News at a Glance

• Larry Salyer to Lead Media Team
• Ministerial Transfers Announced
• Creative Volunteers Needed for Feast Cards for Shut-ins
• Houston Music Festival 2007 Set for Sept. 2
• South Central Region Teen Formal Set for March 17
• Jacksonville Hosts Young Adults’ Activity May 25-28
• Southeast Regional Prom Planned for March 24
• Baptism Stories Wanted
• Dallas 50th Anniversary Set for April 7
• Calendar of Events
• What's New on the Web?

Larry Salyer to Lead Media Team

In order to provide additional manpower and expertise to the Church's rapidly growing media efforts, the Council of Elders approved President Clyde Kilough's request to bring Larry Salyer to the home office. He will serve as the new operation manager for Media and Communications Services.

"It has always been exciting to participate in the Church's work of preaching the gospel to the world," said Mr. Salyer. "I am anxious to get involved in the day-to-day efforts of the Media and Communications Services department, as both the Council and the administration step up plans to reach our fellow man with the good news of God's Kingdom.

"I want to thank Peter Eddington and his staff for laying a good foundation for future growth, and I look forward to working alongside them."

The target date for this appointment will be May or June, when the Salyers can move to Cincinnati and a new pastor can take his place in Salt Lake City, Utah, and Grand Junction, Colorado.

"Mr. Salyer brings to the table a long history of administrative and management background in the Church, much of which involved media matters," said Mr. Kilough. That experience, international in its scope, includes supervising various editorial operations ranging from editorial to publishing to mail fulfillment; dealing with media advertising; previewing and editing television scripts and evaluating programs; budgeting and analyzing product effectiveness.

"Peter Eddington, who has served diligently in this capacity since December 1999, will continue as operation manager until the Salyers arrive in Cincinnati. The value of Mr. Eddington's leadership cannot be overestimated, and he deserves a great deal of credit for the tremendous impact of our media efforts to this point.

"Mr. Eddington will work closely with Mr. Salyer, focusing primarily on the technical and production end of media. Now, with this level of management experience working together at the home office, our commission to preach the gospel to the world will be more focused and effective than ever," said Mr. Kilough.

Mr. Salyer attended the Vertical Thought and managing editors' meetings Jan. 23 to 25 (see reports, page 7).

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Ministerial Transfers Announced

Ministerial Services announced that Arnold and Ann Hampton will be moving from Cumberland and Columbia, Maryland, to south Florida this summer. Mr. Hampton will become the pastor for one of the south Florida congregations. Mr. Hampton will also continue to assist Kingsley Mather in the Caribbean region. It will be much easier for Mr. Hampton to serve God's people in the Caribbean from Florida.

Bill and Cheryl Jahns will be returning to the United States from South Africa after the GCE in May. Mr. Jahns will become the new pastor for Columbia and Cumberland, Maryland, and Lewistown, Pennsylvania. Five years ago, Mr. and Mrs. Jahns volunteered to serve in Africa. His five years will be complete in May, and he and his wife are looking forward to returning to the United States. Morgen Kriedemann will replace Mr. Jahns as pastor in Johannesburg, South Africa, and Malawi.

Dale and Mona Schurter will return to retirement once Mr. and Mrs. Jahns are in place. Mr. and Mrs. Schurter agreed to come out of retirement two years ago to help out in the Lewistown area.

More transfer announcements will be made before the spring Holy Days.

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Creative Volunteers Needed for Feast Cards for Shut-ins

At several U.S. Feast sites this past year, extra-large (9- by 12-inch) cards were made and put out on tables for the brethren to sign. These were sent to area shut-ins, elderly members who could not attend the Feast and those who were ill.

We would like to see the cards made available at all Feast sites. We would be happy to send a sample card and general instructions to anyone who is interested in making these cards for various sites. These could be made by anyone interested in card making or scrapbooking. Many teenagers would love doing these, and a group of brethren might enjoy getting together and making them.

For more information, please contact Susan Graham or Terri Cortelyou at:

Susan Graham, 357 Heritage Dr., Mackinaw, IL 61755; telephone, (309) 359-8485; e-mail, Ken_Graham@ucg.org.

Terri Cortelyou, 2450 N. County Rd. 2750, La Harpe, IL 61450; telephone, (217) 659-3857; e-mail, Larry_Cortelyou@ucg.org.

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Houston Music Festival 2007 Set for Sept. 2

The third annual UCG Houston Music Festival will be held on Sunday, Sept. 2, 2007, Labor Day weekend, at 20737 Broze Road, Humble, Texas. Last year 300 people, including 45 musicians, enjoyed a full day of rock, folk, country and blues music.

Attendance grew by 33 percent last year, and this year we anticipate an even larger crowd. A second stage and a new canopy system have been added.

Out-of-town musicians can use stage equipment provided by local musicians, including a drum set, amplifiers, keyboards, congas, bongos, timbales, microphones and monitors, Guitars may be available by special arrangement.

Musicians interested in participating should contact David Buchanan by e-mail at BuchananEnvironmental@earthlink.net (please use Subject: Houston Music Festival to avoid deletion of your correspondence) or by telephone at (281) 852-2438, no later than July 31.

Musicians must be members or attending one of the Sabbath-keeping Churches of God. Exceptions will be made for nonmember musicians in a backup role. All musicians must conform to Church standards for dress, grooming and conduct.

Festival entry is free; however, donations will be accepted to defray expenses. Any extra funds will be donated to the United Church of God.

Hotel accommodations may be found in Humble, Texas, approximately five minutes from the church building. In the event of rain, performances will be held in the building auditorium.

—David Buchanan

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South Central Region Teen Formal Set for March 17

The Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas, congregations are hosting their sixth annual Teen Formal Dinner and Dance for the South Central Region on Saturday night, March 17. All teens in seventh grade through age 19 are encouraged to attend.

This year's formal promises to be truly elegant and is themed "A Black-Tie Affair."

As in previous years, graduating seniors will be honored with a special presentation. Parents are welcome to attend the dinner and presentation. Full details as well as online registration (deadline, March 1) are available at www.ucg-dallas.org/teenformal or contact Dora Jennings at (972) 509-4512.

Sunday morning, March 18, the Fort Worth congregation will be hosting the final basketball tournament nearby.

—Dora Jennings

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Jacksonville Hosts Young Adults’ Activity May 25-28

"The New World…Past and Future" is the theme for the activities set for Pentecost/Memorial Day weekend in Jacksonville and St. Augustine, Florida. Seminars and Sabbath services will focus on developing leadership roles within the Church, family and community. Speakers for the seminars and sermons will include Council members Jim Franks and Richard Thompson.

Other activities will include a dinner dance, sightseeing of historical St. Augustine and a treasure hunt on Anastasia Island. Look for additional details in the March-April United News.

—Ina McLemore

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Southeast Regional Prom Planned for March 24

The Atlanta area congregations will be hosting the eighth annual Southeast Regional Prom the evening of March 24 in the Grand Ballroom of the Gainesville Civic Center in Gainesville, Georgia. This year's theme is "Cruise Around the World!"

Sabbath services will begin at 2:30 p.m. The formal/semiformal dance, for those aged 13 through young adult, will begin at 8 p.m. Parents are also welcome to join the eventful evening. A light snack, dessert buffet and beverages will be served.

Discounted tickets are available in advance at $20 per attendee with a maximum charge of $40 per family. Reservations are requested by March 16 in order to help with the event planning. Please send your check for tickets to Robert McCurdy, 368 Shadow Brooke Cir., Loganville, GA 30052, made out to UCG–Atlanta.

Additional information about hotels, payment information, senior recognition and directions are available on the Web at www.ucgatlanta.org or call Eric Evans at (404) 513-6515.

—Eric Evans

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Baptism Stories Wanted

As mentioned in the November 2006 United News article "Recently Baptized Members Surveyed," we are looking for members' stories of their calling and baptism. Send your 200- to 400-word "Baptism Story" to mike_bennett@ucg.org and copy your pastor.

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Dallas 50th Anniversary Set for April 7

The United Church of God congregation in Dallas, Texas, will host a 50th anniversary celebration of the starting of God's Church in the metroplex on April 7, 2007, during Unleavened Bread. Activities for the weekend will be held at the Marriott Solana in Westlake, Texas, a suburb of Dallas/Fort Worth.

The festivities will begin with a reception on the Sabbath to welcome friends and family as well as renew acquaintances. We will then have a special afternoon Sabbath services, followed by a slide show chronicling the past 50 years of God's work in this region and honoring His wonderful family members who have lived here over the years. Then topping off the special day will be a semiformal dinner and dance.

For those interested in joining us, we have set up a special Web site that will provide all of the details on housing, activities and how to submit photos for the slide show. Please visit us at www.ucg-dallas.org/50th and check back often as we will post updates as the weekend approaches.

If you have old photos chronicling the Dallas church (what was then the Radio Church of God and later the Worldwide Church of God) that you would be willing to share with us, we would love to borrow them. You may either scan and e-mail them to us or send them by regular mail, and we will digitize and return them to you. We will select photos from those submitted to place in the slide show. Please explain or comment on the photos, and e-mail digital photos to Phillip Sandilands at sandilands@comcast.net or mail them to: Dallas 50th Anniversary, 1002 Redbud Dr., Allen, TX 75002.

—Phillip and Marlys Sandilands

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Calendar of Events

Feb. 16-18: Texas Young Adults Weekend, "Got Friends?" Dallas, Texas
(www.ucg-dallas.org/ya).

Feb. 16-19: Presidents' Day Ski Weekend, Salt Lake City, Utah. (801) 495-0412 or larry_salyer@ucg.org.

Feb. 16-19: Midwest Family Weekend, Branson, Missouri (see article, November issue, page 24).

Feb. 23-28: Council of Elders meeting, San Diego, California.

Feb. 24: 40th Orange County, California, anniversary (see article, November issue, page 24).

Feb. 24-25: Tampa Bay, Florida, Women's Conference (ucg-tampabay.org). Also, please give your thoughts on "Achieving Balance" at www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=474913134229.

March 7-8: Beyond Today taping.

March 17: South Central Region Teen Formal Dinner and Dance, Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas, www.ucg-dallas.org/teenformal.

March 24: Southeast Regional Prom, Gainesville, Georgia, www.ucgatlanta.org.

April 7: Dallas 50th anniversary celebration, Westlake, Texas, www.ucg-dallas.org/50th.

April 21-22: Twin Cities Families for God Weekend, "Joint Heirs With Christ, Our Spiritual Heritage," Minneapolis, Minnesota (www.ucgstp.org/familiesforgod).

May 5-7: GCE annual meeting, Holiday Inn Eastgate, Cincinnati, Ohio.

May 8-10: Council of Elders meeting.

May 18-20: Spokane, Washington, 10th annual Women's Retreat. Theme: "Fruitful Branches."

May 25-28: Young adults' activity, Jacksonville, Florida (see article, this page).

Aug. 3-7: Council of Elders meeting.

Aug. 12: ABC graduation.

Sept. 2: Houston Music Festival, see article, this page.

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What's New on the Web?

Good Works Program. View current projects for Rwanda and Kenya at www.ucg.org/goodworks/.

Ambassador Bible Center . Listen to hundreds of hours of ABC classes, in MP3 format, online at www.ucg.org/abc/classes/. Topics range from Comparative Religion to the Doctrines of the United Church of God.

Online Bible. Did you know that there is online Bible available at the UCG.org Web site? This helpful resource is located at www.ucg.org/brp/kjvbible/.

UCG Commentary

“Put Away the Anointing Oil”
“Should Any Child Be Left Behind?”
“Tear Down These Walls?”

www.ucg.org/commentary/

Featured Link
World News and Prophecy Online with blogs on the day's news, podcasts and more. www.wnponline.org

If you have questions or comments, please contact: webmaster@ucg.org