News
January/February 2009 Chaplains Newsletter
April 9, 2009
Download Chaplains Newsletter (4 pages, 223 KB)
In This Issue:
Words from Robby
Warmest greetings chaplains! I wanted to take this opportunity to catch you up on our Chaplaincy restructuring as well as give you a quick update/invitation to our upcoming Foursquare Chaplains Conference taking place next month.
First, the structural changes. Many of you know the existing 71 districts are consolidating into 14 fully functioning districts with full time supervisors as well as a fully functioning staff on May 1st. The decision, made by our International Board, was wonderfully processed by our Executive Council (of which our chaplains are well represented!) and the Foursquare Cabinet, as well as the current supervisors.
On May 1st, what we have known as the Chaplains District will become "Foursquare Chaplains International." Our Foursquare leaders have worked with us for this transition to provide gains through this season. I will highlight the changes below, however for a fuller explanation take a look at our website (chaplains.foursquare.org):
- Our Chaplains District Supervisor (Robby Booth) will now be titled Chaplaincy Director and will have a seat on the Foursquare Cabinet. This is huge for our chaplains as part of our Foursquare family!
- Our two Endorsers, Will Ghere and Dan Miller, will still have the title and function as endorsers, providing the excellent care and leadership they have been.
- Our Divisional Superintendents, one over each of the specialties of chaplains, will continue their role as elders of our chaplains, with specific assignments of coverage to those under them, but will now be called Chaplaincy Coordinators.
- We are adding a representative appointed to each of the newly forming 14 districts called a Chaplaincy Representative. This person will function as part of the leadership of the geographical district to both represent the mission of the chaplains/chaplaincy, as well as promoting the integration, ministry, care and accountability of the Foursquare Chaplains that live in that area. Though they serve as a needed liaison between the supervisor and our office, they are not in a function of authority. Your direct contact will still be your Chaplaincy Coordinator (formerly called the superintendent), as well as your Endorser and chaplaincy office personnel (thank you, Jeff!)
Now to our upcoming conference. We are already about 50% higher in registrations than we have been at the same time last year, anticipating our largest turnout ever! If you have not registered, I can't say it any plainer, we want you there with us at Camp Cedar Crest. Though we begin on Saturday evening, Norman Wright will be joining us on Sunday to teach on Critical Incident Intervention, dealing specifically with "Intervening at a Time of Trauma" and "Understanding and Treating Trauma." Various approaches and debriefing will also be covered. We will have our own chaplaincy family times of ministry, as well as some special children and youth activities. The conference will be May 23-25, 2009 in the beautiful San Bernardino Mountains. The registration is kept on the low side at $125.00 per adult (less for children), covering the registration, housing and food. The fellowship, which is one of our foundational values, is not only essential, it will be rich! Make a way to get there! Visit our website (chaplains.foursquare.org) or contact Jeff (213.989.4246) for more information and to get registered.
Robby
Robby Booth
Chaplains District Supervisor
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Updates from Endorsers
Military Chaplaincy - Dan Miller
Since our November/December Newletter here are some updates to our military chaplains and candidate you might be interested in:
- Stephen Pratel (Army Active Duty Chaplain) returned in February from a 15 month tour in Mosul, Iraq. Welcome home ,Steve! We are grateful for your sacrificial giving to the Kingdom. Now to reconnect with your family...
- Leslie Nelson is our newest Army chaplain. She completed the course as a candidate and is now endorsed for the Georgia Army National Guard.
- Congratulations to Teressa Vaughn (Army National Guard Chaplain Candidate) for completing the Army Chaplain Basic Course. Teressa is now working to complete her ministry experience.
- Warren Watties (Air Force Active Duty Chaplain) is now moved to Vandenberg AFB and is serving there as wing chaplain.
- Hank Thomas (Air Force Active Duty Chaplain) has completed his temporary duty with CENTCOM at MacDill AFB and is back home station at Edwards AFB.
- Congratulations to Charlie Sattgast (Civil Air Patrol Chaplain) for being selected to serve as the Deputy Pacific Region Chaplain for the CAP (in addition to serving as the Oregon Wing Chaplain).
- Congratulations to David Blevins (Air Force Reserve Chaplain, Civil Air Patrol Chaplain, Prison Chaplain) on his promotion to 1st Lt.
- Leslie Forbes-Mariani (Army Active Duty Chaplain) and her family have moved to their new assignment in Hawaii. Pray for a release to their housing situation.
- Tom Wesley (Army Active Duty Chaplain) is recovering from eye surgery in Germany. Bless you, Tom, and may the Lord completely heal your eyes!
- Ed and Lisa Bass (Navy Active Duty Chaplain) hosted a January gathering while I was out in the Virginia area. Thanks for getting us together. How was your missions trip to Niger, Ed?
- Olushola Isinkaiye returned from his sea deployment around Thanksgiving. Welcome back, Olushola!
- Welcome to Dairus Barnes as a new Army Active Duty Chaplain Candidate!
- Welcome to Jeff Montanari as a new Air Force Reserve Chaplain Candidate!
- Welcome to Mark Beaudet as a Navy Active Duty Chaplain Candidate!
- As of this writing, we have no chaplains deployed to a war zone. However, keep these in prayer as they are slated for deployment: Jerrod Glenn (Army Active Duty Chaplain) will deploy from Germany with his unit to Iraq sometime in May or June; Paul Barnett (Army National Guard Chaplain), Peter Pritchett (Army National Guard Chaplain) and Cody Roach (Army National Guard Chaplain) will be activated in Federal Status along with their units for deployment to Iraq this summer; Leslie Nelson (Army National Guard Chaplain) will be activated in Federal Status along with her unit for deployment to Afghanistan sometime in May; Ed Bass (Navy Active Duty Chaplain) is headed out to sea once again with the USS Ponce in May and won't be back until just before Christmas (bless you, Ed and Lisa!); and Steve Stougard (Navy Active Duty Chaplain) will deploy in September to Iraq serving in a Joint Detainee Operations billet for six months. Jesus grant you all boldness in your mission, peace in yours and your families' hearts, and a safe return!
If I omitted something or didn't get something right, please let me know. Also, please keep those CMRs rolling every quarter to Jeff Mink and he will forward a copy to me. Also, continue to update us on your information and, if you haven't already, please send in your picture for Ezra, Foursquare's database. It is your responsibility, just like it is for all Foursquare pastors, to keep our database updated.
Institutional/ Industrial Chaplaincy - Will Ghere
National Endorser Conferences (January 4-7, 2009)
Linda and I attended three national endorser conferences in the Washington, D.C., area from January 4th through the 7th, representing The Foursquare Church and the Chaplains District. On January 4th and 5th, we attended the Coalition of Ministries in Specialized Settings (COMISS). These were meetings with the church denominational endorsers and the national certifying agencies, including Association of Professional Chaplains (APC), and other such groups. On January 6th, we attended the Centurion Banquet sponsored by the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE).
On January 7th, Linda and I attended the Endorsers Conference of Veterans Affairs Chaplains (ECVAC) representing VA chaplaincy. These meetings were exchanges between the national Veterans Affairs staff and the national levels of chaplaincy endorsers
These meetings mirror the national meetings between endorsers and the Department of Defense guidelines for endorsing military chaplains. It is well that we learn the new national policies and procedures for the various institutional/industrial chaplaincies as well as the military side of the house.
Foursquare Chaplains District Staff and Chaplains District Council Meetings (January 25-28, 2009)
Linda and I traveled to Long Beach, Calif., and I attended the various chaplaincy and Executive Council Summit meetings from January 25th through the 28th. An exciting time in the history of the denomination and our future as a chaplaincy entity too...PTL!
We held a District Staff meeting on January 25th. Robby Booth, our district supervisor, led our discussions. Dan Miller attended representing the military segment and Jeff Mink, our district administrator was also present. I represented the Industrial and Institutional Chaplaincies. Plans, budgets, personnel and other issues for the present and future scenarios were discussed.
District Council MeetingOn January 26th, we held a Chaplains District Council meeting and five of the six Industrial/Institutional divisional superintendents were present (see picture at left): Fire - Jay Donnally; Hospital - Ken Nolen; Police - Bill Sherrill; Prison - Dan Blomberg; and Specialized - Wanda Vicker. These also attended the national Executive Council Summit that followed from Monday evening (26th) through Wednesday evening (28th). Structure, budget, and future chaplaincy gains were introduced as possibilities too.
Other current district supervisors and divisional superintendents were also present at this vital planning and structuring summit. The individuals I contacted while there were Mike Woodman (Hospice); Paul Ogle, Dan Scheller and Jason Reynolds (Police). I also saw Larry Brand, Jr. (Police) and heard that Louis Locke (Hospital, Specialized) was present as well. Others may have also attended that I am not aware of at this time.
Chaplaincy Highlights
1. New Chaplains:
- Gary Eha (Police Chaplain) has recently joined and is serving at Port St. Lucie Police Department in Port St. Lucie, Fla. He and Ginger also serve the Foursquare Rehoboth Christian Fellowship there as well as reside in Port St. Lucie.
- Harold Perry (Prison Chaplain) is serving at the Lincoln County Detention Center in Carrizozo, N.M. He and Glenda serve the Capitan Foursquare Church there as well as reside in Capitan, N.M.
- Michelle Firebaugh (Associate Prison Chaplain), our newest Foursquare Chaplain, is serving at the Women's Correctional Facility in Canon City, Colo., and as the coordinator for the Daughters of Destiny Prison Ministry. She also serves at New Song Christian Fellowship there as well as resides in Colorado Springs.
2. Chaplaincy Switch:
- Ed Donnelly (Specialized Chaplain) has served as a representative from the Race Track Chaplaincy of America (RTCA). Those duties have now switched to Police chaplaincy as he serves in similar positions that his pastor, Steve Weller, does with the Westside Chaplains Group - Pacific Division of LAPD in Venice, Calif. He and Sandy reside in Los Angeles.
3. Chaplain Upgrades: [from Approved Associate Chaplain to Endorsed Chaplain]
- Ernie Tafalla (Hospice Chaplain), serving in Bend, Ore., at the Sparrows Clubs. He and Devona reside in Redmond, Ore., and assist at the City Center Church there
- Mike Adkins (Prison and Police Chaplain) serving at the North Las Vegas Police Department and the North Las Vegas Detention Center in dual chaplaincy appointments. He and Sanjuana reside in Las Vegas, Nev.
- John Peterson (Prison Chaplain) serving at the McNeil Island Correctional Facility in Steilacoom, Wash. He and Sylvia reside in Steilacoom, Wash.
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2009 Chaplains Conference and Foursquare Connection
This year's Chaplains Conference (May 23-25) and Foursquare "Connection" (formerly Convention) (May 25-29) are rapidly approaching. We hope all of you are making plans to attend these great times. Our Chaplains Conference will be held at Camp Cedar Crest, a Foursquare camp and conference center, on the days preceding the annual Foursquare Connection. This year's theme of the conference will be on "Critical Incident Intervention" and training seminars will be led by H. Norman Wright. A limited amount of child care, as well as youth activities, will be available. For more information or for a registration form, go to chaplains.foursquare.org or contact our office at 888-635-4234, X4246.
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Chaplaincy Fund Report - Note of Appreciation
Tithes from chaplains and offerings received to date in 2009: $36,279.61
Ministries supported by these funds:
- Administrative salaries (thank you, Lord, for Will, Dan and Jeff!).
- Convention funds, memberships in chaplaincy associations, staff attendance at various conferences, conventions and chaplain ceremonies, and conducting our Chaplains Conference.
- Thousands have been ministered to by our 176 chaplains serving in 205 chaplaincy positions, proclaiming the gospel to the poor, sick, downcast, imprisoned, overwhelmed and hungry, resulting in countless numbers being saved, encouraged and comforted! Yea, God, and thank you, Foursquare Chaplains, for your support of the Foursquare Chaplaincy!
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