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14 Dec

December 14, 2004 |

During October, UB members throughout the United States voted on three referendum items and elected laypersons and ministers to represent their conference at the June 2005 US National Conference.

Altogether, about 11,500 UB members in the United States voted.

  • Referendum on Property. It passed with a strong 89% of the votes.
  • Referendum on Joining the Missionary Church. It lost, with 57% of our members voting against it.
  • Referendum on National Conference Representation. It passed, with 86% of the vote.

A referendum needs at least 50% of the votes in order to be passed along to the US National Conference. The Property and National Conference Representation referenda will now go to the 65 delegates next June; if two-thirds of them vote in favor of a referenda, it will become official.

Bishop Hirschy writes in his December Bmail newsletter, which was mailed today, “I do not see any reason why those two items should not pass the US National Conference….With this level of support, I will do everything I can to encourage the National Conference to pass those two items.”

The referendum on joining the Missionary Church, having received less than half of the votes, is dead and will not receive further consideration.

The UB website gives a complete report on the referendum results, with the number of votes and percentages listed according to conference. Every conference passed the Property and National Conference Representation referenda. The referendum on Joining the Missionary Church passed in only four conferences: Arizona, Michindoh, Sandusky, and Southeast.

In addition to voting on the referenda, UB people elected delegates to the National Conference. Members elected 62 persons as delegates, with between two and sixteen persons representing each conference (depending on the conference’s size). In addition, three elected officials (the Bishop, Director of Global Ministries, and Director of Education) are also voting members.

14 Dec

December 14, 2004 |

Since the referendum to join the Missionary Church failed, people are asking, “What happens now?” To help answer that question, Bishop Paul Hirschy has called a special meeting of the National Board on February 14 and 15. The meeting will start at 1 pm on Monday, the 14th, and conclude during the afternoon on Tuesday. It will be held at Huntington College.

Of the 65 members of the 2005 US National Conference, 24 also serve on the National Board (3 of them being elected officials). So a little over one-third of the National Board members will return for National Conference. All ELT members are also members of the National Board.

14 Dec

December 14, 2004 |

David and Melissa Kline report that they have received work permits for Macau, which means they can now begin teaching in the English Language Program. They will begin teaching in January, and may also have the chance to teach at a middle school.

They held a Thanksgiving Party, which went very well. “Normally we have a program including a speaker, singing, and maybe some games or group discussion. This time, we very intentionally kept the program to a prayer for the food and a short story about what Thanksgiving means to us. Everyone seemed very relaxed and stayed for a couple hours talking. Our entire team had many opportunities to build deeper relationships that night. Yeah God!

“As an advertisement for that dinner, Melissa made apple and pumpkin pie for English class. Some of the women liked the apple so much they set-up a time to come to our home to make it. Five ladies came over and we had a great time baking and eating lunch. Cooking seems to be a way into peoples lives lately.”

David and Melissa are currently in the States for the wedding of Melissa’s brother. They will return to Macau before Christmas so they can participate in the ELP holiday activities.

08 Dec

December 8, 2004 |
  • St. Mary’s, Ohio. Mike Spaulding has been named interim pastor of Hillsdale UB church in St. Mary’s, effective December 5.
  • Lucile Cook, wife of Herbert Cook, passed away December 7. Services were in Desert Hot Spring, Calif.
  • Dan Millard is no longer pastor of Northland UB in Traverse City, Mich. Carlson Becker is serving as interim pastor.
  • Robert Lust is no longer at First UB church in Columbus, Ohio. The pastoral staff at Franklin Church in New Albany, Ohio, will provide pastoral oversight during the transition. Mike Brown and George McCombs are the pastors.

08 Dec

December 8, 2004 |

The Huntington College Board of Trustees has approved a 0% tuition increase for 2005-2006. Annual tuition is currently $18,060, which places Huntington 19th out of 32 independent colleges and universities in Indiana. Across the United States, the average tuition at four-year private institutions this year is $20,082. Read the HC press release.

08 Dec

December 8, 2004 |

Linda Neely, a UB endorsed missionary with Wycliffe Bible Translators, reports: “Great news! In October I received an invitation to be a language survey specialist in Indonesia! This invitation came after I expressed interest in working in that part of the world. It is exciting to have an official assignment!

“My first year in Indonesia will be spent in language school studying Bahasa Indonesia (or Indonesian) in the capital city of Jakarta. A city of over 10 million people, Jakarta is located on the island of Java. I am planning to arrive there in July of 2005 for a field-training course before starting Indonesian classes in August.

“Since I will not be going overseas until July, it will be beneficial for me to stay here in Dallas until April to take an advanced survey course. During this time I will also learn how to write profiles of people groups, a skill that will be very useful on the survey team in Indonesia.

“Here’s some more great news: almost all of the monthly financial support that I will need for my assignment in Indonesia has been pledged! There will still be some additional expenses for airfare, moving, and setting up.”

18 Nov

November 18, 2004 |

Jana sent the following on November 13.

  • Our part-time secretary, Wing, has decided to join our staff full-time. This will be a big help to us. Thank the Lord for bringing Wing to our center. She’s very creative and a lot of fun to be with.
  • On Saturday, November 20, we’ll hold a Thanksgiving party for Kids’ Klub. We’ll be giving a gospel invitation. Pray that God will be working in the hearts of the children this week to prepare them for responding to the gospel. Pray for Michael and I as we counsel children who respond to the invitation.
  • On Sunday, November 21, we’re holding a Thanksgiving Pie Social for everyone who attends our English Bible Studies. We’ll be giving a gospel invitation at this event, as well. Several of these adults have been studying the Bible with us for over a year. Pray that their hearts will be touched and that they’ll take the step of faith for salvation. Pray for Michael, Jennifer, and Airy as they prepare to share testimonies of how God has worked in their lives. Pray for Michael, Jennifer, David, Melissa, and I as we counsel with those in our small groups.

Jennifer Blandin, missionary to Macau, will return to the United States for a time of furlough beginning in January of 2005. During that time, Jennifer will continue working on her graduate degree at Winebrenner University in Findlay, Ohio.

18 Nov

November 18, 2004 |

Russ Neterer is known to many people in the denomination through his involvement at College Park UB church in Huntington, Ind., his role as a founding member of Emmanuel Community UB church in Fort Wayne, Ind., his service as a lay delegate to General Conference, and his 25-year tenure on the Huntington College Board of Trustees.

Russ, 92, passed away early Wednesday morning, November 17, at Parkview Huntington Hospital. He is survived by his wife, Thelma, and two children.

  • Visitation: November 19 (Friday) from 1-4 pm and 6-8 pm at Emmanuel Community Church (12222 W. US-24, Fort Wayne, Ind.).
  • Funeral: November 20 (Saturday), 10 a.m., at Emmanuel Community Church. Rev. Dennis Miller will officiate. Burial will be in Wakarusa, Ind.

11 Nov

November 11, 2004 |

Edward E. Souers has been elected chairman of the Huntington College Board of Trustees. He is managing partner of Christen Souers LLC, an accounting firm in Fort Wayne, Ind. Ed is a 1977 HC graduate, and is a member of South Scipio UB church in Harlan, Ind.

Kelly Savage (Class of 1983) was elected Vice Chair of the Board. Savage is the chief information officer for Alticor, the parent company of Amway, Quixtar and Access Business Group. David Tinkey (1980), a commercial banking finance manager for Bank One in Indianapolis, Ind., was elected Secretary of the Board.