7 UMs begin fall classes at Austin theological school
58 UM congregations pay ’07 apportionments in full
Oct. 27 celebration to mark chapel’s 125th anniversary
Connectional giving runs $284,000 ahead of ’06 total
San Antonio church opens sports center for children
Pearsall church to mark 125th birthday Oct. 27-28
Highland Lakes celebrates with dinner, land purchase
Nov. 1 piano concert slated for Morningside anniversary
Kerrville District offering 2 lay speaking courses
Liberian leader to address 2008 General Conference
6 young people selected for speech in Fort Worth
Commission OKs proposals on harassment, misconduct
2 conference campaigns support Africa University

7 UMs begin fall classes at Austin theological school
The 41-member incoming class at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary includes seven UMs. They are all enrolled in the master of divinity degree program.
The fall semester began Sept. 4 on the Austin campus with an opening convocation service. The Rev. Arun W. Jones, a former UM missionary, delivered the convocation address. He’s the seminary’s John W. and Helen Lancaster associate professor of evangelism and missions.


58 UM congregations pay ’07 apportionments in full
Fifty-eight of the 348 Southwest Texas congregations had paid their 2007 apportionments in full as of Sept. 30.
Skidmore UMC led the list. The 52-member congregation had paid 104 percent of its share of expenses for ministries across the state, nation and world.
The count of “100 percent” congregations by district was Austin, 12; Corpus Christi, 8; Kerrville, 9; McAllen, 4; San Angelo, 10; San Antonio, 4; and Victoria, 11.


Oct. 27 celebration to mark chapel’s 125th anniversary
Descendents and friends of a circuit-riding Methodist preacher are gathering Oct. 27 at the Bandera County church he built.
The 125th anniversary celebration of Polly’s Chapel is to run from 1 to 3 p.m. near Pipe Creek. The board of directors of Polly Texas Pioneers Association, which maintains the former Methodist property, is to provide free refreshments.
Historian Rudi Rodriguez is to give a talk about the church and Jose Policarpio Rodriguez, its builder, at 1:30 p.m.
The elder Rodriguez, who lived from 1829 to 1914, was a Texas Ranger, frontier scout and Methodist preacher. He built the chapel in 1882.


Connectional giving runs $284,000 ahead of ’06 total
Southwest Texas congregations gave $284,319 more to connectional causes through September than they did during the first nine months of 2006.
Contributions to apportioned funds totaled $6.54 million. That’s 64.8 percent of the $10.1 million asking for the year. The remittance rate is up 0.5 percent from September 2006.
The San Angelo District had paid the highest percentage of apportionments through September—79. Other district percentages were Kerrville, 75; Victoria, 69; McAllen, 63; Corpus Christi, 62; San Antonio, 62; and Austin, 61.

San Antonio church opens sports center for children
Bethany UMC, San Antonio, dedicated a playground and sports center Sept. 16.
The facility, made possible by a $67,000 gift from the Charity Ball Association of San Antonio, houses a new after-school program for neighborhood children.


Pearsall church to mark 125th birthday Oct. 27-28
First UMC, Pearsall, is to celebrate 125 years of ministry Oct. 27-28.
The Rev. Sue White, Southwest Texas Conference evangelism consultant, is to lead a 3 p.m. anniversary service of word and song Oct. 27. An ice cream social is to follow.
The Rev. Bob Allen, Kerrville District superintendent, is to preach during the 10:45 a.m. anniversary worship service Oct. 28. A barbecue lunch is to follow.
“Somerset Road,” a praise band from Lytle, is to lead a special youth celebration at 5:30 p.m. Oct. 28.


Highland Lakes celebrates with dinner, land purchase
Members of Highland Lakes UMC, Buchanan Dam, celebrated their congregation’s 20th anniversary last month with a dinner and land purchase.
Charter members sat at a special table during the Sept. 9 covered-dish dinner. A short video, written by Mary Jacque Northrup, covered the history of the 417-member congregation.
The church added 10 adjoining acres to its property along FM 1431 the same week. The purchase cost $75,000.


Nov. 1 piano concert slated for Morningside anniversary
A free Nov. 1 concert at Alamo Heights UMC, San Antonio, is to mark the 46th anniversary of UM-related Morningside Ministries.
Pianist Kimball Gallagher of New York City, a graduate of the Julliard School of Music and Rice University, is to perform at 7 p.m.
Gallagher is scheduled to make his Carnegie Hall debut March 10. He has earned top prizes at the Corpus Christi International Piano Competition and the San Antonio Tuesday Music Club Competition. He was a finalist in the Washington International Competition.


Kerrville District offering 2 lay speaking courses
The Kerrville District is offering two lay speaking courses Nov. 10 at Lakehills UMC.
Pam Elliott of Lakehills UMC is to lead a basic lay speaking course from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Sam Dubberly of Yancey UMC is to lead a refresher course for previously certified lay speakers from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Dubberly is Southwest Texas Conference director of lay speaking.
Registration fee is $25 per person. The cost includes materials and lunch. Registration deadline is Nov. 2. For information contact Dean Pate, Kerrville District lay speaking coordinator, at (830) 612-2357.

Liberian leader to address 2008 General Conference
FORT WORTH—The president of Liberia—who is a UM—is to speak during the General Conference next spring in Fort Worth.
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf is scheduled to address the denomination’s top legislative body April 28. She accepted the invitation to speak in a Sept. 8 letter to L. Fitzgerald Reist II, secretary of the General Conference.


6 young people selected for speech in Fort Worth
NASHVILLE, Tenn.—Six UMs ranging in age from 15 to 28 have been chosen to work together to develop and deliver the first Young People’s Address at the 2008 General Conference.
The speakers—five from the United States and one from Russia—are to give a 45-minute presentation on the concerns, hopes and dreams of young people in the UMC.
Chosen are Becca Farnum, 17, of Mount Pleasant, Mich.; Kira Volkova, 24, of Kirov, Russia; the Rev. Anne Rigo, 28, of Grand Junction, Colo.; Andrew Craig, 15, of Denver; Matt Lockett, 20, of Seattle; and Jason Rathod, 23, of Hastings, Neb.
They were selected from 37 individuals who submitted video related to youth and young adult issues in the church.


Commission OKs proposals on harassment, misconduct
SAN FRANCISCO— The UM watchdog agency for women’s rights sent legislation on sexual harassment and misconduct to the 2008 General Conference for consideration.
The General Commission on the Status and Role of Women approved the legislation during its Sept. 20-22 meeting.
The agency also has prepared a resolution on what it calls a “disturbing trend”: use of Internet pornography by clergy members, laypeople or volunteers, often on church-owned computers.


2 conference campaigns support Africa University
NASHVILLE, Tenn.—Two conferences devastated by Hurricane Katrina are moving beyond their own needs to support Africa University in Zimbabwe.
The Louisiana and Mississippi conferences are joining other U.S. bodies running campaigns to endow chairs, sponsor scholarships, build buildings and engage in hands-on ministry at Africa University.
The Africa University Advisory Development Committee learned about the campaigns during its Sept. 22 meeting.
In 2005, Louisiana pledged to build a dormitory at the university, and today the conference’s African-American churches are leading the three-year effort.
Since January, the Mississippi Conference has been trying to endow a scholarship in the university’s Faculty of Theology.