Financial and Administrative Resources

On Thursday, April 23, at 6:30 p.m. Discipleship Ministries will host a webinar to help you start planning your church's COVID-19 recovery ministry.

Bishop Leeland and other Cabinet members lobby Governor Cooper to include church employees in extended unemployment benefits. Because churches are exempt from paying both federal and state unemployment insurance, church employees are not eligible to receive unemployment benefits at this time.

Many churches have reached out regarding the payment of apportionment funds given the Conference office closure. WNCC Treasury Services continue to operate and process apportionment payments and payment disbursements weekly. Apportionment payments may still be sent to PO Box 2757,Huntersville, NC 28070. Thank you for your support of our connectional ministries.

The United Methodist Credit Union (TUMCU) is a participating institution in the Paycheck Protection Program and would be happy to assist any UMC church or related organization who would like to apply. Our online application and other information about the SBA program is available at https://www.tumcu.org/sba-paycheck-protection-program/.

How do you raise funds faithfully during a crisis?

In response to the economic impact of the global pandemic, the GBHEM Office of Loans and Scholarships has made some important updates to its policies. New 2020 guidelines – including a loan payment suspension option – are outlined here.

IMPORTANT Update on CARES Paycheck Protection Program   We have received information that you are NOT required to have a charge conference to apply for this loan.  Please do make sure that your Finance Committee and Church Council know that you are applying.   We have also learned that the application process will open on April 3.  Please work with your bank to get your application in on that date or as close to it as possible as there is a limited pool of money available for these loans. View ...

Your telehealth benefits now include behavioral and mental health. The CDC advises the use of telehealth and telemedicine when available to avoid overloading doctor's offices and emergency departments.

The Commission on General Conference made a determination that the General Conference will not meet in 2020 as originally planned and elected to work toward setting a date in 2021.

In response to new needs from our churches, the Western NC Conference is please to announce a free online giving platform! Donors will be able to specify which church should receive their donation. The Conference will remit payments to the churches monthly.

To Wespath Benefits and Investment Participants:

As churches continue to meet online, WNCC Treasury Services and the United Methodist Foundation have produced this resource that provides several options for online giving. While many of our churches already have online giving procedures in place, we know many do not. We hope these options will prove helpful for you. It is times like these that we are appreciative of the United Methodist connection. We want you to know we are here to assist you and your congregation in whatever ways we can. Please let us know if there are other ways that we might be of assistance to you.

The Conference Office in Huntersville and all District Offices are closed due to governmental recommendations. Our Conference and District staff are working from home, with email as the most effective means of communication. Click here for the latest updates and news related to COVID-19.

"As concerns over the coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic continue to escalate, the Commission on the General Conference will meet on March 21 via teleconference to discuss plans for the 2020 General Conference, scheduled for May 5-15, 2020 in Minneapolis, Minn."

In response to the rapid spread of COVID-19, Bishop Leeland has recommended to suspend public worship until the end of March. In order to facilitate continued worship during this time the Church Development office is offering the following resources to help churches transition to online streaming and online giving.

Tom Pruski outlines six steps congregations should take in response to the Coronavirus in keeping with guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control. Pruski, a registered nurse, is director of Wesley Theological Seminary's Heal the Sick Initiative that equips leaders for congregational health ministries.

As we have watched and prayed for those across the world that have been affected by COVID-19, we face the realization that we must be more diligent in our efforts to prepare and mitigate the effects of this virus in our local communities. As a church, our first call is to respond and care for those around us, while also making sure we do not put our parishioners at risk.  In times of crisis, the most powerful tool is knowledge. As leaders across the conference we must make it our job to be as ...

"As a public service, this document was created to help churches decide how to respond before the virus reaches their ministry contexts."

The Health Benefits Committee of the Conference Board of Pension and Health Benefits announces that during this COVID 19 pandemic, testing for the virus will be covered at 100% for our participants and family members enrolled on all three of the conference group active health plans. This coverage includes the copayment for the office visit as well. For our retirees, on March 3, 2020, Medicare released a statement that the COVID 19 testing will be covered under Medicare Part B. With this, the conference Medicare supplement retirees, spouses and surviving spouses will be able to have the COVID 19 covered by the health plan. (Please note: Medicare indicates that the provider will need to wait until after April 1, 2020 to be able to submit a claim to Medicare Part B for the test.)

Get the latest on the North Carolina state response to COVID-19.