- Brethren Benefit Trust seeks a director for the Pension Plan and Employee Financial Services, an administrative position with management responsibility for the Church of the Brethren Pension Plan, Supplemental Income Fund for Equitable Annuitants, Church Workers Assistance Plan (CWAP), and programs of financial education and planning. The person in this position will provide leadership and oversight of the denominational pension plan with 4,000 members and $260 million in assets, management of the three benevolent ministries of CWAP, and design and lead programs of financial and retirement planning. This administrator will supervise 1-2 employees for operations and member services. Minimum qualifications are a bachelor's degree and three years of experience in one or more of the following areas: employee benefits administration, human resources management, employee assistance programs, business and risk management, financial planning and investment counseling. Qualifications preferred but not initially required include Certified Employee Benefits Specialist, Certified Financial Planner, Series 7 securities license, and experience with trust and recordkeeping systems. Preferred qualifications can be attained on the job. Compensation and benefits are comparable to similar positions of other church agencies of similar size. The position is available Jan. 1, 2006, with an earlier commencement date negotiable. Letters of interest with resumes should be sent to Susan Brandenbusch, 1505 Dundee Ave., Elgin, IL 60120; e-mail sbrandenbusch_bbt@brethren.org. For telephone inquiries call 800-746-1505.
- The National Council of Churches (NCC) seeks an assistant director for the Interfaith Climate and Energy Campaign (ICEC), a collaborative effort with the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life (COEJL). The ICEC proclaims and enacts God's biblical mandate of stewardship by working in the faith community to curb global climate change, with special attention to the needs of the poor. This is a grant-funded staff position. Qualifications include 4-5 years of experience as a campaign organizer, recruiting skills, capacity to inspire trust and excellence, capacity to convey religious messages on policy issues to a broad range of audiences and to train others to do likewise, ability to work with people of different faiths, experience assuring accomplishment of objectives, computer and communication skills, ability to take initiative and facilitate multiple projects while working in a team, and experience preparing funding reports and proposals and overseeing budgets. Distant organizing or e-advocacy skills, experience training staff and volunteers, knowledge of html, and staff management experience are a plus. Knowledge of climate and energy issues preferred. The assistant director is responsible to work with the Development Department and the Eco-Justice Program director to assure that the position and programs are funded. If funds are not available the position is terminated. Location in Washington, D.C. Starting salary $59,052. Send cover letter, resume, and writing sample to: Attn: Joan Gardner, ICEC Search, National Council of Churches, 475 Riverside Dr., 8th Floor, New York, NY 10115. No calls please. The NCC is an equal opportunity employer. For more information go to www.ncccusa.org and www.protectingcreation.org.
- Congregations are informed that the order form for the stewardship resources available from the General Board this year was not included in the stewardship packet sent to the Church of the Brethren congregations. The resources include bulletin covers, commitment cards, book marks, posters, letterhead and business envelopes, as well as a list of recommended books and curriculum. For your convenience there are three ways to order the resources: by fax at 800-667-8188, by phone at 800-441-3712, or on-line at http://www.brethren.org/genbd/funding/resources/bp.htm, where item numbers, descriptions, and prices are given. Brethren Press apologizes for this error and is working diligently to assure that the order form is included in every packet going forward, reported customer service representative Shanita Hamlin. "We value your business and patience," she added. Call Brethren Press customer service at 800-441-3712.
- Paw Paw, Mich., was the setting of a 27-hour Level I Disaster Child Care Training Workshop on July 22-23. Participants learned how to recognize and understand fears and other emotions young children experience during and following a traumatic event. "The training was a huge success with 13 persons attending, representing the states of Michigan, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Missouri," reported Helen Stonesifer of the General Board's Disaster Child Care staff. Leadership was provided by Donald Weaver from Tonawanda, N.Y., and Sheryl Faus from Manheim, Pa. Sharon Flaten, a Ministry Summer Service volunteer, also participated in the training. She is currently serving with the General Board's Emergency Response program.
- Twenty-six volunteers from Monte Vista Church of the Brethren in Callaway, Va., helped host a rest stop for the Bike Virginia Tour on June 25, at a picnic area named Monte Vista Acres. The volunteers welcomed riders, served lunch, and distributed drinks, reported the Virlina District e-newsletter. Shirley Jamison, moderator-elect for the district, shared information about the area and how Monte Vista Acres evolved. An estimated 1,300 people ate lunch and nearly 2,000 people participated in the event in all, the newsletter said.
- Northern Plains District will hold its district conference on Aug. 5-7 at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls. Tim Peter will serve as moderator. Michigan District holds its conference on Aug. 11-14 at the Winding Creek Wesleyan Conference Center in Hastings, Mich. Gary Copenhaver will serve as moderator as the district addresses the theme, "Be Yourself, Be Bold, Be Together."
- Twenty-three Brethren from nine districts were part of a Learning Tour to Honduras sponsored by the New Community Project (NCP). The delegation returned on July 20 from the 10-day experience. The group worked with a Chorti Mayan community near the Copan Ruins to build walls for the village's new two-room school, reported NCP director David Radcliff. The group also learned of challenges facing the community including lack of sanitary facilities, respiratory disease from breathing smoke from indoor cooking fires, absence of educational opportunities beyond sixth grade, and widespread poverty. The group ranged in age from 14 to 62, with leadership provided by Radcliff and construction foreman Jim Dodd. The delegation was hosted by the Christian Commission for Development, a Honduran organization with a history of serving the poor. NCP is a Brethren-related nonprofit organization. For more information see www.newcommunityproject.org or call 888-800-2985.
- A Greater Gift/SERRV International is calling for prayer for those affected by the monsoon rains and flooding in India, including craftspeople who provide goods sold by the nonprofit alternative trade and development organization that was begun by the Church of the Brethren. President Bob Chase was on his way to address the Indian National Fair Trade Conference in Bombay and to visit a partner organization in India when the monsoon rains hit. His plane was unable to land and the conference was canceled. "The flooding in Bombay was terrible, costing more than several hundred lives...and as always seems to be the case, having its worst impact on the poor in the low-lying slum areas," he reported in an e-mail to supporters of the work. "I thought you would want to know that this flood has had a terrible impact on Pushpika's organization and the people she works with," he added. Pushpika Freitas recently joined the SERRV board. She lives in Evanston, Ill., and manages a program called MarketPlace: Handwork of India. "Please keep the people of Bombay in your thoughts and prayers," Chase asked. For information about A Greater Gift/SERRV International see www.agreatergift.org.
- The New Sudan Council of Churches (NSCC) has expressed "profound shock and deep sorrow" at the death of Sudan's first vice president John Garang de Mabior. Garang led the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement (SPLM) and was a leader in the making of a Comprehensive Peace Agreement between the southern rebels and the government of Sudan. The Church of the Brethren is a partner with the NSCC in its work in southern Sudan. Garang died in a helicopter crash on July 30, during a trip from Uganda. Several fellow Sudanese and Ugandans also lost their lives in the weather-related accident that came only three weeks after Garang's appointment to the vice president position. His death sparked rioting in Sudan's capital Khartoum. The NSCC called on the Sudanese people, the SPLM, and the Sudan government to remain committed to the peace agreement, "ensuring that the present dark clouds do not eclipse our aspirations." Samuel Kobia, general secretary of the World Council of Churches, also gave condolences in a letter to the churches of Sudan. He expressed "concern that the peace process in the country will continue.... We shall stand by the NSCC, the Sudan Council of Churches, and the Sudanese churches in their pastoral and ethical role in the implementation of the peace process and in their ministry of reconciliation and healing of their land."
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