Gonzales church joins welcoming-congregation list

Another Southwest Texas Conference church joined the list of welcoming congregations during December.
Two more renewed their certification.
First UMC, Gon-zales, in the Vic-toria District is the newest welcoming congregation.
It was certified Dec. 18.
Continuing welcoming congregations are:
> St. Paul UMC, Kerrville, Kerrville District, recertified Dec. 14.
> Veribest UMC, San Angelo District, recertified Dec. 17.
Welcome certification must be renewed annually.
The count of certified welcoming congregations in Southwest Texas now stands at 151. That’s the most of any conference in the United States. Forty-three percent of Southwest Texas congregations
have been certified.
The count of welcoming congregations by district stands at Austin, 33; Corpus Christi, 28; Kerrville, 18; McAllen, 28; San Angelo, 9; San Antonio, 20; and Victoria, 15.
The certification program is part of the denominationwide Igniting Ministry hospitality and image campaign. The goal is to help congregations do a better job of relating to visitors and encouraging them to return.
Granted by the General Commission on Communication, certification means a congregation has systematically evaluated its hospitality and intentionally embraced a lifestyle of welcoming newcomers.
Certified congregations earn a plaque and a special designation in the “Find a church” database at www.unitedmethodist.org.
To earn certification, congregations must qualify for at least 100 points on a yearly checklist
of welcoming activities.
To earn recertification, welcoming congregations must earn an additional 100 points doing things they didn’t do the first year.
Checklists are available at ignitingministry.org.
District superintendents sign checklists to confirm reported information.