Various Thoughts From Dennis Shaw

Rev. Al Strauss, Chair of Responsible Stewardship of the Mountain Sky Conference is our guest.   Al recently accepted the Responsible Stewardship Chair and plans to use his experiences with leading the Task Force on Disaffiliation to help him cast his leadership vision for this Committee.   Al also serves on the Conference Trustees.   Al has served in a number of clergy positions in (legacy) Rocky Mountain and Mountain Sky Conferences since 2002.   This was recorded on June 1, 2023.   Our next guests will be the three conference co-lay leaders:  Gayla Jo Slauson, Nancy Flint and Barry Welliver.  That recording will take place on June 9, 2023.  If you have any questions send them to me at the email I will show below.   If you have any comments or observations send them to me -- dennis at mantuan dot org (typed this way to obfuscate the harvest bots who would gather my email address.)  

My discussion on this Podcast is with Jeff Rainwater, currently the Superintendent for Congregation and Community Vitality for the Mountain Sky Conference of the United Methodist Church.   Jeff has served in the Arkansas, (legacy) Rocky Mountain and (since 2018) Mountain Sky Conferences.  A trained Aerospace Engineer, his passion is the local church.   This discussion was intentionally timed to capture Jeff's thoughts before he steps out of his current position and returns to the local church at Hope UMC in Greenwood Village, Colorado.   Elements of Jeff's current position will be reallocated between Annie Arnoldy and Betty Nguyen.  Their respective email addresses can be found HERE under the MSC Staff.  In particular Jeff mentions vitality grants, and Annie, probably AFTER Annual Conference in late June 2023 would be a good contact on possibilities here.   Send me a note -- a link is behind this spam blocker HERE -- if you have a question for future guests (Al Strauss to be recorded on June 1st and the three

  Episode 2 is a conversation with a volunteer in leadership and that is Bruce Berger.  Bruce is the current President of the Council on Finance and Administration for the Mountain Sky Conference.  He has served both legacy Rocky Mountain and the new Mountain Sky Conferences.  Bruce worships at Park Hill UMC in Denver.   If you have any thoughts you wish to share, do not hesitate to send me a note at dennis@mantuan.org and I will try to answer it as quickly as practicable.   ** Podcast host Dennis Shaw is a musician, marathoner (Boston!), retired military officer, math modeler, and United Methodist Pastor. A keen observer of the human condition, he has degrees in music, quantitative methods (don’t ask!), theology and leadership. He will discuss with other leaders how to become engaged and present in our current leadership opportunities. Critical to leadership is strong self-awareness. Becoming authentic, empathetic, and aware will form the framework of all discussions.

Angela Thomas is the Chief Financial Officer for the Mountain Sky Conference of the United Methodist Church.  Steeped in the local church, conferences and the private sector, Angela brings wisdom and experience to her financial leadership.   Don't hesitate to send me a note at dennis@mantuan.org if you have any comments you wish to share with me, or just need help getting a regular feed on this brand new podcast.  

I am (or was) a musician, marathoner (Boston in 1988), military officer, math modeler, and (United) Methodist Pastor.  At times, I am a muse.  That is an eclectic background and it leads me, humbly I hope, to think of myself as a Renaissance Person:  Mantua Italy claims the Renaissance started there.  It works.   I have degrees in Music, Business (Quantitative Methods -- don't ask!), Divinity and Church Leadership.   I have been a leader in various venues and activities since 1968 while still in college.  Growing in leadership is something that I have taken, and still take, very seriously.   This re-branding, re-purposing of my podcast will initially focus on financial leadership within the Mountain Sky Conference of the United Methodist and, hopefully, her local churches.  It will not stay there.   In the beginning, for the first couple of months or so, I will not have a schedule for release.  Once I get my sea legs, I expect to produce a new podcast either weekly or every other week.  We'll see.   When Chat