April 30th, 2020 Oneonta District News for you
* Please share this newsletter with your friends and congregation members.
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Closures Extended Through May 15th
The
Oneonta District
office remains closed through April 15th. Teresa will be working from home most days. We do not anticipate any interruption of service; we will continue to respond to emails and telephone calls and regular email communication will continue. Please do not hesitate to call
607-441-5102
( and leave a message) or email
[email protected]
We will respond as promptly as we can.
The United Methodist Center in Liverpool is closed to the public through May 15th. Most staff is working remotely. If you have a question about COVID-19 and how it affects your church or need assistance, please contact UNY Communications at 315 898-2012 or
[email protected]
and someone will contact you.
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Join Bishop Webb in prayer on May 13
As we continue social distancing and online worshipping through the COVID-19 pandemic, Upper New York Area Resident Bishop Mark J. Webb will be offering a second time of prayer for both clergy and laity. Many of you likely joined the first time of prayer with Bishop Webb on April 7 and 8.
Bishop Webb offers all clergy to join him on Zoom at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday May 13; he invites all laity to join him on Zoom at 7 p.m. on May 13.
Zoom invitations for both clergy and laity will be sent on Tuesday, May 12.
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Guide to Online Worship Services
Missing your favorite Sunday church service or looking for somewhere new? The Upper New York Conference Communications team has added a page on our Conference website (
www.unyumc.org
) that showcases all the Methodist churches in our Conference that are hosting online worship services.
Click
here
to see the listing services you can attend virtually. More services are added each day. If your church's livestream is missing from the list, please email the link(s) and time(s) to
[email protected]
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UPDATE - Annual Conference Information
The 2020 session of the Upper New York Annual Conference has been postponed until October 3.
Refunds for those of you who registered for the May 28-30 Annual Conference are in process. The Upper New York Conference Finance Team has set a goal to try and have all refunds processed by the end of April. This is a work in progress, so your patience is appreciated!
A separate registration form for the October 3 Annual Conference will be available at a later date.
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Discipleship Ministries is offering a webinar, "Talking About Money During the Coronavirus Crisis," at 7:30 p.m. EDT Thursday, May 7.
What do we say about money during the pandemic? How can we help our people respond to the financial challenges that confront our congregations? Ken Sloane, Director of Stewardship & Generosity will host author and pastor Jim Harnish for a presentation grounded in scripture, our Wesleyan tradition, and pastoral experience. Jim and Ken will lead us in exploring some practical and positive ways pastors and lay leaders can turn this crisis into a hopeful opportunity for spiritual growth in financial stewardship.
To register for the webinar, click
here.
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Right Start Workshops
Due to the ever changing guidelines of the COVID-19 Pandemic, the UNY Cabinet has decided to make changes to the Right Start Workshops. The workshops have been moved from in-person meetings to an online format.
Also, they have decided to reduce the length of time for the online meetings, 10 a.m. to 12 noon. Moving clergy now will meet via Zoom on Tuesday, May 19; retiring clergy will meet via Zoom on Wednesday, May 20.
A zoom link will be emailed to registered participants closer to the date of the workshop. If you have not yet registered, please
click here.
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Conference Leadership Team:
Prayer #4 during the coronavirus pandemic
Pray,
Pray now,
Pray for the Others.
Love one another. The command echoes through Scripture and awakens us to life. Jesus intended for the world to verify the truth of his message by observing us in our love for one another and all God sends into our lives (John 13:35, 17:22-23). Because praying is an expression of loving that is accessible to all, our Conference Leadership Team (CLT), calls all who are able, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, to pray with them.
The CLT invites you to continue to pray with them in the coming weeks as they share prayers designed to be used however the Spirit calls you to use them. If the Spirit places it on your heart to include these prayers in your daily devotions, publish them on your social media page, or jump off from their movement into your own inspiration, go with God and with their blessing.
Click here
to read the most recent prayer, provided by CLT member, the Rev. Steven Taylor, in which he honors God and all that God can do while we wait and worship amidst a time like we've never experienced before.
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CARES Act
The following statement was sent on behalf of UNY Treasurer, Bob Flask, and Chair of the UNY CF&A, the Rev. Susan Ranous.
As I am sure most of you have seen, the funding for the Paychex Protection Plan (PPP) and the EIDL Loan under the CARES Act has been fully exhausted. However, there is another stimulus package that is being looked at in the Congress, which may result in additional monies to fund a second round or PPP loans; therefore, it is important, that any local church feeling a financial need to apply for these funds that have not already applied and received funding under these plans, that you continue aggressively pulling together the information needed to make the necessary application AS SOON AS those funds are released. The information needed is contained in the
CARES Act information
on the Upper New York Conference website.
The forgiveness available under these plans is not automatic and will require some work to prove to the bank and to the Small Business Administration that the funds received were used for allowed forgivable expenses; therefore, good record-keeping is beyond important once these funds have been received. Any questions about this can be directed to Bob Flask, Treasurer, or Rev. Susan Ranous, Chair of CF&A.
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Relief Efforts on HealthFlex and CPP Premiums
Please click on this
document link
to read about relief efforts being offered to Upper New York churches by the Conference Board on Pension and Health Benefits (CBOPHB) and Wespath Benefits and Investments. If you have any questions about these relief efforts, please contact Susan Latessa, UNY Director of Benefits and Human Resources,
[email protected]
.
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Cokesbury, your partner for the Christian journey, is offering some FREE resources created to help your congregation through this unprecedented time
.
Amplify
, a NEW media platform, is helping churches all over study and support one another from the comfort of their own homes, or wherever they are in life! It gives them direct access to a vast video library of bible studies led by your favorite authors for teaching, inspiration, and faith connections! Amplify provides believers of all ages access to fresh, trustworthy content - all from a Wesleyan perspective!
During this difficult time,
Amplify
has made several resources FREE and accessible for churches to participate in a church-wide study and children's content to keep them engaged in the Bible. Help your communities stay connected beyond the church walls by clicking
here.
No sign up is required to access.
We also have
FREE children's resources
on our new CokesburyKids website. Click
here.
And
FREE Adult Bible Study resource
s. Click
here.
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Chuck Knows Church
Chuck Knows Church is back! He's teaming up with #SeeAllThePeople to share a few simple ideas that your church can do to help your community during this time of crisis.
During these uncertain times, we may feel isolated from one another and experiencing a sense of aloneness, but we can still provide community in Christ and fellowship in the spirit.
Watch
as Chuck shows us how your congregation can turn isolation into engagement with our community.
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Deadlines for the Report of Trustees, Report of the Finance Committee and the 2019 Local Church Financial Audit have been extended until July 15, 2020.
Thanks to the Oneonta district churches who have submitted these reports!
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Ministries continue innovatively for UNY Camp & Retreat Centers
It’s amazing what can be done using Facebook as a tool during the COVID-19 pandemic. Upper New York Camp & Retreat ministry is reaching thousands through Facebook.
Check out
Sky Lake Camp & Retreat Center’s Facebook page
for scenic virtual hikes on the camp property at 1:30 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. On their Facebook page, you can also attend virtual Fireside chats with Director Matt Williams on Sunday evenings as he shares uplifting prayers and songs.
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Please consider subscribing to the following links. These will keep you updated on all the news coming from the conference office during this time. It will help keep repeated emails from being received.
UNY-Notes
are targeted email blasts:
·
From the Desk of Bishop Webb
·
Alerts
·
Announcements
·
Prayer Requests
·
Death Notices
·
Camp & Retreat
Weekly Digest-
will be sent every Wednesday. It will contain a round-up of that week’s UNY Notes, along with feature articles, direct links to several “hot spots” on the Conference website, photos, and more.
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Bishop Webb Announces Clergy Appointments
Upper New York Area Resident Bishop Mark J. Webb and the Upper New York Conference announce eight ad interim appointments and eight retirements pending approval of clergy session.
View the full list of changes
here
.
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Bishop Webb's latest letter to UNY clergy
On March 17, 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic began changing the world in ways that would have been hard to imagine even just a couple months earlier, Upper New York Area Resident Bishop, Mark J. Webb, wrote his first in a series of letters to the clergy of the Upper New York Conference.
His inspiring words and pastoral advice have been gathered in a blog series for all who wish to see them. We will continue to share these letters as he continues to write them.
Bishop Webb's latest letter was written today, April 29.
Click here
to read his letter.
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Attention churches and pastors:
New I-9 form now available
A new version of the I-9 employment eligibility verification form is available and is mandatory for use effective May 1.
The form is used to verify the identity and employment authorization of individuals hired for employment in the United States. All U.S. employers must properly complete the Form I-9 for each person they hire for employment in the U.S., including both citizens and noncitizens.
To read more, and to download the form,
click here
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Keep Washing Your Hands!
Tired of singing "Happy Birthday" twice every time you wash your hands? If you haven't already changed your hand washing song, here are a few suggestions:
- Repeat The Lord's Prayer (twice)
- "This Little Light of Mine"
- Hum the Final Jeopardy theme song
- "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" (twice)
- A rewrite of "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star," credited to Erika Perzan:
"Twinkle, twinkle little star. Look how clean my two hands are. Around my wrists and between my thumbs, lace my fingers, I'm almost done. Twinkle, twinkle little star. Look how clean my two hands are!"
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How to get help from UNY Conference for...
Regular needs or questions, contact the Conference
(
315) 898-2000 or email:
[email protected]
and leave a message including what assistance
you are seeking and it will be given to the right person to respond to you.
Technical or creative needs such as online Bible studies/meetings,
live streaming worship, or online giving
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Conference Office Address:
The Upper New York Conference
United Methodist Center
7481 Henry Clay Blvd
Liverpool, N.Y. 13088
Office is closed at this time!
Phone: 315-898-2000 Toll Free: (same) 1-855-424-7878
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Changes in the District Office mailing Address effective immediately:
In an effort to limit trips to and from the post office to pick up mail at our PO Box, I ask that you send mail to the following address until further notice:
Teresa Wood (Oneonta District Office UMC Admin.Assist.)
28 Orchard Street
Oneonta NY 13820
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Oneonta District Office
of the Upper New York Conference
of the United Methodist Church
"Making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world by... living the gospel of Jesus Christ and to be God's love with our neighbors in all places."
Your Partner in Ministry at the Oneonta District Office
Teresa Wood, Administrative Assistant
Fax - 607-353-1034
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