Advance program has new look for 60th birthday
Oct. 22, 2007
NOTE: Photographs and logo available at http://umns.umc.org.
By Elliott Wright*
NEW YORK (UMNS) - The Advance for Christ and His Church, the designated mission giving program of The United Methodist Church, has a new structure and staff and will have a new look in coming months.
"We have gathered a strong, talented professional team that can build on the rich history of the Advance while positioning us for bold new steps," said Shawn Bakker, who became director of the almost 60-year-old program in 2006.
The Advance is the "second-mile" giving channel for mission, meaning giving beyond mission support that comes from congregational apportionments. It includes disaster relief through the United Methodist Committee on Relief, supplementary support for missionaries, and ministries in evangelism, church development and human services around the world. The Advance is lodged within the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries.
In a typical year, the Advance receives between $30 million and $35 million for missions, and the number goes much higher when catastrophic natural disasters occur. However, giving through the Advance is not keeping pace with mission needs.
A revised structure designed to strengthen Advance operations and increase income was approved a year ago by the Advance Committee. One major change replaces field offices in each of the denomination's five U.S. jurisdictions with direct links to the annual (regional) conferences. The new arrangement follows recommendations made by a study that included many segments of the church.
"Our new staff team represents a new structure of accountability designed to improve internal communication and fortify relationships with the broad mission constituency," Bakker explained.
She and the Rev. Christopher Heckert, the executive in charge of marketing and promotion, are working with United Methodist Communications to develop a visual identity that will carry the Advance into the future.
Birthday observance
The United Methodist Church will observe the Advance's 60th anniversary in 2008. Plans are under way to introduce a new logo, promotional materials and a Web site at the 2008 General Conference April 23-May 2 in Fort Worth, Texas.
A 15-minute presentation will highlight the role of the Advance in mission over the past six decades. It will use video and first-person stories about lives changed by Advance-supported projects around the world. Following the General Conference, a year-long celebration will take the Advance anniversary into annual conferences, district mission events and congregations.
Advance projects are selected through a review process that includes approval of the bishop of the area where the applicant is located.
Advance income reached $120 million - its highest level - in 2005 with record giving in response to the killer tsunami in South Asia and the devastation of the hurricanes along the Gulf Coast in the United States.
"We are not looking for a repeat of 2005 with regard to the reasons for the outpouring of support, but we are hoping for significant increases in voluntary, designated mission giving," said Heckert.
Contributions through the Advance can be made through congregations, online giving or by mail. Each Advance project is assigned a number that can be located online at http://secure.gbgm-umc.org/donations/advance/donate_select_project.cfm.
*Wright is the information officer for the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries.
News media contact: Linda Bloom, New York, (646) 369-3759 or newsdesk@umcom.org.
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United Methodist News Service Photos and stories also available at: http://umns.umc.org
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