A Message from Rev. Lorraine Ceniceros, Conference Minister and Report from Synod 34
This summer has been busy for the Kansas Oklahoma Conference! With your generosity we helped Tulsa residents begin to recover from a devastating tornado (thank you!), conference delegates and visitors attended General Synod 34 in Indianapolis, the conference hired a new staff member to serve as registrar/admin assistant, and we will be preparing to say goodbye to the faithful work of our registrar Jan Lange. Our conference council is working to update the policies and procedures of the conference. Yes, this has been a busy summer and it's not quite over yet. Keep reading for more details of our activities!
General Senate 34 was more than we could have hoped for. It was wonderful as we gathered in person as the body of the church. It really was like a family reunion—a family that continues to grow in diversity, work across differences, and welcome new members, all while celebrating victories and providing apologies over missteps. Delegates worked to strengthen the voice of the United Church of Christ in our world. Click here for General Synod highlights and information.
Synod closed with an invitation to delegates and guests to attend General Synod 35, which will be hosted by the Kansas Oklahoma and Missouri Mid-South Conferences in 2025. Reverend Mary Nelson, Conference Minister of Missouri Mid-South, myself, and our delegates and guests took to the stage to issue the invitation to the City of Fountains, Kansas City! You will soon be learning about ways you can be involved in the hosting of Synod in our backyard. GS in 2025 will be the last time the event follows the two-year cycle as delegates voted to move Synod to a three-year cycle beginning in 2028.
In the early morning hours of June 18 several tornados touched down in Tulsa, Oklahoma. That week residents lost their fresh food supplies because electrical power was out for over a week. The conference issued a call for donations to help support Fellowship Congregational Church in their work to help those in need of fresh food and shelf stable supplies, and the good folks of the Conference responded! Over $2,000 was donated in the effort to help residents recover from the storm. FCC worked with Action Tulsa, Voice OKC, Catholic Charities, the Regional Food Bank, and Mayflower Congregational UCC to provide a Refrigerator Restocking event for residents. With our donations, we were able to participate in the event, even from afar.
Thank you, KO Conference!
We are proud to introduce Krystal Poindexter as our new Registrar/Administrative Assistant. If her last name sounds familiar to you it’s because her husband, Rev. Jacob Poindexter is a UCC authorized minister serving Wichita UCC. Krystal comes to us with knowledge of ecclesial processes and the experience needed for this detailed work. Krystal has begun her part time position and is currently working with our registrar, Jan Lange. Jan will be retiring from her position following this year’s Annual Meeting. Help us to welcome Krystal to her new role as we provide Jan with a heartfelt goodbye. Jan has served the conference for many years, and we are grateful for the care she brought to her work and her steadfast presence among us.
Friends, I pray you keep stretching out of your comfort zone to share the love of Christ with others. Relationships are important in our strife-filled world. Build bonds of relationships in your communities, your neighborhood, your congregation, and the congregations around us who are not UCC.
In that stretching, may you feel a deeper connection to the Holy as you share the light of Christ with others.
Many blessings as we walk this journey of faith together,
Lorraine