News

Story by V. Michelle Bernard

Rubén Ramos, the Columbia Union Conference’s vice president for Multilingual Ministries, regularly hears stories of immigrant members afraid of deportation. One local church leader from Alexandria, Va., recently approached him, asking for prayer after her husband, a legal resident of the United States, was arrested and threatened with deportation. Ramos says she was also worried about her status, but said, “If they deport me. I’ll go to El Salvador and plant another church.”

Henry J. Fordham (pictured speaking above), president of the Allegheny East Conference, shared a story of two members from an Indonesian congregation who were recently arrested after submitting immigration applications. “People are living in fear,” he said. “Our members need to know that we care.”

Story by Tiffany Doss

One year we spent $40,000 on evangelism and community outreach—and zero relationships were built,” recalls Jennifer Deans, pastor of the Living Faith church in Dulles, Va. After attending a church planting conference, Deans realized the church didn’t need a better discipleship program; it needed a paradigm shift. “It’s God’s job to grow the church, and it’s ours to make disciples,” she says. “I came across Generate One, a discipleship program that teaches these biblical principles.”

Photo by Christopher from Flickr

Editorial by Rick Remmers

Sharing is a special concept. It is similar to giving but with a very different outcome. I enjoy reading and collecting books. If I give a book away, then it belongs to someone else, and I no longer have it. But if I share a book with my wife, then it is something that we can both treasure. We not only enjoy reading the book, but we have the joy of spending time together and the memories of conversations that were sparked by the stories we read.

The Columbia Union Conference recently hosted the Rise Up Young Adult Summit in Arlington, Va., where church leaders encouraged young adults to be leaders in the church today and now. Watch videos from that weekend here.

Read more about it here.

More videos coming soon!

Marvin C. Brown, H. Candace Nurse and William T. Cox gather at the Allegheny West Conference Constituency Session

Story by Bryant Smith

Allegheny West Conference recently held its 17th Annual Constituency Meeting with 300+ delegates from the following states of Ohio, West Virginia, Western Pennsylvania, and Virginia.

In favor with the majority, William T. Cox (President), Marvin C. Brown (Secretary), and H. Candance Nurse (Treasurer) were re-elected for another term. President Cox mentioned how blessed he was to have formed a bond with his team and thanked every delegate who attended and made this possible. 

Story by Elizabeth Long

Kettering Adventist HealthCare plans to build a 67,000 square-foot medical facility on land it purchased in Middletown on State Route 122, just southeast of I-75.

The medical center will transform care for the patients and their families that live in the greater Middletown community. Offering a coordinated approach to healthcare, patients can receive preventative, whole-person care centered around the patient, near where they work and live. This seamless approach is different than anything that currently exists in southwest Ohio. This is truly the facility of tomorrow, today.

Photo of Dave Weigley by Rodney Choice/AP Images

Get to know the Columbia Union Conference leadership team and their missions, learn about the union's priorities and read news from around the union in the May 2017 Visitor.

Read and share the following stories:

Historia de V. Michelle Bernard

Dios espera que pensemos cuidadosamente el camino a tomar, y las organizaciones tienen encrucijadas, decisiones que nos impactarán en los próximos años”, dijo Dave Weigley (foto, izquierda) en el Retiro del Comité Ejecutivo de la Conferencia de la Unión de Columbia en el mes de marzo.

Durante el retiro, los miembros del comité revisaron la misión y los valores de la Unión y votaron seis prioridades que informarán y guiarán las actividades de la Unión para el resto del quinquenio 2016-2021.