ANNVILLE PASTOR TONIGHT'S SPEAKER Richard F. Shreckhise, pastor of Annville Church of the Brethren, Annville, Pa., is tonight's worship speaker. A native of Virginia, he has had a varied career, first in industry and business, before answering a call to ministry. He was ordained by the Pleasant Valley Church, Weyers Cave, Va., in 1975. A graduate of McPherson College and Bethany Theological Seminary, Shreckhise served previous pastorates at Carlisle, Pa., and at Putney, Vt., as an organizing pastor of the Genesis Church of the Brethren. He is a former Brethren Volunteer Service worker and has provided leadership in refugee resettlement, community relief ministries, and a Christian ministry in the Grand Canyon National Park. Shreckhise is married to the former Pat Heckman, and they have two children, Adam, 20, and Sarah, 16. TWO CONCERTS FOLLOW WORSHIP Conferencegoers have a choice between two unique concerts tonight at 9, following the evening worship service. In the Assembly Hall of the Convention Center, the five-member group known as Glad will present a concert of contemporary Christian music. Glad was formed 18 years ago as a progressive rock band, but changed its style during the 80s to more of a pop/jazz sound, with intricate harmonies and a polished band sound. Glad has cut 15 hit recordings, the latest entitled Color Outside the Lines. The group has traveled extensively in the US and abroad, including performances at the historic Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, London; the National Prayer Breakfast; at a team devotion for the Washington Redskins; and at the Evangelical Press Association Conference. Another concert will be presented in Ballroom B of the Convention Center and will feature a special choir from the Southern Ohio District under the direction of Delbert Blickenstaff. The singers, chosen following auditions, will sing selections from Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals. COORDINATORS ARE CONFERENCE HEART The volunteer coordinators of Annual Conference really provide the heart of the week's success. Beginning with the On-Site Coordinators, who this year are Bill and Peggy Kidwell, and moving through the list of age-group coordinators, worship and music coordinators, registration, ushers, information, transportation, child care service, housing, and others, there are many committed individuals who literally give a tremendous effort in the preparation and follow through for Conference. The volunteer coordinators are listed on pages 46 and 47 of the Conference booklet. They and the host District of Southern Ohio deserve a major vote of THANKS! HESS TO REPEAT AS BOARD CHAIR The General Board has re-elected Katherine A. Hess as its top officer for the coming year. The Ashland, Ohio, physician begins her second year as Board chair. In other decisions during the Board's reorganization meeting Thursday, Steven Petcher was named vice-chair, and Stafford Frederick and Craig Smith were elected members-at-large on the executive committee. Other executive committee members will be the chairs of the commissions: Beth Middleton, General Services; Roger Forry, Parish Ministries; and Bonnie Kline Smeltzer, World Ministries. Commission membership for the next year will be: General Services: Middleton, Ruth Davidson Clark, Phyllis Davis, David R. Miller, Tracy Wenger Sadd, Terry Shumaker, J. Paul Wampler, and Marie Willoughby. Parish Ministries: Forry, Krista Carter, Phyllis Crain, Mary Jo Flory-Steury, Stafford Frederick, Dorothy Gall, Gilbert Romero, and Craig Smith. World Ministries: Smeltzer, Ernest Bolz, Christopher Bowman, William Eberly, Wayne Judd, Edith Mae Kiester, Lori Sollenberger Knepp, and Steven Petcher. FREDERICK TO PREACH TOMORROW Stafford Frederick, pastor of Olathe Church of the Brethren, Olathe, Kan., and a member of the General Board, will deliver the sermon for tomorrow morning's closing worship service at 9:15 a.m. Frederick is a native of Trinidad, West Indies, and holds degrees from Nazarene Training College, Eastern Nazarene College, and Nazarene Theological Seminary. Frederick serves on the General Board's Parish Ministries Commission and he is a member of the Western Plains District Board. He is an accomplished soccer player and coach and was made an honorary citizen of the City of Quincy, Mass., in 1979. Currently he is a member of the Board of Housing Commissioners in the city of Olathe. Frederick is married to the former Linda Ingrid Derosha and the Staffords have a daughter, Dawn Kathleen. CHILDREN HAVE BUSY WEEK One hundred and sixty-nine children have taken part in the children's program for kindergarten through fourth grade this week. Each morning the day began with a worship service followed by choir practice. Then a field trip occupied the remainder of the day. The children have visited Cincinnati's new Children's Museum, the City Zoo, Union Station, the Museum of Natural History, and Sharon Colonial Village. The theme has been "The Wonders of God." Cathy Leedy and Bette Sharp have been the children's activities coordinators. CHILDREN'S CHOIR DIRECTOR ELATED "The greatest joy this week has been when the kids come up to me after practice and give me that hug and say `I love singing!' And to know that a heart's been touched by the music. My goal with the music is that in some special way they'll experience the Lord." These were the words of Jane Patterson, the director of the Conference Children's Choir, that sings in the Assembly Hall tonight at 6:45, as she reflected on her experience with the children.Patterson is from Dayton, Ohio, and is a member and choir director and chorister at Bear Creek Church of the Brethren. She is a former school teacher, who now enjoys being a homemaker and home-schooling two of her four children. She also coaches gymnastics at a Christian gymnastics club. Closely assisting Patterson this week with the children's music has been Debi Wright. "She needs to be mentioned too," Patterson said, "She's been the brains and the organizer behind all this." Wright is married to the Conference music coordinator, Andrew Wright. SUMMARY AVAILABLE TOMORROW A summary of the business actions and a Conference Wrap-Up will be distributed to delegates and others at tomorrow morning's closing worship service. Multiple copies of the Wrap-Up will be distributed by Brethren Press in coming weeks. Order forms for the print and video wrap-ups are at the back of the assembly hall, or orders can be called to Brethren Press next week: 1-800-323-8039. JUNIOR HIGHERS MAKE RELIEF KITS Nearly 200 junior high youth took part in activities for that age group at Conference this week. In addition to a full day of interest groups and field trips, the energetic youth assembled 800 school and health kits which the New Windsor Service Center will ship to Bosnia. In a new program this year, the junior highers were given a choice of eleven interest groups, including basketry, drama, music, beadwork, fabric decorating, painting, woodcarving, ceramics, math and science, service, and sculpting. They stayed in the interest groups all week, then participated in a talent show last night to show what they had accomplished. The group also visited Cincinnati's museum center, the Omnimax Theater, the City Zoo, Coney Island Water Park, and the Miami White Water Forest. In addition to the Bosnia kits, the junior highers assisted with the General Board Live Report on Thursday by handing out the bread to the 3,000 assembled in the business session. Dave and Marcia Shetler have been the junior high coordinators, assisted by some 30 adult volunteers. MORE COME FOR WEEKEND Registrations yesterday, as the Conference family began to grow for the weekend, reached 4,815, including 906 congregational delegates, 44 Standing Committee members, and 3,865 non-delegates. Last night's attendance was 3,844 and the offering $10,451.13. MUSICIANS HAVE BLENDED WELL The organist, pianist, and Conference Choir director for this week's worship services have been a "silent" team supplying superb support for the music and worship setting. Terry McRoberts, Jackson, Tenn., the Conference organist, is a teacher at Union University in Jackson. He has degrees from Ball State University, Youngstown State, and Manchester College. He has studied organ extensively and has been a church organist at Forest Heights United Methodist Church in Jackson. He has been well supported this week by the attendance of his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Roy McRoberts, Jr., and two uncles and three aunts, all of the children of the late Rev. and Mrs. Roy McRoberts. The Conference pianist, Beth Bowman, is from Cambridge City, Ind. She grew up in North Manchester, Ind., and earned her undergraduate degree in music education at Georgetown College in Kentucky. Her principal instrument was piano. She has done masters work in music theory at Butler University, taught junior and senior high school music, and taught private piano and voice students for nine years. She is choir director at Nettle Creek Church of the Brethren, Hagerstown, Ind. She is married and has an 8-year-old son. Michelle Grimm, the Conference Choir director, graduated from Messiah College, Grantham, Pa., with a degree in music and Christian education. Then she received her introduction to the Church of the Brethren by serving on the staff of the Indian Creek Church, Harleysville, Pa., for 8 years. Then she went to Bethany Seminary and graduated with a masters of divinity in 1994. Now she is a part-time church secretary and supports her husband, who is pastor of the Onekama Church of the Brethren, Onekama, Mich. She told the Journal: "It's a wonderful opportunity to come to Annual Conference and share one's gifts with the whole denomination." FISH-EYES TO BE IN KETTERING The comedy duo of Ted and Lee, who call themselves FISH-EYES, performed at several functions this week, including the MESSENGER Dinner. They deliver a unique and humorous look at the gospel story from the perspective of disciple brothers Andrew and Peter. FISH-EYES will perform at the Prince of Peace Church, Kettering, Ohio, tomorrow evening at 7. Conferencegoers are invited to attend, on their way home from Cincinnati. Tickets are available at the door for $6 adults, $4 children. FUTURE CONFERENCE PLACES, DATES The Conference Program and Arrangements Committee announced today that Baltimore will be the site for Annual Conference in 2001. The specific dates are yet to be determined due to the possibility that the Conference week may be shortened beginning with the 2001 Conference. Site selections throughout the year 2000 are as follows: 1997 - Long Beach, Calif. (July 1-6) 1998 - Orlando, Fla. (June 30-July 5) 1999 - Milwaukee, Wisc. (June 29-July 4) 2000 - Kansas City, Mo. (July 11-16)