wfn.org | New name, staff additions highlight BCE board meeting

[wshuffit@oc.disciples.org]

Date: March 21, 2001
Disciples News Service
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
Contact: Clifford L. Willis
E-mail: CWillis@oc.disciples.org
on the Web: http://www.disciples.org

01b-23
	

	INDIANAPOLIS (DNS) -- The introduction of a new name, staff
additions and loan requests were among the highlights of Board
of Church Extension's first board of directors meeting of 2001. 

	Tim Mitchell, director of marketing, introduced the new name,
Church Extension, to staff and directors, along with a new logo.
"While not changing our corporate name, our organization will
simply be called Church Extension. The tag line will be
‘Building Churches. Touching Lives,'" he said. 

	The Rev. James L. Powell, Church Extension president,
introduced the Rev. Gilberto Collazo, minister of University
Gardens Christian Church, Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico, and current
board chairperson, as the newest member of the New Church
Ministry team. Collazo begins July 1 as assistant director of
New Church Ministry.  He will join the Revs. Rick Morse and 
Judy Turner, director and assistant director, respectively, of
New Church Ministry, and Dee Long, program administrator, as
they assist regions and congregations in the establishment of
new churches.

	Since Collazo will be joining the New Church Ministry team,
Linda Carlson, current Church Extension vice chairperson and a
certified public accountant from Kansas City, has agreed to
become board chairperson. She assumes the chairperson's duties
after the June out-of-town board meeting.  The Rev. Darwin
Collins, regional minister of the Christian Church (Disciples of
Christ) in Pennsylvania, has agreed to become vice chairperson. 

	During the evening session, Disciples General Minister and
President Richard L. Hamm spoke to staff and directors about the
direction of new congregation establishment and its impact on
the whole denomination.

	In a passionate statement, Hamm stated, "Church Extension and
New Church Ministry will join with others to lead the way in
revitalizing 1,000 of our 4,000 congregations by the year 2020.
We must also be challenged to start 1,000 new congregations in
the next 20 years and provide quality leadership development to
pastors and lay members. As a denomination, we must ordain 230
ministers per year, instead of 90 per year.  We must also become
a church that accepts diversity."

Loan requests exceed $6.5 million

	More than $6.5 million in loan requests have been received in
the past three months by staff and directors of Church
Extension. Loan requests will finance 41 projects.

	As of Jan. 31, reports showed loan balances of  $104 million
while the board's assets stood at $118 million. Investments
placed with the board, a primary source of loan funds, totaled
$94.2 million.

	Other reports showed 582 field visits were made by staff and
special consultants to provide services to 305 congregations
during 2000.  Included were 56 building and combined funds
campaigns that produced more than $25 million in pledges. This
is a $12.8 million increase over last year's pledges.

	Ellen Mitchell, vice president for development, announced that
gifts to Church Extension during 2000 exceeded $1 million---an
all-time high.  During the meeting, Mitchell also reported that
the Accessibility Loan Fund is only $12,000 away from the
$500,000 goal.

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