By Ronda Cordill
When you make a change or work on a transition in your life, there is a time period called the ‘in-between’ time. It is the time between the ‘old’ and the ‘new’ filled with new opportunities and some challenges too.
United Methodist Volunteers in Mission (UMVIM) is in that ‘in-between’ time – hoping to move from just a few teams serving domestically or globally over the past couple of years due to the pandemic toward more teams helping more people than we ever had before.
Volunteer teams are now changing from serving locally to getting out of our comfort zone and traveling more broadly again. As we do, we may be wondering:
- How did things change during those two years at the mission site?
- Did UMVIM change the rules to serve?
- Are there new people working at the site?
- Can I really travel safely now?
- And the questions go on.
This transition back to in-person has been hard for the UMVIM WJ Annual Conference Coordinators and me. How can we add the new opportunities, such as virtual missions, we have developed during the COVID pandemic to our current program? Will teams come back, or did they find other ways to serve?
I know that the ‘in-between’ times can be confusing, different, new, and even chaotic, but we are here to help you, the team leaders and members through these difficult times. Just contact me or your Annual Conference Coordinator listed below for any questions or help.
We hope that you will serve in mission during 2023 or 2024.
Your UMVIM WJ Conference Coordinators are here to assist and support you as you answer your call to serve as a short-term mission volunteer. If you are already planning to serve on a mission journey, let us know about it so we can share your story. Please get in touch with them for information or connection to other VIM Resources.
- Alaska: Don Olson
- Oregon/Idaho: Louise Kienzle
- Pacific Northwest: Cheryl Reagan
Ronda Cordill serves as UMVIM Coordinator for the Western Jurisdiction of The United Methodist Church. You can contact her for more information or assistance at umvimwj@gmail.com.
