East Ohio Pastors Reach Out to the Gaming Community Through a New Ministry Initiative

By Brett Hetherington* When Will Fenton-Jones, director of Multicultural Ministries, set out to create a space for clergy and laity in the East Ohio Conference to share a role-playing game experience no one in the group could have imagined that it would have led to ministering to people at one of the most family-friendly and [...]

Listening Church Workshop Encourages Churches to Listen to God, Their Congregation, and Their Neighbors

By Rick Wolcott* Love requires listening and listening requires love. Sound simple? Yes. Easy to put into practice? Not always. In resourcing pastors, congregations, and faith communities to live into our shared East Ohio Conference vision, the Connectional Ministries team brought in Rev. Luke Edwards to lead a workshop teaching the principles of his Listening [...]

OPEN M Summer Cookout Builds Community Connections

By Brett Hetherington* Food, music, games, and resources drew many from Akron to the OPEN M summer picnic. OPEN M, the abbreviated name of Opportunity Parish Ecumenical Neighborhood Ministry, is an Advance Special of the East Ohio Conference of The United Methodist Church that desires to present the gospel and be good neighbors. “We’re here [...]