On Wednesday, March 18, 2020, the Commission on General Conference announced that the 2020 session of General Conference has been postponed due to the spread of COVID-19. The Minneapolis Convention Center notified the commission that they were restricting events involving 50+ people at the venue through May 10, 2020, following recommendations by the Minnesota Department of Health, the Governor of Minnesota and the Mayor of Minneapolis.
At this time, it is not possible to predict what this outbreak will mean for the 2020 Annual and Jurisdictional Conferences. Should any changes be made to those events, we will inform you as soon as possible.
There will be many questions that we do not yet have the answers for related to this postponement. I am committed to communicating with you as I receive information related to this topic. Please make sure you visit www.awfumc.org often and subscribe to our newsletter here (select NewsCONNECTION).
In this time of waiting and experiencing new realities, I again encourage you to focus on the mission of the United Methodist Church. In every way life looks different in the coming days and weeks. This is true in our homes, offices and worship spaces. It will be a unique time for churches to demonstrate creativity and compassion in ministering to their communities. I am grateful to be your bishop and challenge you to continue to change your corner of the world. Your adaptive leadership in such an historic time has given me great hope. Join me in praying for all of those affected by this virus.
Bishop David Graves
Resident Bishop
Alabama-West Florida Conference