Iowa-Missouri Conference delegates met on June 5 at Sunnydale Adventist Academy during a regularly scheduled session for the purpose of electing leadership, receiving reports and conducting other church business.
The meeting began with a short worship which included a devotional by vice president of administration for the Mid-America Union Conference Hubert Morel and a special music performed by Sunnydale and Columbia Churches’ Women’s Choir.
A quorum was established with 65% of regular delegates present. Regular and at-large delegates, totaling 357, received electronic clickers to record individuals’ votes throughout the session.
After due consideration, the majority of delegates voted to elect Elder Dean Coridan to serve as president for the next five years.
“I was very grateful to see the turn out for the 11th Regular Session,” Coridan said. “It represents the interest people have in the church. I just want to say a big thank you for everyone who came and traveled to be there. I am grateful for the opportunity to serve as the president in this conference.”
Ninety-six percent of delegates voted to elect Rhonda Karr to serve as treasurer for the next five years. Karr has worked as conference treasurer since 1998 and said it has been a privilege to serve in the conference for so long.
Delegates also voted by a strong majority for Elder Rob Alfalah to serve as executive secretary for the next five years. Alfalah said he appreciates the opportunity to serve the conference in this capacity.
Departmental directors for the human resource, communication, ministerial, youth, education, women’s ministries, health and prayer departments were all voted on. Each director was re-elected by a strong majority vote.
Joseph Allison, who began his role as education superintendent in 2009, will be retiring at the end of this month. Following Allison’s retirement, the Executive Committee will vote on the incoming education superintendent. Delegates voted unanimously to express special recognition to Allison and gave him a standing ovation for his service. In gratitude for his many years of service, the Iowa-Missouri Conference publicly acknowledged Allison’s work and presented him with a plaque.
“It’s been a privilege to serve the Iowa-Missouri Conference … I did not expect this recognition, but thank you,” Allison said.
Reports on church membership, finances, auditing and other statistics were also received and voted. In addition, session delegates voted on proposed changes to the Iowa-Missouri Conference Constitution and Bylaws.
A strong majority, 99%, of delegates voted to accept the addition of Section 11 to Article II of the Iowa-Missouri Conference Bylaws. This addition permits virtual attendance at Constituency Sessions when authorized by the Executive Committee and local law.
Eight representatives from the Mid-America Union were on hand to assist with the session. These representatives aided in several ways from registration, running the clicker program and providing counsel.
“It was very well organized,” a delegate said.
The Iowa-Missouri Conference secretary, treasurer and departmental directors shared video reports reviewing the previous quinquennium. All video reports are currently available online at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiLLS1tpk-Qs8PyuJPYvjwJtoUrMR2sPw.
The Iowa-Missouri Conference is comprised of 11,900 members (as of Dec. 31, 2020) in 125 congregations, including 103 churches, 14 companies and 8 groups. The conference currently employs 38 full-time pastors, 3 part-time pastors and 8 bible workers.
For more photos, visit the Iowa-Missouri Conference’s Facebook page.
