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Conference staff are backbone of PNC life

By Courtney Stange-Tregear - Acting Conference Minister

Stories give insights into the lives and roles of PNC staff and leaders.

Believing it’s important to know who is doing the work of the PNW-UCC Conference, I have provided stories about who some of our staff and leaders are through the PNC Google Groups email listserve and Facebook page.

The Pacific Northwest Conference is made up of local congregations, pastors, specialized ministers, lay members, and you. Our Conference stretches across the vast geography of Washington, Alaska, and north Idaho. One priority identified by the Conference Board of Directors is deepening relationships across the conference. I seek to highlight staff in this column and board members (pages 4, 5, and 6) as some of the leaders of the conference.

Arlene Hobson is executive administrator.

Arlene Hobson, the PNC executive administrator, started working with the conference in March 1997 and has had changing responsibilities through the years. Her role is to provide support for the conference minister, maintain clergy and church files for the local and national level, and support the Committee on Ministry.

Arlene maintains the conference website and creates the Monthly Packet, the monthly newsletter.

She has tremendous institutional knowledge and is the best person to call first. If she doesn’t know the answer, she will know who does.

A native of Ohio, she moved to the area in 1981 and lived in Lynnwood, Bellevue, Seattle and now Shoreline. She attends Keystone Congregational UCC, where her son leads the music.

Contact her at 206-725-8383 or email arlene@pncucc.org.

Andy Warren is the PNC accountant.

Andy Warren, the PNC accountant since 2018, earned a bachelor’s degree from Marietta College in Ohio and a master’s in business from the University of Connecticut.

He previously was chief financial officer for several public and private multinational companies ranging from $50 to $300 million budgets in the New York City area, responsible for directing treasury, finance, accounting, human resources and information systems departments.

Active in a UCC church in New Jersey as moderator, treasurer and deacon, he is now financial secretary at Everett UCC.

His two of his three children—Geoff and Rob live on the East Coast. Daughter Anna is working on a master’s on public health at the University of Washington.

Andy’s conference accounting responsibilities include making and recording deposits, paying and recording bills, processing payroll, setting up new employees for W-2s and 1099s, filing payroll taxes, preparing monthly reports to the Stewardship Committee. Board of Directors and other committees.

He maintains financials in accordance with the latest FASB guidelines, answers informational requests, sends updates to PNC churches, sends year-end tax statements to donors, maintains the conference and camp donor database, and sends fundraising campaign letters as directed by Stewardship. He also assists conference churches with PPP Loan guidance, Employee Retention Credit guidance and general accounting questions.

Contact him at accounting@pncucc.org.

Mark Boyd is managing director of Pilgrim Firs.

Mark Boyd, the new managing director of Pilgrim Firs Camp and Conference Center, provided leadership a decade at Camp N-Sid-Sen and previously was Pilgrim Firs’ facilities manager and camp director for PNC Confirmation Camps and Junior High Camps. Mark recently expressed his excitement to be at Pilgrim Firs and “part of the amazing work taking place here.”

Mark brings deep faith, humor, and humility to all that he does. He has a profound gift for hospitality, extending radical welcome to all. He is particularly excited about the Arts and Music programs at Pilgrim Firs, and how they provide space and time for healing and replenishment. What he most looks forward on returning to Lake Flora is “meeting all the folks who call Pilgrim Firs home. God is truly at work here.”

Mark also serves on the United Church of Christ Outdoor Ministries Association (OMA), providing vital connections between OMA and other northwest camps as well as participating in and leading national camp events.

His roots are in the Pacific Northwest where he was raised in the Puget Sound area, and served as youth minister for the United Churches of Olympia, as well as managing plumbing distribution facilities in Tacoma and Tumwater.

His love of the outdoors and his nature-inspired poetry inspires many of us! We know that Pilgrim Firs will thrive under his care.

Contact 360-876-2031 are email mark@pilgrimfirs.org.

 

Copyright © Pacific NW Conference United Church of Christ News March 2023

 

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