Bill Kunkle, the Executive Director of the Dominican Development Group, was elected to a three-year term on the Board of Directors of the Global Episcopal Mission Network (GEMN) during that organization's recent meeting in Atlanta in May 2015.
GEMN is dedicated to the principle that every Episcopalian (and, indeed, every Christian) is a missionary. The organization is committed to providing global mission conferences, global mission training, and global mission tools and resources for all those who would like to participate in discerning where God is leading us in mission, as individuals and as a church. It connects
dioceses, congregations and individuals who are engaged in global mission to:
- Provide tools for global mission engagement;
- Facilitate and strengthen mission programs, relationships, and ministries throughout the world;
- Provide a training curriculum for Global Mission Agents who will support global mission efforts in their diocese, organization or church;
- Sponsor an annual mission conference for education, training and exchange of global mission ideas and initiatives;
- Foster and support mutually responsible and interdependent relationships and accountability among mission-minded individuals, organizations and dioceses within the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion.
Bill commented about his election to the GEMN Board: "GEMN gives us an opportunity to gather the mission programs of the DFMS to share ideas, learn from experiences, grow spiritually, and unify efforts. Our Episcopal Church offers many opportunities to support mission both domestic and global. Through GEMN we can share internal and external support structures offered both human and financial. I look forward to sharing what we have learned with our mission and sustainability programs in the Dominican Republic and learn from the wealth of church leadership and mission experience represented on the board and GEMN members."