Retired Mountain Sky Statistician
Yes, I have retired as the Statistician. The Reverend Ann Lantz, Pastor at Estes Park
(Colorado) was selected from among the hundreds of applicants for this joyous
duty. (That is of course, slightly tongue
in cheek.)
It is still my plan to be involved in the analytical side of what is
transpiring in the Mountain Sky Conference but my actual duties as Statistician
are done.
To the hundreds of people who have made this annual accountability
exercise interesting and joyful, I say thank you! To single out one or two here is fraught with
risk because there are truly so many wonderful people out there but focusing on
laity: Roger Sams at Colorado Springs
Central, Laura Winberg at several Denver area churches, the late John Staley at
Denver Bethany, Ann Bohmer at Columbia Falls (Montana) and Alane Sheaves at Colorado
Springs Stratmoor Hills were exceptional year in and year out in this
endeavor. Yes, others were quite good,
but these five were consistently exceptional in their helpfulness, quality of
work, timeliness, and reliability. Thank you!
In the last year, Julie Gladney in the Conference office has started helping,
and she is increasing her knowledge of how all this fits together exponentially
by the day.
Notes to Ann and Julie are seen at stats@mtnskyumc.org. Both see that account. If you have questions, that is the good place
to go!
It was the plan of the General Council on Finance and Administration (GCFA)
to move to a new system for the data collection for 2021. We saw a demonstration of the system in early
September but to date (October 31st) we have not “touched it”
yet. I spoke with GCFA representatives last
week on this and it was their plan at that time to still field the new system
for 2021 collection with relaxed dates for turn-in. At this precise moment, given we have not
touched the new system yet, am at a loss to say precisely what those relaxed
dates will look like.
In fact, we have generally operated with “relaxed dates.” For example, by Book of Discipline,
statistics are supposed to be done by the end of January. We have consistently allowed two to three
weeks more than that, and for churches that have let us know what is going on
as it relates to their delays, Grace has abounded and been Amazing.
While the system for collection will change, the data for collection for 2021 is unchanged!
Now would be a
good time to start thinking about where various data elements are. Perhaps log on (your old password in EZRA
still works) and print a copy of the data requirements. A few of you have Treasurers who winter in
warmer places than Mountain Sky. Here is
frankly an area where the Treasurer often travels with the data they need to do
year-end statistics, but pastors, too often I think, surmise that because the
Treasurer is in Arizona, the data must still be at their homes. It has been my experience that this is rarely
true, and the financial data is often readily accessible with an inquiry.
When the new system is fielded, new passwords will be required. A generic system wide password will be probably assigned and then you change to your own.
I am sure the relaxed dates will not be as relaxed as some might prefer. There will come a day that numbers will need
to be warm and cozy in their year-end statistical home. We just don’t know right now, what that date
is!
I would commend all to stay alert to the Responsible Stewardship
Monthly Broadcasts, the Weekly Broadcasts from the Conference Office (Tuesday or Wednesday most weeks) and your District Superintendent or District
Admins for updates on the new system and new, relaxed, dates.
Again, thank you to all who have made this annual exercise fun and
entertaining. You have blessed us richly.
