Annual Conference 2021
Annual Conference 2021
Thank you for a wonderful 2021 Annual Conference!
Mark your calendars for next year's Annual Conference
June 17-19, 2022!
Clergy Session: June 16, 2022
Annual Conference 2021
June 12th - 10am
Recorded Livestream Available Below
Ordering of Ministry Services 2021
June 19th
Commissioning Service - 10am
Ordination Service - 2pm
Stuart Auditorium, Lake Junaluska
Highlights for AC2021 include:
- Celebrating the ministry of Bishop Paul and Janet Leeland
- Remembering the lives and ministry of deceased clergy, diaconal ministers, and spouses
- Receiving an offering for UMAR and the Northern Haiti Mission Connection
- Celebrating the retirement of clergy
- Approving the 2022 Conference Budget
- Find the full schedule and other AC2021 news & resources below.
Clergy Session
June 11th - 10am
Private Stream
Ordering of Ministry
June 19th
Stuart Auditorium, Lake Junaluska
Commissioning Service - 10 a.m.
Ordination Service - 2 p.m.
Latest News
United Methodist Agencies 2020 Reports
5/24/2021View the 2020 video reports from United Methodist Agencies including Global Ministries, Church & Society, General Commission on United Methodist Men, and United Methodist Communications.
AC2021 Program and Reports Book now online!
5/19/2021The 2021 Annual Conference Program and Reports Book is available online. Clergy and Lay Members of the 2021 annual conference are invited to read about the ministries of WNCCUMC, still active in spite of the pandemic!
Join us for WNCC Connection Points
5/17/2021Join us each evening throughout the week leading up to Annual Conference, June 7-10, for WNCC Connection Points, live webinars connecting us to Christ, each other, and ministry in the world. The live streams will begin at 7 p.m. each evening. No advanced registration is necessary.
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Bishop Leeland Announces Retirement
5/11/2021Bishop Paul L. Leeland has announced his intent to retire, effective September 1, 2021. We express gratitude for Bishop Leeland and his faithfulness in guiding Western North Carolina for the past five years – the four years of the quadrennium plus one additional year due to the postponement of General and Jurisdictional Conferences due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Conference has benefitted from Bishop Leeland’s emphases on collaboration, clergy leadership development, anti-racism efforts, and the planting of new churches. A celebration of Bishop Leeland’s ministry will be held during the virtual Annual Conference on June 12, 2021.
2020 State of the Church Report: Blessed is the Church
5/4/2021The United Methodist Church has continued to carry out its mission despite the unique challenges and uncertainties of 2020. That’s according to the new 2020 State of the Church Report produced by the Connectional Table and United Methodist Communications, themed “Blessed is the Church.” The report uses the framework of the Beatitudes to share a compilation of stories that provide an inspiring look at the ways the church responded in an unprecedented year – which included a global pandemic, renewed calls to end racism, a delayed General Conference and the possibility of a denominational split.
Join the Annual Conference Virtual Choir!
4/19/2021*DEADLINE EXTENDED! Video submissions are now due Friday, April 23rd.* The Worship Committee for the 2021 WNC Annual Conference is creating a virtual conference choir for the opening hymn. Singers of any age from WNC are invited to video record themselves singing the hymn, “And Are We Yet Alive.”
Recognition of Anniversary Churches
2/15/2021As has been the practice for some years, the WNC Conference Commission on Archives and History will recognize all churches celebrating their 100th, 150th, and 200th anniversaries in 2021. If your congregation is celebrating one of these anniversaries this year, please contact Jim Pyatt, Archivist, at jpyatt@wnccumc.org by April 1, so that your church will be included in this year’s recognitions.
Annual Conference 2021 Updates
1/20/2021The 2021 session of Annual Conference will be held virtually on Saturday, June 12 at 10:00 a.m., using the same format as the 2020 virtual session. The clergy session will be Friday, June 11, also held virtually. Due to ongoing presence of COVID 19 and our continued dedication to “Do No Harm,” we don’t anticipate that a gathering of this size will be feasible in person by June 2021. The Ordering of Ministry service will be held in person on Saturday, June 19 at Lake Junaluska. The combined service for clergy being commissioned and ordained will include 2020 and 2021 classes, with likely limits on attendance numbers and social distancing. More details will be shared in the coming weeks.