Birmingham-Southern College Faculty issue response to Alabama HB 56

At its November meeting, the Birmingham-Southern College faculty unanimously approved the following response: Birmingham-Southern College nurtures the intellectual, ethical, and spiritual development of students from a variety of backgrounds. We seek to help all students engage in the global community by offering an education that develops understanding and appreciation for the larger world. An international community adds an important and valued dimension to the entire BSC campus. Because...

Back to School benefit concert featuring the Dill Pickers to raise funds for Urban Kids program

On Sunday, Sept. 18, 2011, Urban Ministry is hosting a "Back to School with Urban Kids benefit concert Featuring the Dill Pickers.” The concert will be at 3 p.m. at Birmingham First UMC (518 19th St. N Birmingham). All proceeds of the fundraiser will go to the Urban Kids program of Urban Ministry. Urban Kids has been in existence since the late 1980s. Currently the program offers an After-School program four days a week and a seven-week Summer Day Camp. Each year, 30 3rd-8th grade...

Rev. Melissa Self Patrick named Executive Director of Urban Ministry, Inc.

The Board of Directors of Urban Ministry, Inc. recently named Rev. Melissa Self Patrick the new Executive Director of Urban Ministry, Inc. Urban Ministry is an inner city mission in Birmingham. This Conference Advance Special agency has been providing ministries of compassion and wholeness for, and among, people who struggle because of poverty, for 35 years. Melissa succeeds Rev. Tom Duley, who is retiring from full-time ministry at the 2011 Annual Conference, and who has compassionately and...

Sumatanga announces new Director of Programs and reminds churches summer camp registration is still open

Sumatanga Camp and Conference Center is excited to announce that Chrystal Smith has been named as the next Director of Programs. Chrystal has spent 22 years working with children, youth and adults both in the local church and on the conference level. Much of her ministry has revolved around her involvement at Sumatanga where she has served as counselor, program director, and director in the summer camping ministry, workshop leader for North Alabama Conference and Southeastern Jurisdiction...

Matt Johnson named Sumatanga's Executive Director

Sumatanga’s Board of Trustees is pleased to announce that Matt Johnson has been named Executive Director. Matt has been with Camp Sumatanga for 12 years, most recently serving as Assistant Executive Director. In making the announcement, Mike Byrne, Chair of Sumatanga’s Board of Trustees, says “Matt brings a passion for the ministry, a gift of relationship, and a keen understanding of Sumatanga’s role in the Conference. The vote to name Matt as Executive Director was...

Babies First Benefit Luncheon raises $2600 for ministry

The 2011 Clergy Spouses Babies First Benefit Luncheon was Saturday, April 16 in Florence at the Brandon Ministry Center. Jane Stonbraker, DS Spouse in the Northwest District, and the spouses and churches in the Northwest District hosted the event. The event raised $2680 for the Babies First Ministry in Birmingham. Babies First is a ministry of the United Methodist Children's Home. It is a residential program for young girls and their babies. These young moms have made the decision to raise...

Sumatanga appoints Strategic Planning Committee

The following is a message from Mike Byrne the Acting Executive Director of Sumatanga and the Chair of the Sumatanga Board of Trustees. Sumatanga first opened Pool Camp in 1951 with simple, open-air cabins. By 1960, the Lodge had been built to accommodate a greater number of guests with greater comfort. By the mid-1990’s, the Retreat Center had been built to offer an even higher level of comfort. Sumatanga realizes that it must change and evolve to meet the current and projected...

Scholar to present treasured manuscript, lecture at Huntingdon

Montgomery, Ala.—Dr. Oliver Larry Yarbrough, Tillinghast Professor of Religion at Middlebury College (Vermont) and Fulbright Research Scholar, will present a replica of the Codex Sinaiticus to Huntingdon College's Houghton Library as well as a lecture about the gift, "How a King, An Emperor, and a Pharaoh Helped Make the Bible as We Know It," Wednesday, April 6, at 4:00 p.m. in Houghton Library Atrium. The gift will be dedicated in honor of Dr. Yarbrough's in-laws, The Reverend...

Sumatanga announces spring special

Camp Sumatanga, the Camp and retreat center of the North Alabama Conference, is a 1700-acre facility stretches along the valley in St. Clair County, nestled against Chandler Mountain. The following is an announcement from Sumatanga regarding special rates the camp is offering this spring. Seems like spirits are soaring with spring in the air! The warmer weather is bringing daffodils, dogwood trees, and DISCOUNTS! Don't miss the beauty of springtime at Sumatanga! Hold your retreat, meeting,...

Sumatanga’s Executive Director announces resignation

Michael Coward, Camp Sumatanga’s Executive Director, has announced his resignation from Camp. A search for a new Executive Director will soon be underway. In the interim, Sumatanga’s Board of Trustees has appointed Mike Byrne, the Board’s Chair, to serve as Acting Executive Director. Mike Byrne said “the Board wishes to thank Michael for his leadership, energy, and passion. Under Michael’s direction, Sumatanga reached out to many Methodist churches and groups that...

United Methodist Children’s Home consecrates new Headquarters and celebrates bench dedication

A Service of Consecration was conducted on Wednesday, October 20,2010, for the United Methodist Children’s Home Ministry Headquarters in Montgomery, Alabama. Bishop Paul Leeland, Resident Bishop of the Alabama-West Florida Conference, and Bishop William Willimon, Resident Bishop of the North Alabama Conference, consecrated the ministry’s newest location to the glory of our Almighty God and for His service. Juddy Stephenson, UMCH Board of Directors Chair, and Steve Hubbard, UMCH...

Sumatanga to reconnect with Urban Ministry campers

front page picture from sumatanga.org On Friday, October 8, 2010, Camp Sumatanga will host an afternoon picnic in Birmingham’s West End neighborhood as a way to reconnect with 25+ students who have attended summer camp through Urban Ministry’s Summer Children’s Program. Through Urban Ministry’s Summer Children's Program, students ages fourth through eighth grade have had the opportunity to travel outside of their downtown neighborhoods to rural Gallant, AL. During...

United Community Centers, Inc expands Annual Poinsettia fundraiser beyond Birmingham to Huntsville and Tuscaloosa areas

Each year United Community Centers, Inc., a North Alabama Conference Advance Special mission agency serving 19 low income communities in the Southwestern area of Birmingham, sells beautiful Christmas Poinsettias and Easter Lilies as annual fundraisers for the ministry. The plants are available to churches, individuals and businesses to use to decorate or give as gifts during the holidays. This year, United Community Centers, Inc (UCC) is expanding its Annual Christmas Poinsettia Fundraiser...

P.E.E.R., Inc. to hold Harvest Feast fundraiser meal on Oct. 7

North Alabama Conference Advance Special P.E.E.R., Inc. (Promoting Empowerment and Enrichment Resources) is holding its third annual Harvest Feast fundraiser meal on Thursday, Oct. 7, 2010, at Ruffner Mountain Nature Center in Birmingham. The evening will feature an array of local foods, live music, and a short celebration program of P.E.E.R.’s ministry in 2010. Hors d’oeuvres will begin at 5:30 p.m with the dinner served at 6 p.m. P.E.E.R., Inc. is a community development group...

Society of St. Andrew is in the running for $250,000 grant

front page photo from http://www.endhunger.org The Society of St. Andrew is in the running to be awarded a $250,000 grant through the Pepsi Refresh Project. If the organization is selected, that money would help provide 9 million servings of food to hungry Americans. The Society of St. Andrew is a grassroots, faith-based, hunger relief nonprofit organization working with all denominations to bridge the hunger gap between 96 billion pounds of food wasted every year in the United States and the...

The United Methodist Children’s Home & Concordia College Close on Selma Property

After several months of detailed discussions and negotiations, the United Methodist Children’s Home (UMCH) has reached an agreement with Concordia College on the 35-acre property located on Broad Street in Selma. The two entities closed on the deal August 12, 2010, and will immediately begin transitioning the property for use by the college. “We are so excited for the city of Selma, and for the future of our ministry,” said Steve Hubbard, UMCH President & CEO. “To...

BSC President David Pollick steps down, Board of Trustees name Provost Mark Schantz as interim president

The Birmingham-Southern College Board of Trustees accepted the resignation of President Dr. David Pollick today as the institution's 12th president effective immediately. The full Board of Trustees met on the BSC campus for an overview and discussion of the events that have transpired since April concerning the college's finances. Dowd Ritter, chair of the board and a 1969 Birmingham-Southern graduate, announced that current BSC Provost Dr. Mark Schantz will serve as interim president while a...

New ministry for children offered at Camp Sumatanga

A new educational experience for children is now available for children from 5K through sixth grade at Camp Sumatanga. Called Creation Classroom, the program is led by Luke Milam of Children’s Bible Ministries. Milam's role in the program is to lead children’s groups in activities that challenge them spiritually, physically, emotionally and academically by giving them an opportunity to experience nature at Sumatanga on a personal level. The goal is to use Camp Sumatanga—God&rs...

Sumatanga Announces New Executive Director

Camp Sumatanga announces that Michael Coward will be its next Executive Director. Michael comes to Camp with a strong hospitality background and a deep faith. He currently works for the Intercontinental Hotels Group serving as the General Manager of a Holiday Inn in Las Vegas. Prior to that, he served as the Chief Operating Officer of a large church and its affiliated school. Among many other outreach efforts, the church supports 18 international missionaries in 8 different countries. Chair...

Urban Ministry DVD now available

Do you have a group in your church anxious to do hands-on ministry? Are you looking for an opportunity to serve? Through the Joe Rush program, Urban Ministry in Birmingham offers a full-service mission camp for groups from junior high to adult. These mission camps allow participants to be in ministry in the inner city of Birmingham through house painting, working in the West End Urban Garden, and participating in local church-based relief organizations. You can learn more about these...