an edition of the United Methodist Reporter


January 6, 2012


A Publication of The Arkansas Conference of The United Methodist Church Two Sections, Section A


IN THIS ISSUE


Volume 158 Issue 36


Eco-Friendly Recycled Paper | Soy Ink


017000


Springdale church opens transitional house for homeless families


BY JEANNIE SMITH Special Contributor


SPRINGDALE, Ark.—A crowd


Q&A: technology and Arkansas churches


4A


gathered in prayer Dec. 18 on the grounds of First United Methodist Church Springdale to celebrate the opening of Christopher’s House, the area’s fi rst transitional house for homeless families. T e ministry’s launch is a


milestone in the church’s vision to address the problem of homeless families in Northwest Arkansas. According to a 2011 study by the Community and Family Institute of the University of Arkansas Department of Sociology, each night in Benton and Washington Counties, an estimated 2,000 adults and children are without shelter. Many homeless families in the area sleep in cars and shelters, or move from relative to relative. Christopher’s House is a


Providing home and hope to teen moms


5A


District youth rally roundup


6A


partnership between First UMC Springdale and Seven Hills Homeless Center (7hillscenter.org). Seven Hills will handle the administrative work, background checks and casework, while FUMC Springdale provides the furnished house and clothing. Just as important, the ministry includes church members serving as a


support system for participating families, who will live in the home for 12 to 18 months until they can get on their feet. Helping a family with physical,


BY AMY FORBUS Editor


Bishop Charles Crutchfi eld on


Dec. 7 announced appointments to three new positions created as a result of the Imagine Ministry process adopted by the Arkansas Conference. T e bishop named two clergy


and one layperson to new roles: T e Rev. Dr. Kurt Boggan as director of the new Center for Clergy and Laity Excellence in Leadership; the Rev. Andrew T ompson as the Wesley Scholar for the Conference; and Ms. Sandy Watson as the lead facilitator for Holiness of Heart and Life: T e Network of Discipleship and Mission.


Leadership focus Boggan, who currently serves


Kurt Boggan


as superintendent of the Northeast District, will move to the Conference offi ce in Little Rock when he takes on his new role this summer. Having served in a variety of churches, and drawing from his experiences as a district superintendent and as project manager for the Imagine


Andrew Thompson


Ministry team, he hopes to foster an environment that leads clergy and laity to excel. “T is work will begin with the


mission fi eld of the local church and address the adaptive learning that must occur with clergy and laity working as a team,” he said.


Sandy Watson A major focus of the Center for


Clergy and Laity Excellence in Leadership will be creating a sustained increase in the number of vital congregations in Arkansas. Regardless of their size, “vital congregations must learn how to be [See IMAGINE MINISTRY, page 5A]


Ryan Ritchie, a volunteer and steering committee member for Christopher’s House, speaks to the crowd gathered for the house’s Dec. 18 opening.


PHOTO BY DAVID GODWIN


emotional, fi nancial and spiritual needs will provide church members the opportunity to live out their discipleship in tangible ways. T e house, which has the capacity to house two families at a time, sits on


a corner of the church campus, and was purchased just four months before the ribbon cutting ceremony. T e church had gone through several years of


[See TRANSITIONAL, page 8A] Imagine Ministry transition yields three new appointments


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