New Briefs

Bishop to be recognized for social justice efforts
Special Sunday offering supports Native Americans
Healthcare agency breaks ground for wellness facility
San Antonio church opens north campus March 8
Elsie Ferguson, 70, dies March 16 in San Antonio
March 14 funeral marks death of Melvin Mathis, 87
Film on UM female leader to air on PBS network
Oldest Methodist bishop dies March 13 in Detroit
Global Ministries schedules mission initiatives summit

Bishop to be recognized for social justice efforts
Leaders from San Antonio’s Communities Organized for Public Service and Metro Alliance are to honor Bishop Joel N. Martinez April 4 for his contributions to social justice ministries.
Martinez, who retires Aug. 31, is to be recognized during a 7-9 p.m. dinner at Colonial Hills UMC, San Antonio. He is being cited for championing social justice throughout his ministry.


Special Sunday offering supports Native Americans
Southwest Texas UMs can join church members around the globe April 6 in supporting outreach to Native Americans.
The Native American Ministries Sunday offering is one of six donominationwide special appeals on the UMC calendar each year.
Money from the offering supports mission work with Native Americans and scholarships for Native American seminarians. These causes don’t receive apportionment dollars.


Healthcare agency breaks ground for wellness facility
Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas broke ground March 24 for a new Wesley Health and Wellness Center in San Antonio.
The new facility is to replace Wesley Community Center at Columbia Heights and Wesley Primary Care Clinic. It currently serves more than 100,000 people.
The new two-story, 47,000-square-foot health and wellness center is slated for completion in spring 2009.


San Antonio church opens north campus March 8
University UMC, San Antonio, opened its north campus March 8.
The new facility, connected by a skybridge over De Zavala Road, includes a youth space, café, a large group meeting area, classrooms and a game room.


Elsie Ferguson, 70, dies March 16 in San Antonio
Services for the Rev. Elsie Ferguson were March 22 at St. Paul UMC, San Antonio.
The retired Southwest Texas Conference elder died March 16 in San Antonio. She was 70.
Ferguson began her ministry in 1996 as a licensed local pastor. She was ordained an elder in 2003. She served congregations in Altair, Columbus and San Angelo before taking incapacity leave in 2005.


March 14 funeral marks death of Melvin Mathis, 87
The funeral for the Rev. Melvin R. Mathis was March 14 in Winters.
The retired Southwest Texas Conference clergy member died March 10 in Midland. He was 87.
Mathis began his ministry in 1943 in the Northwest Texas Conference. He served in the Central Texas Conference and the New Mexico conferences as well.
Mathis transferred to the Southwest Texas Conference in 1984. He was pastor of congregations in Art, Bronte and McCamey before retiring in 1990.

Film on UM female leader to air on PBS network
NEW YORK–– A documentary has been produced on the UM president of Liberia, titled “Iron Ladies of Liberia.”
The film is a look at the presidency of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the first woman elected as a head of state in Africa, and other women whom she has appointed to government roles.
Johnson Sirleaf is to speak April 29 at the United Methodist General Conference in Fort Worth.
The documentary is a production of Just Media, Gabriel Films, Steps International and the Independent Television Service, with funding by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
For details on “Iron Ladies of Liberia,” visit http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/ironladies/sirleaf.html.


Oldest Methodist bishop dies March 13 in Detroit
DETROIT—Bishop William Alexander Hilliard, 103, retired bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, died March 13 in Detroit. He was reported to be the oldest living bishop in all of Methodism.
The funeral was March 22 at St. Paul AME Zion Church, Detroit. Born in 1904 in Greenville, Texas, and educated in Kansas City, Mo., Hilliard received his higher education at Western University and Wayne State University. He was married for 71 years to Edra Mae Hilliard, who died in 1998.
Called to the ministry in 1922, Hilliard was ordained a deacon in 1924 and an elder in 1927. He was pastor at more than nine different churches before becoming pastor at St. Paul A.M.E. Zion Church in Detroit. He was elected in 1960 as the 67th bishop in the AME Zion Church and retired from the episcopacy in 1980.


Global Ministries schedules mission initiatives summit
PLANO, Texas—Representatives from UM mission initiatives in several countries and regions will come together April 17-18 at St. Andrews UMC, Plano, for “The Mission Summit.”
Countries or areas to be represented are Latvia, Lithuania, Russia, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Nepal, Thailand, Central Asia, Balkans, Eastern Europe, Mongolia, Senegal, Cameroon and Honduras.
This gathering, sponsored by the General Board of Global Ministries, will be the first time since the UMC established a new missional thrust in these nations that representatives will meet to learn how God is moving mightily in places where the Wesleyan witness is sharing the Gospel.
A bonus meeting will occur April 18-19.