4 more churches earn welcoming status

Four more churches joined the list of welcoming congregations during September.
The Southwest Texas Conference now has 70 certified welcoming congregations. That’s the most of any conference in the United States.
New welcoming congregations are:
> Medina Valley UMC, Castroville, Kerrville District, certified Sept. 6.
> First UMC, Sabinal, Kerrville District, certified Sept. 8.
> First UMC, Mathis, Corpus Christi District, certified Sept. 8.
> First UMC, El Campo, Victoria District, certified Sept. 13.
The count of welcoming congregations by district now stands at:
> Austin—8.
> Corpus Christi—8.
> Kerrville—10.
> McAllen—21.
> San Angelo—6.
> San Antonio—9.
> Victoria—8.
Lay Leader Jay Brim called on district lay leaders in June to help all current welcoming congregations renew their certifications this year. He challenged leaders to inspire at least half the remaining churches in their districts to be certified.
Welcoming certification must be renewed annually.
Granted by the General Commission on Communication, certification means a congregation has systematically evaluated its hospitality and intentionally embraced a lifestyle of welcoming newcomers.
The certification program is part of the denominationwide Igniting Ministry hospitality and image campaign. Certified congregations earn a plaque and a special designation in the “Find a church” database at www. unitedmethodist.org.
To earn certification, congregations must qualify for at least 100 points on a yearly checklist of welcoming activities. Those activities include designating a welcoming coordinator, training church members in welcoming techniques and doing various things around the church to make it more welcoming to visitors.
Checklists are available at ignitingministry.org or umcswtx.org.
District superintendents must sign each checklist to confirm the information reported.