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Dear Lay and Clergy Members of the Annual Conference and Conference and Agency Leaders,

The Annual Conference Planning Committee and the Local Arrangements Committee are preparing for the 2017 Annual Conference Session, set for Sunday, June 4, through Wednesday, June 7, at the Jekyll Island Convention Center on Jekyll Island.

We are excited about meeting in our new venue and being led by our new Episcopal leader, Bishop R. Lawson Bryan. God has placed upon Bishop Bryan’s heart and mind a scriptural touchstone for leading us as an annual conference over the next four years. That touchstone is Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, especially the part in the second chapter where Paul describes how God has “made us alive together with Christ.”

Throughout our annual conference, Bishop Bryan will be challenging us to identify and celebrate all the ways we are being made alive together in Christ so that we will long even more for those experiences in our life together as an annual conference and in our local churches.

Our new location and venue will provide ample opportunities to be "alive together." One benefit of our new venue for families is its location at the beach and its close proximity to our conference's Camp Connect summer camp leadership. Read below about the “summer camp” that is being provided to the elementary-age children of conference delegate families.

With a new venue comes a lot of logistical planning on the conference level and in your own planning. To that end, hotel room blocks are opening today. Below is the list of hotels as well as other information we hope you will find helpful as you begin making plans to come to Jekyll.

Note: In some of our previous venues, we have had parking costs connected to the area around the venue itself or to the hotels in the area. At Jekyll Island, there are no parking fees, but there is a fee to get onto the island. It is $6.00 per 24-hour period. For those who stay on Jekyll and don’t leave the island, it will be a one-time fee. There will be group transportation arrangements made available for those staying off the island. Even if you come on the island each day in your own car, you can time your entrances to conceivably pay only twice, since the $6.00 fee is good for 24 hours.

Additional information and changes related to the annual conference session will be posted on the conference website, www.sgaumc.org/annualconference.

Please note: this email is being sent to all clergy and lay members to Annual Conference who have been entered so far this Charge Conference season, and conference and agency leaders. Because not all Charge Conferences have been completed we realize that we will not have names for all lay members. Clergy, please make sure your lay member to Annual Conference gets this information ASAP. Laity, please make sure your clergy has this information as well.

Please contact me if you have any questions.  

Dr. Jay Harris, Conference Secretary

jharris@sgaumc.com


Schedule  The 2017 Annual Conference Session will begin with an Opening Worship Service on Sunday evening, June 4, at 7:00 p.m. Conference will conclude with the Sending Forth Service on Wednesday, June 7. Below is a tentative schedule of events. A more comprehensive and final schedule will be provided in the spring of 2017.

Sunday, June 4
2:00 PM  Registration Begins
7:00 PM  Opening Worship Service

Monday, June 5
8:00 AM   Registration Reopens
9:00 AM   Laity Session
9:00 AM   Clergy Session
10:30 AM Opening Plenary Session
                 Board of Ordained Ministry Report
12:00 PM  Lunch Break
2:00 PM   Afternoon Plenary Session           
5:00 PM   Dinner Break (Methodist Home Barbecue)
7:00 PM   Ordination/Commissioning Service
8:15 PM   Reception for Ordained and Commissioned Ministers       

Tuesday, June 6
9:00 AM   Morning Plenary Session
11:00 AM  Retiree Recognition
12:00 PM  Lunch Break
1:00 PM  Gathering for Families of Deceased Clergy
2:00 PM  Memorial Service     
3:30 PM  Afternoon Plenary Session
5:00 PM  Dinner Break

Wednesday, June 7
9:00 AM   Morning Plenary Session
11:00 AM  Fixing the Appointments/Sending Forth Service
12:00 PM  Adjourn

Venue  All conference business and worship services will be held at the Jekyll Island Convention Center on Jekyll Island, Ga. See photos of the convention center here.

Hotels  The following Golden Isles area hotels have rooms blocked for our conference. Please reserve your room now to ensure availability. Ask for the South Georgia United Methodist Church group rate when booking. Note that each hotel has a date when the room block will close. If you have any questions about hotels, please contact Rev. Wayne Racz at wracz@epworthbythesea.org or 912-638-8688.  

Villas by the Sea (Jekyll)
800-841-6262; 1175 N Beachview Dr, Jekyll Island, GA 31527
closes 5/4/2017
Mini Villa/Studio, $115 (Island) 5 rooms
One Bedroom, $135 (Island), $145 (Ocean), 5 rooms
Two Bedroom, $209 (Island), $229 (Ocean), 25 rooms
Three Bedroom, $299 (Island), $319 (Ocean), 15 rooms

Hampton Inn & Suites (Jekyll)
912-265-3733; 200 S. Beachview Dr, Jekyll Island, GA 31527
closes 5/2/2017
Standard Room, $200, 70 rooms
Studio Suite, $220, 70 rooms

Holiday Inn Resort (Jekyll)
912-635-2211; 701 N Beachview Dr, Jekyll Island, GA 31527
closes 4/18/2017
Guestroom (Island), $159, 20 rooms
Guestroom (Ocean), $179, 20 rooms
Oversized Guestroom (Oceanfront), $189, 80 rooms
Oceanfront Suite, $229, 5 rooms

Jekyll Island Club Hotel
800-535-9547; 371 Riverview Dr, Jekyll Island, GA 31527
closes 5/2/2017
Total Guest Rooms (Not Specified) 120 rooms
Run of House, $179
JICH Suite, $299
Ocean Suite (One Bedroom), $299
Ocean Suite (Two Bedroom), $399

Days Inn (Jekyll)
912-635-9800; 60 S. Beachview Dr, Jekyll Island, GA 31527
closes 5/2/2017
Guestroom (Island), $130, 22 rooms
Guestroom (Ocean) $140, 25 rooms
Oceanside Suites, $200, 28 rooms

Comfort Suites (I-95)
912-267-4440; 25 Ashton Dr, Brunswick, GA 31523
closes 5/4/2017
King, $84.99, 10 rooms
2 Queen, $89.24, 10 rooms

Epworth By The Sea (St. Simons)
912-638-8688; Arthur J Moore Dr, St. Simons Island, GA 31522
closes 2/1/2017
Turner Lodge, $112.50, 15 rooms
Robertson Inn, $84.60, 17 rooms
Reynolds Efficiency Apts, $84.60, 7 rooms
Pitts/Booth Motel, $75.60, 16 rooms
Reynolds Motel Rooms, $59.40, 5 rooms

Hampton Inn (Brunswick)
912-261-0939; 128 Venture Dr, Brunswick, GA 31525
closes 5/15/2017
Standard QQ, $119, 25 rooms

Embassy Suites (Brunswick)
912-264-6100; 500 Mall Blvd, Brunswick, GA 31525
closes 5/1/2017
Single, $134, 10 rooms
2 Queen, $144, 5 rooms

Total rooms blocked = 630

NOTE:  Prices do not include taxes, including the Georgia $5/night hotel/motel tax.
NOTE:  Some Jekyll Island properties may also charge a "resort fee" on top of the room price.  

Childcare Childcare will be available for infants through elementary age students. Infant through preschool childcare will be held for all worship services and business sessions on site at the Jekyll Island Convention Center.  A “summer camp” is being planned for elementary age children and will be hosted by the Camp Connect Leadership Team, under the direction of Suzanne Akins. More details will be available in 2017, but we are excited about this new opportunity. For questions, contact Allison Lindsey at allison@sgaumc.com.

Banquets  If you have a group that would like to plan a banquet or special event, contact Dr. Wright Culpepper at wrightculpepper@comcast.net or 912.261.8512, ext. 101.

Resolutions March 1 is the deadline for all Resolutions. The Resolutions Committee will consider only those resolutions received by March 1. For information on how to submit a resolution visit www.sgaumc.org/resolutions.

Questions  For questions regarding the business of Annual Conference, please contact Dr. Jay Harris at jharris@sgaumc.com. For questions regarding local arrangements or any general questions, please contact Bill Allen at billallen4@comcast.net or Kelly Roberson at 912-270-6172 or kelly@sgaumc.com.