Barreto, Disasa and Pomroy to headline annual Stewardship Kaleidoscope Conference in Portland

Sept. 23-25 event expected to draw hundreds of in-person and virtual attendees

by Emily Enders Odom, Mission Communications | Special to Presbyterian News Service

The Rev. Amos Disasa

LOUISVILLE — Registration for the annual Stewardship Kaleidoscope Conference — featuring a roster of outstanding speakers and preachers — is now underway, with a June 30 early-bird registration deadline approaching for the Sept. 23-25 event to be held in Portland, Oregon.

The popular conference, which will again offer the option of online attendance, will feature three sought-after plenary speakers, informative workshop leaders, inspiring worship experiences and unparalleled networking opportunities for all who are passionate about stewardship and generosity.

In-person attendees will be invited to choose from among 40 workshops and enjoy unique opportunities to connect with participants from across the country. Virtual attendance includes all four plenaries, both worship services and eight selected workshops.

Drawing leaders from across the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), and other ecumenical partners, Stewardship Kaleidoscope is designed to ignite generosity in faith-based communities, give practical tools for cultivating generosity in congregations, expand the leadership capacity of those who lead stewardship initiatives, and cultivate adaptive approaches for funding Christ’s mission.

Featured keynoters and preachers this year include:

• Grace Pomroy, director of the Stewardship Leaders Program, Luther Seminary
• The Rev. Amos Disasa, senior pastor, First Presbyterian Church of Dallas, Texas
• The Rev. Dr. Eric Barreto, Weyerhaeuser Associate Professor of New Testament, Princeton Theological Seminary
• The Rev. Dr. Andrew Kukla, pastor, First Presbyterian of Boise, Idaho
• The Rev. Melissa Reed, Bishop’s Associate for Vital Leadership and Sacramental Organizing, Oregon Synod (ELCA).

The Rev. Dr. Eric Barreto

The unofficial theme of this year’s conference is “Unconventional Stewardship,” playing on the host city’s unofficial slogan, “Keep Portland Weird.” The conference will open with a plenary panel touching upon this theme, and other speakers and workshop leaders will offer nontraditional views, practices and tools for stewardship.

In addition to early-bird pricing for in-person attendees, which is offered through June 30, there is also a discount for seminarians and first-call pastors. The deadline to register for in-person attendance is Sept. 6.

All PC(USA) ministers are eligible to apply for a grant through the Presbyterian Foundation to cover half of all costs to attend the conference in person, including travel and hotel. For pastors who attend with members of their congregation, this grant is also available toward half the conference costs for those lay leaders. For more information about this grant, prospective attendees are invited to email the Presbyterian Foundation Ministry Relations Officer located in their region.

Grace Pomroy

“Congregations and other ministries today face many challenges and obstacles, largely financial, when it comes to living out their mission and values,” said the Rev. Sandra Moon, ministry relations officer in the Cumberland region for the Presbyterian Foundation, who co-chairs the all-volunteer conference planning team. “We hope that ministers and lay leaders jump at the opportunity to learn from experts in the field of stewardship so that they can learn how to effectively create cultures of generosity within their context. This conference exists solely to equip the church with tools and evolving approaches towards stewardship.”

For more information or to register, click here.