In accordance with ¶603.5 of The United Methodist Book of Discipline, Bishop Robert Schnase hereby calls for a Special Session of the Río Texas Annual Conference on Saturday, May 6, 2023, beginning at 11:00 a.m. The Special Session will be conducted in person and shall include and be limited to the following business:
Voting on the Río Texas Conference Board of Trustees’ recommendations for the churches disaffiliating per the provisions of ¶2553.
Churches considered for disaffiliation:
Barnhart UMC
Big Lake: First UMC
Blanco UMC
CC: St Luke’s UMC
Cotulla: First UMC
Dilley UMC
Driftwood UMC
El Campo: First UMC
Flatonia UMC
Freyburg UMC
Goldthwaite UMC
Jourdanton UMC
Kingsbury UMC
Lytton Springs UMC
Martindale UMC
Medina UMC
Miles UMC
Montell UMC
New Fountain UMC
Pawnee UMC
Pearsall UMC
Robert Lee UMC
Sabinal: First UMC
SAnt: Northwest Hills UMC
SAnt: St Andrew’s UMC
Schulenburg UMC
Smiley UMC
Sterling City: First UMC
Stockdale: Christ UMC
Three Rivers UMC
Uvalde: First UMC
*Utopia UMC
Victoria: John Wesley UMC
Please register by Saturday, April 29.
Who: All 2022 Lay and Clergy Delegates to Rio Texas Annual Conference*.
The following are eligible to vote:
• All 2022 Lay Delegates of local churches & districts
• Clergy in full connection
-Appointed and Retired Elders
-Appointed and Retired Deacons
-Appointed and Retired Associate Members
-Appointed Local Pastors
The following are not eligible to vote:
• Lay Alternate Delegates
• All clergy who are from another Annual Conference or other denomination
• Honorably Located
• Retired Honorably Located
• Retired Local Pastors
• Supply Pastors
Location: Ballroom of the HEB Student Union Building at UTSA in San Antonio. (Take UTSA Blvd, turn into the campus on Ximenes Ave, and look for parking at Ximenes parking lot and/or Ximenes parking garage)
(use Ximenes Parking Garage in mobile maps for best directions)
You can take advantage of free parking options in Employee A, Employee B, and unmarked Commuter spaces. Visitor parking is also located in the Ximenes Avenue Garage (XAG). Parking is offered at $2.50 per hour. Be sure to bring your parking ticket with you once you exit your vehicle. Payment will be due at one of the University pay stations prior to your departure.
Childcare will not be available, so please plan accordingly.
The registration table will open at 10:00 am.
Lay Delegates and Clergy will need to check in at the registration table.
Guests are invited to pre-register and check-in at registration table. Guests will sit in designated areas aside from bar.
If possible, please print and bring your tickets with you. You can also bring your confirmation email on your smartphone.
Please register by Saturday, April 29.
The Special Called Session will be called to order at 11:00 am.
En Español - Convocatoria de Sesión Especial de la Conferencia Anual
Dear Clergy and Laity of the Río Texas Annual Conference,
In accordance with ¶603.5 of The United Methodist Book of Discipline, I hereby call for a Special Session of the Río Texas Annual Conference on Saturday, May 6, 2023, beginning at 11:00 a.m. The Special Session will be conducted in person and shall include and be limited to the following business:
Voting on the Río Texas Conference Board of Trustees’ recommendations for the churches disaffiliating per the provisions of ¶2553.
Further details regarding the session and its business will be sent to members of the Annual Conference and posted on the conference website in the coming weeks.
Yours in Christ,
Robert Schnase, Bishop
Río Texas Conference
The United Methodist Church
Important Details to Consider
• Who – Delegates who were elected to attend the June 2022 annual conference in McAllen are invited to attend and vote per ¶602.5. The registration link will open soon.
• What – This is a Special Session of Annual Conference and is being called to accommodate the congregations who have completed the discernment steps.
• Where – Ballroom of the HEB Student Union Building at UTSA in San Antonio.
(use Ximenes Parking Garage in mobile maps for best directions)
• When – May 6 at 11:00 a.m. We anticipate a gathering of approximately one hour.
• Why – Enough congregations will have completed the discernment process for disaffiliation, and this is a needed step. (Discerning Pathways Disaffiliation Documents — Rio Texas Annual Conference). Additional opportunities to complete this step will be offered in the future as appropriate.
Disaffiliating churches must submit the required paperwork and payments to their district superintendents on or before April 21, 2023, for those congregations to be considered for recommendation at the May 6 called Special Session under ¶2553. District Superintendents have a detailed checklist of the required paperwork.