News

(Montgomery, AL) - Bishop Paul L. Leeland is pleased to announce three new district superintendents to the Alabama-West Florida Conference appointive cabinet. Rev. John Brooks, Dr. Larry Bryars and Rev. Sara Shaver will begin ...

(Montgomery, AL) - Bishop Paul L. Leeland of The Alabama-West Florida Conference, in partnership with Huntingdon College President J. Cameron West, is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Woods Lisenby to Huntingdon College ...

(Dr. Jeremy Pridgeon) - Bishop Leeland and members of the Cabinet recently held their first meeting of 2014. There is much to celebrate in the life of the Alabama-West Florida Conference because the Spirit is moving among our ...

Friends, It is my sincere pleasure to invite you, as clergy and laity, to our Alabama-West Florida Conference “Bishop’s Day Apart for All God’s Servants” which is scheduled for March 3, 2014, at St. James United Methodist Church ...

Greetings in the name of Christ. As preparations are underway for the 2014 meeting of Annual Conference, June 1-4 at Frazer Memorial UMC in Montgomery, Alabama, the Committee on Standing Rules will be looking at proposed changes ...

Dear Alabama-West Florida family, Matthew 2:1-2 "After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, 'Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We ...

(Stegall Seminary Scholarship Endowment Foundation) - In September 2013, Dr. Karl K. Stegall dared to write of a bold vision. He said in the Foundation’s quarterly brochure, “With your great encouragement and generosity, I am now ...

Changes to the clergy retirement plan are fast approaching. Have you taken the actions necessary to prepare?  The General Conference 2012 plan changes – which go into effect on Jan. 1, 2014 – will affect clergy in different ways....

(Lake Junaluska, N.C/UMNS) Following the action of a retired bishop to conduct a same-gender ceremony in violation of church law, the United Methodist Council of Bishops took a series of actions to address the issue during their ...

Bishop Leeland Encourages Offering for Philippines Relief In the Philippines, home to more than 210,000 United Methodists, countless numbers of people are suffering from the devastating results of Typhoon Haiyan, described as one ...

Delegates to the 2016 General Conference are to be elected at either the 2014 or 2015 session of the Alabama-West Florida Annual Conference. (Paragraph 502.3) You are to elect 5 Clergy Delegates and 5 Lay Delegates. In accordance...

(Linda Bloom*, UMConnections) - If Congress drastically cuts the federal food stamp program, religious institutions will not be able to fill the gap for hungry families. That was the message delivered by religious leaders from ...

(Montgomery, AL) - UMConnections, a blog about the United Methodist Church, recently reported that the 2016 session of General Conference will see a drop in the number of delegates based on a vote by the Commission. Most likely, ...

(Dr. Jeremy Pridgeon) - The Cabinet of the Alabama-West Florida Conference met in a regularly scheduled session on October 14-15 at the Conference Office in Montgomery. A significant portion of this meeting was devoted to ...

The conference office received this note from Dr. Jeremy Pridgeon, Pensacola District Superintendent. It was sent to his district but we are reposting here for our Pensacola-area followers.    Based on the lastest advisory, the ...

Friends, Bishop Debra Wallace-Padgett, resident bishop of the Birmingham, Alabama, area, issued a press release yesterday regarding the intention of a retired bishop of The United Methodist Church from another jurisdiction to ...

Evelyn Lowery, the wife of civil rights leader the Rev. Joseph E. Lowery, died overnight in her Atlanta home. She was 88. “My beloved Evelyn was a special woman, whose life was committed to service, especially around the issues of...

(Dr. Jeremy Pridgeon) - The Cabinet of the Alabama-West Florida Conference met in a regularly scheduled session at the Conference Office in Montgomery on September 10-12. In reviewing ministry across the annual conference, we ...

(Alabama Rural Ministry) - Local church pastors and ministry leaders are uniting together in our 6th Annual "No more Shacks Campaign" with Alabama Rural Ministry (ARM). Lisa Pierce, director of ARM, will live in a makeshift shack ...

(Bishop Paul L. Leeland) - During an engaging conversation with one of our United Methodist Missionaries several weeks ago, my wife, Janet, and I found a growing interest in the movement and work of missionaries from a global ...

(Mobile, AL) - The Mobile District of the United Methodist Church is pleased to announce the grand opening of the Open Doors Resale and Thrift Store located at 4125 Government Boulevard. The store was established to financially ...

The Alabama-West Florida Conference Office has completed its move. E-mail and phone services have been restored.  The new contact information is as follows: 4719 Woodmere Boulevard Montgomery, AL 36106 Conference Main Telephone: ...

(Meredyth Earnest) - On Thursday, August 1, 2013, the Stegall Seminary Scholarship Endowment Foundation held its annual Dinner of Celebration at the Renaissance Hotel in downtown Montgomery. Nearly 400 supporters - a foundation ...

(Montgomery, AL) - The Alabama-West Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church is pleased to announce that conference headquarters will be relocating within the Montgomery area. The Conference Board of Trustees, under the ...

Dear Colleagues in Ministry: The Conference Board of Ordained Ministry and I are excited to offer the upcoming quadrennial sexual ethics training this September. I am confident this seminar will broaden our understanding of how we...

(Rev. Frederick Outlaw) - A couple of months ago, with the beginning of major league baseball, I had some free time and decided to go to the movies. As I was driving to the theater a ministerial colleague called and we began a ...

(Susan Hunt) - I have received great feedback from the Mission Day experience during Annual Conference. Many delegates, both clergy and lay, have told me that their chosen project was very meaningful and enjoyable. That is music ...

(Sherri Easdon, UMCH) - Residents at Wesley Gardens in Montgomery will soon hear the relaxing sound of cascading water from a new courtyard fountain, thanks to the efforts of area pastors, and volunteers and donors. Among those ...

The 2013 Alabama–West Florida Annual Conference was held June 2-5 in Mobile, AL, with the theme, “The Great Commission: Seeking Disciples.” Bishop Paul L. Leeland, presiding over his fifth annual conference session since becoming ...

The Mobile District is pleased to announce the QuadW Foundation’s continued and expanded support of local mission work in our area as well as providing for the expansion of the QuadW Missional Internship program. Specifically, the...

EF-4 is the designation used to describe a storm whose winds reach 200 miles an hour. Yesterday, May 20, 2013, such a storm devastated Oklahoma. This will be an epic disaster, a tornado that at one point was two miles wide, ...

By Maidstone Mulenga* WASHINGTON (UMNS) — Alabama Rural Ministry, a volunteer ministry of the Alabama-West Florida Annual (regional) Conference of The United Methodist Church, was honored April 25 with 13 other groups as one of ...

(Susan Hunt) - Churches frequently ask me for ideas on how to reach out into their local community. I am becoming more and more convinced that one of the best ways our churches can reach out is through the local schools. Many ...

(Montgomery, AL) - Bishop Paul L. Leeland announces that Dr. Doug Pennington has been appointed as the District Superintendent of the Mobile District of the Alabama-West Florida (AWF) Conference, effective July 1, 2013. Currently ...

(Bishop Paul L. Leeland) - In preparation for making appointments of clergy to serve our 640 plus congregations, I received an invitation from a student at Huntingdon College asking me to participate in his research paper by ...

(Montgomery, AL) - Bishop Paul L. Leeland announces that Dr. Robbins Sims has been appointed as the District Superintendent of the Montgomery-Opelika District of the Alabama-West Florida (AWF) Conference, effective July 1, 2013. ...

(Dr. Jeremy Pridgeon) - The Appointive Cabinet of the Alabama-West Florida Conference met in regular session last week in Montgomery. Bishop Leeland and the district superintendents reviewed several aspects of the ministry of the ...

(Bishop Paul L. Leeland) - The Board of Directors for the Academy of Congregational Excellence (ACE) of the Alabama-West Florida Conference of The United Methodist Church has named Rev. Ron Ball, District Superintendent of the ...

Friends,  Our deep love for the Church makes it difficult to hear statistics that continue to come from very reliable sources. For the first time since colonial days, according to the Pew Research Center, Protestants account for ...

(Susan Hunt and Rev. Frederick Outlaw) - On November 29 - December 1, 2012, the Southeastern Jurisdiction (SEJ) convened a Multicultural Conference (MCC) at Lake Junaluska, North Carolina. A delegation of some fifteen persons, ...

Greetings, Annual Conference 2013 is quickly approaching! This year's theme is the first part of the SEND Model many in the conference have adopted. It is, "The Great Commission: Seeking Disciples." We are most appreciative to ...

Bishop Paul L. Leeland, in conjunction with the AWF Cabinet, is pleased to appoint Dr. Neil Epler as the interim Conference Secretary for our Alabama-West Florida Conference effective March 1, 2013. Dr. Epler will be nominated for...

(Montgomery, AL) - The Alabama-West Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church Board of Church & Society hosted a prayer breakfast on February 28 in the fellowship hall of River City Church (formerly Dexter Ave. United ...

(Dr. Jeremy Pridgeon) - The Cabinet of the Alabama-West Florida Conference met in a regularly scheduled session on February 19-20 at the Conference Office in Montgomery. During the two day meeting, Bishop Leeland, the district ...

Frisco City United Methodist Church suffered damage due to a fire Sunday morning, February 24. It is believed that an upstairs heating unit could possibly be the cause of the fire. No injuries were reported. The damage was ...

Friends, It is my sincere pleasure to invite you, as pastors and clergy, to our Alabama-West Florida Conference “Bishop’s Day Apart” which is scheduled for March 11, 2013, at St. James United Methodist Church in Montgomery, AL ...

Below is a Q & A with Rev. Diane Baldwin, pastor of Georgetown-Chunchula United Methodist Church, about their new MATthew 6 Ministry.  Q: Tell us what the MATthew 6 ministry is and the meaning behind the name. MATthew 6 is a ...

(Ruth Ann Powers) - It was with a rousing send-off that the COSROW Event of 2013 began. The participants came together with joy and sadness to honor Dawn Wiggins Hare. Dawn has been selected to serve as the General Secretary of ...

(Rev. Butch Cousins) - When I was assigned to be the pastor at Plantersville United Methodist Church and the pastor of Pleasant Valley United Methodist Church things did not look very promising. Plantersville was in a state of ...

Nick Mielke, Director of Youth at Prattville First United Methodist Church, talks with us about the upcoming Ultimate Training Event in Youth Ministry and what conference attendees can expect.  Q: Tell me a little bit about ...