28 Aug Dan Paternoster, ELT Member, Struck by Car

Dan Paternoster (right), 55, a member of the denominational Executive Leadership Team since 2001, was riding his bike this morning (Tuesday, August 28) when he was hit by a car. He is currently in the ICU at Sparrow Hospital in Lansing, Mich.

The family reports that he has injuries to the brain, and the prognosis is not good. Dan’s wife, Nancy, and his daughter are with him. Please pray for Dan and his family. The Paternosters are members of Fowlerville UB church in Fowlerville, Mich. Dan is a veterinarian, and an avid bicyclist.

UPDATE 1:55 pm: According to LivingstonDaily.com, Dan was struck from behind by a 2008 Dodge Avenger sedan as he was riding his bike to work on the shoulder of Grand River Avenue. The woman driving the vehicle said “something got her attention” and she was looking to her left when she heard her vehicle strike something. She looked back, and the bicycle was going up in the air and the rider was striking her vehicle, said the sheriff. Speed and alcohol do not appear to be issues. Also, Dan was wearing a helmet.

UPDATE 3:45: A call from Fowlerville church informed us that Dan’s vital signs are good, and he is no longer in a life-threatening condition. However, there has been significant brain damage. He also has many bone fractures and other injuries. You can pray now for bleeding in the brain to stop, and for the overall healing of his body. He did squeeze his wife’s hand when she insisted that he squeeze it, so that’s a good sign.

Mailing address:

Dan Paternoster
4770 Cemetery Road
Fowlerville, MI 48836

06 Aug Introducing Your New United Brethren logo.

A new logo has been developed for United Brethren churches in the United States. That’s what you see above.

We are not replacing the familiar United Brethren logo (below). That logo remains the official logo of the international United Brethren church, and local churches are free to continue using it. But the new logo applies specifically to the United States National Conference–the UB churches in the USA.

The US logo is easily identifiable with the international logo, and incorporates the three main elements:

• The linked figures (the “United Brethren” part).
• The cross, representing Christ.
• The flame, representing the Holy Spirit.

The Need for a US Logo

The United Brethren churches in the United States haven’t had their own logo since 2001, which is probably news to you. When we adopted an international structure in 2001, with sovereign national conferences in what is now 10 different countries, the familiar logo became the logo of the international church. We have continued using that logo.

Left: The international UB logo. Right: The Canadian logo.

However, it was felt that we should have a logo specifically for the US National Conference. The UB Church in Canada, many years ago, developed their own logo (right), but none of the other national conferences have followed suit. Which is fine. The international logo works universally.

But this new logo, with some modern twists on the international logo, recognizes the US National Conference as a distinct entity within the worldwide body.

As a local United Brethren church, you are free to use the logo on your website, in your publications, and in any other way you see fit. Or, you can continue using the international logo. No need to run out and redo all of your stationery, or make a new church sign. Use the new logo as it fits your needs.

A Little Background

In the 1970s, we produced a denominational logo with three key elements–two linked figures, a cross, and a flame. The logo was refined by a professional design firm in 1979. They actually gave us three versions (right), and churches were free to use any of them. Probably not a great idea, as opposed to settling on a single logo which would be used consistently, but flexibility was desired and that’s what we did.

In the 1990s, we digitized the logo and settled on just one version–entirely black, with no outlined areas. We also changed the font to something less dated. That’s what you see above, beside the Canadian logo. We’ve been using this logo in all publications for about 20 years.

In 2001, General Conference adopted an international structure consisting of sovereign national conferences, and the logo we had been using became the official logo of the international church. The Canadian national conference developed their own logo, incorporating a maple leaf into the symbol, but none of the other conferences adopted a specific logo for their country.

During the past few years, the US National Conference developed logos for the national office (Healthy Ministry Resources) and for Global Ministries. Then, in late 2011, we began working on a logo to represent the US National Conference.

We hired a Christian graphic designer out of Dallas to develop the initial concepts, with these requirements:

• The logo needed to be easily identifiable with the international logo.
• The logo needed to include the official name of the US churches: “Church of the United Brethren in Christ, USA.”
• The symbol needed to incorporate the three main elements of the international logo: the linked figures, the cross, and the flame.
• The symbol needed to be usable by itself, without the words.
• The logo needed to be institutional yet modern.

And so, after going through a variety of concepts, we narrowed it down to a specific design, which was then refined. Then we passed everything on to another designer for a few further refinements.

And now you see the result–an official logo specifically for the United States churches.

Ready for You to Use

The logo has been posted in the Resources area of the UB website in a variety of formats and sizes (JPG, PNG, GIF, EPS). This includes formats with the words, and formats with just the symbol. The official logo includes the words “Church of the United Brethren in Christ, USA.” However, you may have needs for which the symbol, by itself, works better.

The vector formats (EPS) can be scaled to very large sizes. The other formats–JPG, PNG, and GIF–can be reduced in size without distortion, but will lose some clarity if you increase them in size.

06 Aug The UB Logo Around the World

The United Brethren logo is being used by UB churches around the world. In many cases, local people have drawn or painted the logo onto church walls, signs, and banners. And they have taken some creative liberties with the logo, adding their own interesting twists to the familiar design.

The video above shows photos of the logo as used and adapted in various countries. The two concluding slides are the official international logo, and then the new US National Conference logo.

17 Jul Prayers for Cathy Reich and Family

Please say a prayer for Cathy Reich (right), administrative assistant to Bishop Phil Whipple. And for Cathy’s mother, Carol Brandon.

This Saturday, Cathy’s daughter, Emily, is getting married–a big day for the family.

However, last night Cathy’s mother, Carol, suffered a stroke. She underwent surgery at Parkview North Hospital in Fort Wayne, Ind. That’s where Cathy is now. A stint was placed and a blood clot apparently removed. Cathy says her mother came through the surgery, and Cathy reported around 9:45, “Mom and I are resting til ct scan at noon. Praying for great results and no more bleeding.”

Cathy is keeping people informed through her Facebook account.

11 Jul New: Subscribe to UB Daily News

We have a new system for sending United Brethren news by email. We’re calling it UB Daily News. Every day around 11:30 am, you’ll receive an email containing all items posted to UBCentral.org during the previous 24 hours. If nothing was posted, you won’t receive an email.

10 Jul With Darren Duncan at the Air Force Academy

Phil Whipple, Bishop, US National Conference

On June 20, I visited Chaplain Major Darren Duncan at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Spring. Darren is in his fourth year serving as a chaplain there. He met me at the gate and took me to the chapel.

Darren started out at Living Word United Brethren church in Columbus, Ohio, serving on staff and then as senior pastor. He did some chaplaincy work in the Reserves for a few years, and then was approached about going fulltime. He went on active duty in the spring of 2003. Since then, he has served in several locations, including at an “undisclosed location” in early 2004.

The Air Force Academy is a prestigious posting, and looks good on your resume if you’re looking to climb the military ladder. Usually, the Air Force moves you every two or three years, so this is an extra-long posting for Darren. The Wing Commander, who oversees the religious programs at the Air Force Academy, was asked to stay one more year before retiring, and he didn’t want to break in anybody new during his last year. So, Darren was asked to stay an extra year.

In the past, the United Brethren denomination has been the endorsing entity for military chaplains from UB churches. That is changing. The National Association of Evangelicals, of which we are one of many denominations, is now the endorsing organization for UB chaplains, and there are some advantages to that.

As it turns out, Darren is in the process of switching his ministerial credentials to the Anglican Church. They are an evangelical church in doctrine, but more liturgy based. However, I caught up with Darren while he was still under the United Brethren umbrella. (more…)

18 Jun Out to the Ballgame

Parkview Field

At the ballgame. Global Ministries director Jeff and Charlene Bleijerveld (middle) with Dr. G. Blair Dowden, president of Huntington University, and his wife Chris.

On Thursday night, June 14, Bishop Phil Whipple took the staff and family of Healthy Ministry Resources, the UB national office, out to the ballgame. In this case, it was the Fort Wayne Tin Caps vs. Lansing. The group had a spot behind home plate, and when the team recognized the various groups present, “Healthy Ministry Resources” was flashed on the big scoreboard. Unfortunately, Lansing won 5-4.

This happened to be the stadium’s third highest attendance in the team’s three-year history. The Tin Caps are a single-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres. The stadium, considered among the best minor-league stadiums in the country, is located across the street from the Grand Wayne Center, where the 2013 US National Conference will be held.

A full gallery of photos of the group at the game can be viewed on the United Brethren Facebook page.

02 Apr Birthday + Baby + Bagels

Frank with little Levi.

Peggy Sell (holding Levi) and Ginny.

Frank Y, associate director of Global Ministries, celebrated a birthday on Thursday, March 29. But he received a special surprise that afternoon, when his wife, Ginny, showed up with infant son Levi, who was born in October.

It was also a surprise for the rest of the office staff. We knew Ginny was coming, but none of us had yet seen Levi.

Plus, Ginny brought bagels from Panera Bread.

10 Feb The Bishop’s Close-up View of Our Churches

Phil Whipple, Bishop of the US National Conference

In July 2011, I concluded two years as bishop. When I started in this role, I decided I wanted to see things for myself. So I set a goal of visiting every United Brethren church in the United States during my first two years. I wanted to meet our pastors on their turf.

I accomplished that goal. Here are some observations from my travels.

1. I found our pastors to be enjoyable people with a strong love for the Lord and his church. Our pastors are mostly male and of the baby boom generation. They are committed to their families and have a fairly strong commitment to the UB church. We have some strong pastoral leaders among us and many who want to learn how to lead more effectively.

2. It is no surprise that many of our churches exist in rural locations. Most of them have been maintained very well, both inside and outside. Many are developing their facilities to reflect the changes that have emerged in the methodology of doing church today.

3. We are slowly and with some struggles moving into a balanced style of worship in many churches. Some churches are far ahead of others. Some remain very traditional.

4. We have many good cooks among us. I can attest to that from many potlucks.

5. Our people are friendly. I was impressed by the warm hearts of so many of our people.

6. We have some sharp leaders at the local church level. These men and women desire to see the church advance and impact their community.

7. A number of churches are changing their structure to an accountability governance model.

8. I saw churches and people engaged in the Great Commission. This clearly needs to be the rallying cry for UB churches everywhere, so that we reach the people Christ wants us to reach in these days.

9. I have met with a number of our cluster groups. The cluster system is still a work in progress, but it has made some huge strides forward in the last two years.

Denny Miller, in his role as Cluster Coordinator, has helped keep the connection with our cluster leaders. We have many cluster leaders who are doing a great job with their clusters, and who are being the first point of contact when issues arise with pastors and churches.

I have concluded that while we have some significant issues and room for improvement, we have a bright hope for the future.

I believe our commitment to the Great Commission is improving. But we can do more to reach people for Christ and grow strong disciples in our churches.

Our churches must do a better job of outreach to open the front door, and be more effective in assimilation and discipleship to close the back door. We need to move discipleship away from just a learning experience. Discipleship should be a lived-out relationship with Jesus that impacts everything we do.

I want us to remain committed to our confession of faith and our core values. At the same time, I want us to aggressively move into the flow of God’s Spirit to see the church advance. We began as a movement of the Spirit of God, and that is where we must return.

07 Feb Goodbye to Elizabeth Holtrop

Lots of thread for Elizabeth

Elizabeth opening her parting gifts. (click to enlarge)

Food is required whenever someone joins or leaves the staff.

On February 2, Elizabeth Holtrop concluded 8 months of service on the Healthy Ministry Resources staff, working in the bookstore. During that time, she shipped hundreds of boxes of Sunday school literature and other items to churches across the country. But she decided to move to Indianapolis, sharing a house with her brother and sister and making her way in Indiana’s  Big City.

The staff said goodbye to her with a Pizza Hut meal brought to the office. Since she likes to sew, she was given several gifts of thread and other related items.

Elizabeth graduated from Huntington University in 2011 with a degree in History and Political Studies. Her father, Steve, is dean of the Huntington University Graduate School.

It was a joy to have Elizabeth with us, with her big smile and eternally sunny disposition. We wish her well.