"The United Methodist Church does not have a central headquarters or a single executive leader. Duties are divided among bodies that include the General Conference, the Council of Bishops and the Judicial Council. Each of these entities is required by our Constitution, a foundational document, to be part of our structure, and plays a significant role in the life of the church." Learn more
An Introduction from Nancy Tarte
At Davidson United Methodist Church’s 2020 Charge Conference in November, lay leadership committees and positions were elected. The following comments are from Nancy Tarte who was selected to serve a four-year term as your Lay Leader:
My husband Jeff and I have called DUMC our church home for nearly 30 years. Our three children’s handprints are on wall tiles in the Alexander Education Building. Our daughter was married in our Sanctuary, and family members have been baptized and buried at DUMC.
Worship and Sunday School have been the foundation of my years at DUMC. We were founding members of the Navigators Sunday School class. My family established and ran the Sunday morning coffee hour for nearly nine years. In the past I have served on the Staff Parish Relations Committee, Nominating Committee, and Adult Faith Formation. Over the years I have taught four-year old Sunday School, staffed the Welcome Center, volunteered for a variety of service projects, and participated in the music program. As a Pediatrician and fluent Spanish speaker, I have been blessed to go on multiple church mission trips to Mexico, Guatemala, and Nicaragua, as well as staffing the medical clinic at Ada Jenkins.
The United Methodist Church is and always will be built upon the strength of its members. Traditionally the Elders (ordained pastors) in our church serve only for a few years in each pastoral appointment. The congregation (lay people) are charged to be disciples of Christ and carry forth the teachings and mission of our church to its members, community and the world.
The Book of Discipline charges that the Lay Leader "meet regularly with the pastor to discuss the state of the church and the needs for ministry." As the primary lay representative of the congregation, my role includes building relationships within DUMC and between DUMC and the community as well as connecting members with opportunities to study and serve.
Through the changes within our congregation, the decisions facing the United Methodist Church, and the need to continue to navigate COVID, we are called more than ever to live out Jesus’ commandment to us. “Love one another. As I have loved you, so must you love one another. By this everyone will know you are my disciples.” (John 13:34-35)
I believe that through grace-filled dialogue and active listening, we can and will find our way as disciples of Jesus, making DUMC a warm and loving place where we can worship and serve God and all God’s people.
Each one of you is important to the future of DUMC. I invite you to share with me your love and commitment as well as your questions or concerns by contacting me at .
At Davidson United Methodist Church’s 2020 Charge Conference in November, lay leadership committees and positions were elected. Our church follows the basic organizational plan for local churches as set forth in The Book of Discipline. This plan “shall include provision for a Charge Conference and the church (Administrative) Council” which “shall be amenable to and function as the administrative agency of the Charge Conference.” Over the next several months we’ll share the role of each administrative committee that is required to report to the Charge Conference and/or the Administrative Council as well as hear from church members who serve as chairs of the committees.
Our Administrative Council, as stated in The Book of Discipline (BOD), “shall envision, plan, implement, and annually evaluate the mission and ministry of the church.” A DUMC member since 2010, Pat Johnson is in her final year as Chair. As Chair she is also on the Finance Committee, serves as a lay delegate to Annual Conference, and is entitled to attend other administrative committee meetings. Pat brings much experience as she has served as Administrative Council Chair, as a Stephens Minister, on the District Board of Church Location and Building, and on Staff Parish Relations Committee at her church in Delaware. Pat reminds us the Administrative Council holds open meetings, “welcoming all congregation members as non-voting participants.” She is optimistic that within the DUMC family “there is limitless professional and personal talent that can energize so many arenas to serve as the hands and feet of Christ!”
The Finance Committee is “charged with responsibility for developing and implementing plans that raise sufficient income to meet the budget adopted by the Administrative Council” (BOD ¶258.4). Bill Liebler is the new Chairperson of the Finance Committee after being a committee member for several years. Over the 20 years he’s been a member at DUMC, Bill has served on the Strategic Planning Committee, the Building Committee, been a lector, and an usher. He sees the primary responsibility of the committee “to be good stewards of the church’s finances and work diligently to manage the donations of its members”. The committee is working with SPRC, he says, to hire a strong Finance and Administration Director to help continue the “history of sound management of the church’s finances”.
Maia Setzer is the new Chairperson of the Staff Parish Relations Committee (SPRC). She’s been a DUMC member since 1999 and has served in lay leadership on SPRC as well as serving as chair of both Finance and the Administrative Council. She has taught Sunday school and worked with children's choirs. The Book of Discipline (¶258.2) lists 17 different duties of the SPRC but Maia shares that she sees the role of SPRC to “encourage, strengthen, nurture, and support” pastors, staff, and their families, and to promote “unity in the church” with the congregation. Of course, one of the bigger roles this year will be “representing the congregation to the Bishop and his Cabinet… as part of their discernment process for our new Senior Pastor.”
The Board of Trustees is the committee that serves as stewards "of our expansive DUMC campus," says Chairperson Bob Taylor, "including making our buildings current, efficient, and safe for the use of all members/groups of DUMC." You might recognize him from seeing him for almost two decades in the DUMC Chancel Choir. Bob is a Certified Public Accountant and managing partner of Potter & Company in Mooresville. The committee is also currently charged with working with the Building Committee as the church community navigates the possibilities of a new building on our campus. Additional information for the Board of Trustees may be found in The Book of Discipline beginning with ¶2525.