The mission of the Commission for Witness Life is to focus on areas of ministry relating to God’s world globally, nationally, statewide, locally, and ecumenically through: serving human need, proclaiming peace and justice, promoting the integrity of creation, witness of evangelism, denominational and ecumenical ties, stewardship and mission interpretation; and in consultation with the Coordinating Council, new and emerging ministries.

The Commission continues to work diligently to fulfill its mission. We met eight times since the last annual report. Association representatives serving on this year’s Commission were: Rev. Dale Holden (Aroostook), Stanley Primer (Cumberland), Margaret “Peg” Morrill (Franklin), Rev. William “Mac” Bigelow (Hancock-Waldo), Rev. Gary Hubley (Kennebec Valley), [There was no representative from the Lincoln Association], Silver Moore-Leamon (Oxford-Union), Diana Richardson (Penobscot-Piscataquis), Joanne Halpin (Washington), David Stansfield (York), and At-Large members Jeanne Davis, Rev. Ernest Campbell, Rev. Mark Fuller, Darren L. Morgan (Commission Chairman), and Christina “Tina” Phillips.

With numerous changes in membership and leadership, last year we had spent a good deal of time getting acquainted with our responsibilities and sorting through competing tasks. This year we have taken a more direct, hands-on approach to our mission, and the Commission has been happily filled with the Holy Spirit in the direction that we are charting. There are several accomplishments that we are proud of and want to highlight:

· Witness Life Online. Following last year’s Annual Meeting, the Commission discussed ways in which our mission and work could be publicized more throughout the Maine Conference. Our first initiative, with the tremendous assistance from Cheryl Tibbetts from the Conference office, was to publish the Commission activities online. Witness Life is the only Commission (so far) to establish a web page, which can be accessed from the Maine Conference home page. Links to all our minutes, Commission plans, and contact information are only a mouse-click away! Click here

· MainStay. Recognizing that not everyone in the Maine Conference has computer access, the Commission committed itself to submitting as many articles as possible for publication in MainStay. Commission members published six articles in MainStay this past year: Can We Stop Global Warming? (Stanley Primmer, Jan/Feb ‘04), ESP Flashes at Witness Life Commission (Silver Moore-Leamon, Jan/Feb ‘04), Open and Affirming is Alive and Well (Dale Holden, Apr ‘04), March for Truth (Jeanne Davis, two articles: Apr ‘04 & May ‘04), and UCC Identity and Vision Plan (Darren L. Morgan, May ‘04). A number of articles are in progress, and next year we hope to publish an article in every edition of MainStay!

· Maine Justice & Peace Network. There has been an increased concern for justice and peace issues, particularly since the start of the Iraq war. The Commission spent tremendous effort examining this issue, trying to formulate better ways to raise justice & peace issues in the Maine Conference knowing that there are divergent points of view. At our first meeting, we formulated lofty goals of resurrecting the Maine Peace Mission, which had been active quite a number of years ago. Commission members Silver Moore-Leamon, Jeanne Davis, and Mac Bigelow were key players in putting forth this effort. They coordinated with the Rhode Island Conference, who has a dedicated lobbying organization that addresses justice & peace issues in their state, as well as the Maine Council of Churches here at home. There were many suggestions brought forth, and we discussed ways in which the Commission and the Maine Conference could pursue justice & peace issues. We voted to join the UCC Justice & Peace Action Network and to continue being a leader in bringing important issues before the Conference. The Commission sponsored a presence and carried the Conference banner at the “March for Truth: Maine Still Says No to War” rally in March, which marked the one-year anniversary of the start of the Iraq war. We consider justice and peace the core value of our work and mission. How we go about representing the Maine Conference in matters of justice & peace is a work in progress, so stay tuned.

· Green Electricity. In May 2000, the Coordinating Council voted to “endorse Maine Interfaith Power and Light’s efforts to bring to Maine electricity that has the least possible adverse effect on our planet and (agreed) to publicize these efforts throughout the Conference.” The Commission put forth tremendous effort to examine the issue of green electricity during this past year. With Stan Primmer’s recent election as the Maine Conference representative to the Maine Interfaith Power and Light, the Commission felt that the Conference needed to take a greater leadership role beyond the Coordinating Council’s original May 2000 affirmation. The Commission felt that the best way to publicize MeIPL’s efforts throughout the Conference was to subscribe to green electricity ourselves. We examined the issue in depth and submitted a proposal to switch one Conference electrical meter to green electricity in the Commission’s 2005 budget proposal and to take funds for our 2004 budget to begin the process immediately. The Coordinating Council recognized our leadership and commitment to this issue, but they felt that the funds should be taken from the Conference’s operating expenses and not the Witness Life budget. The Council affirmed our actions and authorized switching one electrical meter at the Pennell Center to green electricity immediately and proposed switching all Maine Conference electrical meters to green electricity in the 2005 budget request.

· Mission-Stewardship Gathering. The Commission assisted the Stewardship Ministry Team in this year’s Mission-Stewardship Gathering (MSG), which was held at Woodfords Congregational Church in March. Rev. Richard Knight, Pastor of the First Parish UCC in York, and Dr. Olivia Masih White, the new Executive Minister of the United Church of Christ Wider Church Ministries, were the two keynote speakers. Although attendance was lower than in past years, this was a dynamic event that should not have been missed. Next year’s Mission-Stewardship Gathering will be combined with the annual Church Leader’s Convocation, which is scheduled for April 9, 2005 at Westbrook-Warren Congregational Church, UCC.

· Honduras Partnership. If you’ve read the MainStay this past year, then you know how active the Honduras Partnership Team has been. Under Rev. Alice Anderman’s leadership, the Honduras Partnership has been hard at work organizing mission trips. Several mission teams were sent to Honduras this past year with more planned for next year, including a week-long Pastors’ retreat in Honduras in May 2005. Click here

· Rebuilding Rural America. The Commission met with Pam Harnden, one of two Maine Conference representatives who attended the UCC Rural America Conference in February. This Conference was established in response to a General Synod 2001 resolution seeking to increase church vitality in rural America. Pam and Rev. Bob Grove-Markwood, the other Conference representative, will lead a workshop on this issue at this year’s annual meeting.

· Seminary and Seminarian support. The Commission is dedicated to supporting the two New England Seminaries as well as Seminarians who are “In-Care” with the Maine Conference. Our annual scholarship budget was increased from $3,000 to $4,000 this year. Scholarships were awarded to: Judith Braun, Patricia Donnelly, Daniel Lakeman, Darren Morgan, John Spruill, and Jacqueline Thornton. We have requested an increase in support to each of the Seminaries in next year’s budget. The future of our church relies on our leaders of tomorrow. We also recognize the tremendous sacrifices that current Pastors bear with heavy Seminarian debt. This past year Diana Richardson has worked with representatives from other Commissions on the Seminarian Debt Resolution. While their work is not yet completed, the Commission is committed to supporting these efforts.

· Open & Affirming. A number of preliminary meetings were held this past year in an attempt to create a Maine chapter of the UCC Coalition. The Commission was disappointed that this loose-knit organization lacked the leadership to become established. We continue to support these efforts and pray that greater work will be done on this issue in the future. The Commission met with representatives from Hammond Street Congregational Church, who recently voted to become ONA. They spoke about the process at their church leading up to their ONA vote. It was not an easy journey for them, and the issue of open and affirming continues to be a sensitive topic around the Maine Conference. Since the theme of next year’s annual meeting is Prophetic Witness, the Commission hopes that further dialogue on this issue will occur. In a related area, the Commission sponsored a presence in July at Bangor’s 20th Anniversary of Charlie Howard’s death. Charlie was thrown from the Kenduskeag Bridge in Bangor on July 7, 1984 for the sole reason that he was a proud, openly gay man. Commission members carried the Conference banner in support of Bangor’s diversity efforts.

In addition to attending Commission meetings, members served in leadership capacities in other roles as well: Peg Morrill and Darren Morgan served as representatives to the Coordinating Council; Ernie Campbell served as the representative to the Executive Committee; Diana Richardson served on the Seminarian Debt Committee and coordinated the Seminarian Scholarships; Stan Primer served on the Board of Directors of Maine Interfaith Power & Light; Gary Hubley served on the Annual Meeting Committee; David Stansfield served on the MSG Planning Committee; Jeanne Davis, Silver Moore-Leamon, and Mac Bigelow spearheaded the work with the Justice & Peace Initiative.

The Commission wishes to thank the contact persons who served either as a resource or provided periodic reports on issues falling within our purview. Thanks go to: Revs. Jean Alexander & David Gaewski, our Conference Ministers; Rev. Alice Anderman for the Honduras Partnership Team; Rev. Peter Mercer for the Maine Council of Churches; Annette Mott for the Stewardship Ministry Team; Lorraine Martin for the Maine UCC Coalition; Rev. Steve Hastings for Eco-Justice; and Rev. David Anderman, for the Kennebec Valley Organization.

The Commission was saddened by the loss of one of our own. Peg Morrill, who had served on the Commission for Witness Life for many years, passed away on July 5, 2004. Peg worked tirelessly for the church as well as a number of other worthy causes. Her presence will be greatly missed from the Commission.

As you can see from our activities above, we have had an active year! The members of the Commission for Witness Life have proudly served the Maine Conference.