Through the financial support of the Tennessee Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church, the Golden Cross Foundation is expanding older adult ministry throughout the conference!
Through the financial support of the Tennessee Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church, the Golden Cross Foundation is expanding older adult ministry throughout the conference!
ENCORE Ministries is a new, valuable resource that is now available in the Tennessee Conference to help congregations meet the needs of the fastest growing demographic group in our conference. And, because this ministry is funded by a grant from the Golden Cross Foundation, there is no cost to congregations or districts for its service.
In 2009, someone was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s or another other form of dementia every 77 seconds. Today, someone is diagnosed every 66 seconds.
For retired United Methodist Bishop Kenneth Carder, the statistics are personal. His wife, Linda, was diagnosed with frontal temporal dementia and he was called into a new vocation—that of caregiver for Linda. Out of that experience, Bishop Carder felt led to create a five-part study, Alzheimer’s/Dementia: Ministry with the Forgotten.
Since spring of 2013, approximately 225 persons from all seven districts of the Tennessee Annual Conference have been trained in older adult ministry through grants from the Golden Cross Foundation to the Adult/Older Adult Committee of the Tennessee Annual Conference. Workshops to train leaders have been held in Murfreesboro and Brentwood with more scheduled for 2014 and 2015.
Golden Cross Foundation funds three broad areas of older adult ministries in the Tennessee Annual Conference.
It’s easy to make a gift to the Golden Cross Foundation. All gifts are tax deductible.
The first annual Encore Ministry Awards were presented to seven (7) churches in the Tennessee Conference. The Awards ceremony was held during the dinner sponsored by the Golden Cross Foundation and Martin Methodist College on Wednesday, June 13, 2018 at the Tennessee Annual Conference at Brentwood United Methodist Church.
An Age of Opportunity by Dr. Richard H. Gentzler, Jr., Director of ENCORE Ministries, provides church leaders with information on how to grow and sustain their ministry into a truly spectacular, creative, and visionary model that will serve the church.
Published by Discipleship Resources (May 2018), you can order your copy today through the Upper Room Books at 1-800-972-0433 or at Bookstore.UpperRoom.org
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“Celebrating the Ageless Spirit” was a very successful planned weekend event for senior adult (age 55 and above) who are members of Belmont United Methodist Church and five neighboring UM Churches. The May 2-4 event nurtured, informed, inspired and celebrated senior adulthood. Weekend activities included fellowship through shared meals and conversations: learning through workshops on Physical fitness; good nutrition and healthy eating habits; maintaining spirituality during the aging process; keeping the brain active; and worship experiences. Barbara Bruce from Rochester, NY, a Christian educator and author of books on brain fitness for older adults, was the featured keynote speaker and main leader for the event. The weekend will culminated withsenior adults being celebrated and actively involved in Belmont’s morning worship service on May 4. Leadership included Starr and Jim Strickland, co-chairs, Belmont UMC Senior Adult Ministry Council and an excellent committee of volunteers.
