Dear Annual Conference Member, 

Our technologically-assisted 2021 Annual Conference session begins Tuesday, June 1 with the clergy session. Special services will then span the course of several days with the conference business session scheduled for Monday, June 7. As a reminder, here’s an overview of the days to come: 

• Tuesday, June 1: Online Clergy Session begins at 10 am. Clergy were sent the link to participate along with his or her voter identification via email on Wednesday, May 26. If you did not receive this email, please contact your district office.

• Tuesday, June 1: Virtual Retiree Recognition Service begins at 7 pm (Link to watch | View list of names)

• Thursday, June 3: Virtual Memorial Service begins at 7 pm (Link to watch |View list of names)

• Sunday, June 6: Virtual Service of Ordination with Commissioning begins at 5 pm (Link to watch | View list of names)

• Monday, June 7: Online Annual Conference Session, 8:30 am - 5 pm. Clergy and lay members to Annual Conference will receive an email on Wednesday, June 2 with a private link to join the conference session along with voter identification. (Non-voting guests should use this link to watch)

A schedule of the June 7 Annual Conference Session may be found here.

A checklist as you prepare for Annual Conference:

1 - Training Sessions | May 27 & 28
Two online training opportunities are available, allowing you to familiarize yourself with the online process and practice voting. Delegates are encouraged to attend one of these sessions: Thursday, May 27 at 7:00 pm and Friday, May 28 at 9:00 am. They will be identical in format and content. 

2 - Reports for Annual Conference

• Book of Recommendations and Reports (BOR): Make sure you have downloaded, purchased or printed the BOR and have it ready to reference during the session.

• Additional reports: Along with reading the BOR, there are several reports that did not make the printing deadline for the BOR or have been adjusted since publication:

  • Recommendation 2, Report #9 - Comprehensive Benefit Funding Plan Summary (replace this report with the report on page 26 in your Book of Recommendations and Reports) 

  • Recommendation 4 - Resolution for Discontinuing Local Churches (replace this report with the report on page 30 in your Book of Recommendations and Reports)

  • Nominations Report (new report)

• Supplemental videos: Supplemental video reports for Board of Pension & Health Benefits, Council on Finance and Administration, and Equitable Compensation are available. You are strongly encouraged to watch these videos prior to June 7. They will not be shown again during the online session. Once you view the videos, the committees invite you to submit any questions. 

• General Conference: On May 18 Bishop Bryan sent an email to clergy and lay members of the Annual Conference. Embedded in the survey is a 10-minute video about General Conference. Your feedback will help inform the "Time of Listening to the Annual Conference" during our online session.

3 - Information on How to Speak During the Online Conference and Webinar & Voting Help

• Parliamentary Procedures: As a reminder, the South Georgia Conference follows the Modern Rules of Order, 3rd Edition, American Bar Association for Parliamentary Procedures (see Standing Rule 3.1.1). For easy reference, here is a document that outlines our parliamentary procedures we will adhere to.
   
• Zoom Webinar Conference Guide: Make sure you have updated to the latest version of Zoom prior to our session. Here is a quick tip sheet for how to be recognized by the presiding officer using the virtual platform. You can also visit GNTV's online resource page at gntv.info/zoom. GNTV's Tech Support Hotline will be open on June 7 by calling (478) 245-4042.

4 - 2021 Special Offering: Golden Cross Fund
This year’s special offering has been designated for the Golden Cross Fund. The Golden Cross Fund - through the South Georgia Conference - affirms our commitment to help with the financial burden of medical expenses caused by COVID-19 as well as other healthcare needs. Each church is encouraged to receive an offering in advance of June 7 and send it to the conference treasurer either by mail (PO Box 7227 - Macon, GA 31209) or online.

Please reach out to me if I may be of assistance to you as you prepare for the 2021 Annual Conference Session. 

Meredyth Earnest
Conference Secretary