REV. JO ANN COOPER APPOINTED TO GRETNA UMC

Rev. Jo Ann Cooper Appointed As Pastor of Gretna United Methodist Church Effective February 1, 2020 The Staff Pastor Parish Relations Committee met with Rev. Jan Holloway Curwick, the Missional Strategist and Superintendent for the New Orleans District, on Monday evening, November 18, and received news of the appointment of Gretna’s next pastor, the Rev. Jo Ann Cooper. Bishop Cynthia Fierro Harvey, Rev. Curwick, and the Cabinet have worked diligently in the selection of Rev. Cooper. Rev. Curwick spoke of Rev. Cooper’s exceptional leadership in all her appointments, her proven ability to lead a church from a place of discouragement and struggle to cohesion and vibrancy, her heart for the disenfranchised and broken, and her specialized training that will enhance her ability to lead Gretna. Rev. Jo Ann has served for close to twenty years as a pastor in the Louisiana Annual Conference. Rev. Jo Ann and her husband Ed, have served as co-pastors at First United Methodist Church in Pineville since 2015. Before being appointed to Pineville, she served as associate pastor of Noel United Methodist Church in Shreveport from 2012 to 2015, St. John's United Methodist Church in Baton Rouge from 2010 to 2012, and First United Methodist Church Monroe from 2005 to 2010. She began her pastoral ministry as the pastor of the Bartholomew/Beekman charge in northeast Louisiana from 2000 to 2005. Rev. Cooper completed the Ministerial Course of Study at Millsap College in Jackson, Mississippi, in 2007. Rev. Cooper trained as a Transitional Interim Ministry Specialist. She received Paraprofessional Spiritual Formation Certification through the General Board of Higher Education and the Louisiana Conference. Rev. Cooper is a part of the Cursillo and Ashram communities. She also currently serves on the Conference Board of Ordained Ministry, Division of Elders, and in March will complete four years with the Leadership Excellent Advancement Program sponsored by the United Methodist Foundation of Louisiana. Rev. Cooper has a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in January 2020 with Bishop Harvey and is leading an extension to Petra, returning to the United States on February 3. She will be in the office on February 4. Her first day of leading Gretna in worship will be February 9, 2020. Rev. Callie Winn Crawford has graciously agreed to stay at Gretna UMC throughout January 2020 and will preach on February 2. Rev. Cooper’s husband, Ed, will remain at First United Methodist Church, Pineville, through the end of the present conference year and then will be appointed to a church in the New Orleans area beginning July 1. There will be opportunities for welcoming Rev. Cooper to Gretna in the future. For now, pray for her as she finishes her appointment in Pineville and prepares to lead Gretna UMC.

Blessings, Natalie Ambrose Philip Chair, Staff Pastor Parish Relations Committee

WINN FOR GRETNA

Rev. Carol “Callie” Winn Crawford is appointed as Interim Pastor of Gretna United Methodist Church effective November 2, 2019 and will serve in this capacity for November and December.

Rev. Callie served for over forty years as a pastor in the Louisiana Annual Conference retiring in 2017. Her last appointment was as Senior Pastor at Rayne Memorial United Methodist Church. Before that, she served churches in the Baton Rouge and New Orleans areas as well as Campus Minister at the University of New Orleans, Southern University at New Orleans, and Delgado Community College. Over the years, she has served on several conference boards and commissions, including the Conference Board of Ordained Ministry, the Board of Global Ministries, the Commission on the Status and Role of Women, and the Episcopacy Committee. She has served as a delegate to both the Jurisdictional and General Conferences of the United Methodist Church.

Rev. Callie is married to Billy Crawford, a retired educator, and education consultant. Billy who served many years as a high school principal and as the Assistant Superintendent of the Louisiana State Department of Education. Rev. Callie has two children, Luke and Sarah. Luke, who lives in New York City and is the Artistic Director for both the Manhattan Chamber Players and the Crescent City Chamber Music Festival. Sarah, a trained social worker. Callie enjoys reading, writing, walking, cycling, gardening, and spending time with family.

The Bishop and Cabinet are working towards providing a permanent pastor effective January 1, 2020. The Staff Pastor Parish Relations Committee met in consultation with Rev. Jan Holloway Curwick, the Missional Strategist and Superintendent for the New Orleans District, on Saturday, October 19, regarding the appointment of Rev. Crawford. The mission of the church, the lay leadership, and the status of the church and the pastoral needs for the church going forward were also discussed.

Please join me in welcoming our Interim Pastor, Rev. Callie Winn Crawford to Gretna!

YOUTH BULLETIN

How does our youth group go on after the death of Pastor Roger Templeton…?

Our youth are so important! They are the future of our church. They will be the ones that tell their friends and family about how our church has helped them build a relationship with GOD. We can only hope and pray that more youth will want to join in on this amazing experience. Today’s youth are not the same youth from 10 or even 5 years ago. We are competing with social media, sports, and other extracurricular activities. So how do we inspire them? How to we keep them connected?

These questions were all I thought about when I planned out my youth classes. How could I do this? I was struggling with not having enough youth in my class. I was feeling defeated and discouraged. I was questioning myself and questioning Kandie and Pastor Roger for appointing me to do this. So, with all these questions, I met with Pastor Roger the week before he passed away and I shared my thoughts, asked him questions and asked for guidance. He just smiled and said… “It’s not about how many youth are in your class, it is about how you have moved them, connected with them and shown them how to have a relationship with GOD”. His last words were, “GOD has chosen you for this, you were meant to do this. I believe in you, I am here to encourage and guide you”. So, leaving this lunch I felt like I could conquer the world and I was going to regroup and start fresh.

The news of Pastor Roger’s death the following week, devastated me as it did everyone else. All those questions and doubts that I had before came rolling back. How could I possibly do this without him? His encouragement. His guidance. 

So, after about 2 weeks of going back and forth. His words kept repeating. “GOD CHOSE ME”. GOD did choose me, and I am confident that my group will only become stronger and we will continue to grow.

Confirmation and all other activities that Pastor Roger had scheduled will be revisited after the first of the year. For now, we will build a stronger relationship as a group and with GOD and strengthen our hearts after the loss of Pastor Roger. 

Jessica Villemarette; Youth Leader GUMC