When the Association of Partners in Christian Education (APCE) gathered for its annual conference at the Union Station Hotel in St. Louis in late January, conference co-chair Mich Phillips had one key partner in mind — Living Waters for the World (LWW), the global ministry of the PC(USA)’s Synod of Living Waters.
Anne Wilson, a longtime Christian educator who lives in Houston, led a workshop featuring a panel of fellow faith formation enthusiasts titled “Fresh Elastic for Stretched-Out Educators” during the recent APCE Annual Event held online and in St. Louis.
Panelists included Priscilla Andre-Colton, a certified Christian educator; the Rev. Dr. Von Clemans, a retired pastor and educator; Debbie Hogue, a certified Christian educator; and Linda LeBron of Decatur, Georgia, an educator who joined via Zoom.
Thom Cunningham, whom APCE recently honored as its ENRICH Educator of the Year, led a workshop during APCE’s Annual Event he called “Elephants, Ostriches and Cows — Oh My!”
When the Association of Partners in Christian Education (APCE) gathered for its annual conference at the Union Station Hotel in St. Louis in late January, conference co-chair Mich Phillips had one key partner in mind – Living Waters for the World (LWW), the global ministry of the PC(USA)’s Synod of Living Waters.
As Stephanie Fritz took the microphone last week to give the sold-out crowd at the APCE Networking and Resourcing Lunch a “fast and furious introduction” to the abundance of resources and initiatives offered by the PC(USA), Laura Sparks caught her breath.
Telling the Parable of the Good Samaritan from the perspective of the man who’d been beaten and left for dead, the Rev. Cedric Portis Sr. preached a rousing and thought-provoking sermon during opening worship Wednesday for the Annual Event of the Association of Partners in Christian Education, meeting in St. Louis and online through Saturday.
A spirit of playfulness — which found Christian educators romping around the room in a spirited game of Duck, Duck, Goose despite the early hour — filled the room at one of several pre-events being offered at the Association of Partners in Christian Education (APCE) 2024 Annual Event, “Come, all who are thirsty.”
“What does it look like for us to network?” the Rev. Larissa Kwong Abazia, the designated strategic director of NEXT Church and vice moderator of the 221st General Assembly (2014), recently asked a room full of leaders representing five independent nonprofits that support Christian educators, youth workers, older adult ministry, college campus ministry, and camps and conference centers.
“Come, all who are thirsty” to the Association for Partners in Christian Education’s 2024 annual gathering, to be held in St. Louis from Jan. 24-27 or via the Annual Event Online.
In my disability ministry work with congregational leaders, the question I have heard most often is not, “How can each person experience the love of God?” The question I hear most is, “How can we meet the needs of this family? We can’t start a disability ministry. We don’t even have the volunteers we need for our ‘regular kids.’”
