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North Pacific Conference Recommends New Church
PORTLAND, OR (May 1, 2003) - A proposed revised constitution was spread on the
minutes for a vote next year and a multiethnic church in Tacoma,
Washington, was recommended for membership as 126 credentialed delegates
from 44 churches attended the annual meeting of the North Pacific
Conference at Irvington Covenant Church.
Saturday morning's business meeting took on a celebrative tone as 40
parishioners from Tapestry Covenant Church and their pastor, Darryl
Hutcherson, represented their congregation, which is being recommended for
membership in the Evangelical Covenant Church. The congregation began
public worship services a year ago. Membership will come for a vote by
delegates attending the 118th Annual Meeting of the ECC in June.
Conference delegates also honored three retiring pastors with longtime ties
to the North Pacific Conference - Phil Axelson, Gary Peterson and Ed Newton
- and recognized the work of conference office administrator Laurel Idso,
who has served for 14 years and will retire at the end of 2003. Included in
the acknowledgement of her work was a video greeting by Glenn R. Palmberg,
ECC president and a former North Pacific Conference superintendent.
In other decisions made during the business session:
- Robert Dings, Mercer Island Covenant Church in Mercer Island,
Washington, and Gerry McGill, Highland Covenant Church in Bellevue,
Washington, were elected to the conference executive board and delegates
re-elected Christian Brueninger, pastor of Pine Lake Covenant Church in
Sammamish, Washington, and conference chair Thomas Robinson, Emerald City
Bible Fellowship in Seattle, Washington, to the board.
- Delegates defeated a resolution on Covenant Freedom and Women in
Ministry following a 30-minute discussion. Both the conference and the
presenter of the motion, Graham Covenant Church of Graham, Washington, were
given time to present their views.
- Krisann Jarvis Foss, the Churches Planting Ministries representative
for the conference, gave a report about the ministries of the conference.
Meanwhile, Gene and Phyllis Pugnetti of Creekside Covenant Church in
Redmond, Washington, made a presentation on the Sons of Sudan Foundation,
an organization near Seattle that focuses on helping Sudanese refugees
transition into the United States.
Delegates had an opportunity to see one of the new ministries of Irvington
Covenant Church, Irvington Village, which is an affordable assisted-living
residence that opened in January 2002. Associate Supt. Don Robinson said
delegates and pastors also had the opportunity to view other transforming
works in Portland during an afternoon city tour that included stops at the
revitalized First Covenant Church in Portland, Irvington Community
Development Corporation (a job placement and training center), and The
Shepherd's Door Ministry to Women and Children, a transitional living
facility.
More than 150 attended a dinner and worship celebration sponsored by the
conference and hosted by Irvington Covenant. A group from Irvington
Covenant, directed by Pat Roche Greenidge, provided special music for the
dinner.
"The North Pacific Conference is in a very healthy position," Robinson
reported. "In spite of the recession, we're on solid financial footing.
There are wonderful ministries to be celebrated and overall we're in a
strong and healthy place with our local churches. It was a very positive
annual meeting and the representation of Tapestry Covenant showed the
diversity of the conference and the wonderful ministries at Irvington
Covenant Church gave people a positive feeling about what is happening."
The North Pacific Conference includes 70 congregations with a combined
average worship attendance of 14,104, according to the Department of Church
Growth and Evangelism. For more information about the confe
rence and its annual meeting, call 206-275-3903 or visit the conference web
page at www.covchurch-npc.org.
Copyright © 2008 The Evangelical Covenant Church. |
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