

  • Two persons in a room: $195 per person (whether it’s a spouse or another youth worker)
  • One person in a room: $280 per person

You can register now. After April 1, the cost rises $50 and is on an availability-only basis. This is due to contracted arrangements with the hotel.

The registration fee includes meeting costs, lodging, breakfasts, and two “Special Treat” dinners–one hosted by Huntington University, the other by Bishop Phil Whipple.

You are responsible for:

  • Transportation to and from Daytona
  • Meals that are not covered (see above)
  • Hotel incidentals

For complete information, go to UBTeens.org