One advantage of being in a denomination is inclusion into a theological family that gathers to sharpen, celebrate and develop each other.
As with any family, however, togetherness requires work. Behind the scenes of district gatherings, ordination services and continuing education opportunities are district administrators: those who tend to the church’s operations and help us obtain a picture of our denomination’s health and ministry impact.
“District administration is a link between the local and general church. For instance, during the COVID pandemic, districts appealed to the General Church on behalf of local churches for necessary paperwork which allowed churches to apply for financial grants,” said Reverend Tony Casey, assistant general secretary of The Wesleyan Church (TWC). “The district is there to provide administrative assistance so that churches can concentrate on making disciples. The best mindset a district can have is to say to the churches, ‘You don’t work for us, we work for you.’”
A district administrator’s responsibilities include district leadership support, ministry and missional priorities, balancing important and urgent issues, and engaging with district clergy and laity. Responsibilities vary depending on district composition and ministry initiatives.
Some work is seasonal. For Pastor Michael Wood, district administrator of the Crossroads District, one major season of the year is reporting. Each spring completed Annual Service Reports (ASR) and Local Church Statistical Reports (LCSR) arrive and sorting “a ton of data begins,” said Pastor Michael. District conference season arrives in the summer, involving all sorts of logistics (from agenda, ordination, travel and facility coordination to credentials and journal composition).
Other duties — like District Board of Administration (DBA) meetings — have more regular rhythms. Meeting preparation “usually includes creating the agenda and meeting packets, crafting resolutions, and scheduling special guests,” Pastor Michael reflected. Gatherings for retired ministers and Christmas celebrations are smaller parts of these rhythms. But one of Pastor Michael’s favorite rhythmic tasks is connecting with the real needs of the district congregations he serves.
“I love making a positive impact and helping local churches thrive. It’s rewarding to support and see the growth of our leaders and congregations,” said Pastor Michael. “With 105 churches in the Crossroads District, sharing ministry successes and challenges helps us stay connected.”
TWC’s longest-serving district administrator is Pam Fetterhoff, who has been doing this work for 20 years in the Northeast District. Her day-to-day requires responsiveness to emails, calls and various requests. As kind as her pastors are, Pam says, “nobody usually just sends an email to say hi; action is usually part of the email.” A large part of her job, then, is keeping track of next actions, making sure the pastors and churches have adequate answers to their questions or requests.
But beyond the business, Pam tries to do her work in a way that edifies the pastors. From Pam’s own experience as part of a pastoral family — her husband, daughter, two sons, daughter-in-law and son-in-law are all involved in ministry — she knows the importance of a timely word of support and encouragement. “This isn’t just a job to me,” Pam reflected. “I see it as my ministry.”
For Northwest District’s Operations Director Courtney Hughes, the greatest rewards of the job happen around the theme of formation. “I have the privilege of working with the DBMD [District Board of Ministerial Development] teams and students. Our district is spread out, so we have four regional DBMD teams. I help gather and file initial paperwork, keep the candidate spreadsheet up to date, review transcripts, update profiles on our DBMD database, schedule interviews and attend DBMD Zoom meetings,” said Courtney. “I love working with the students, scheduling their annual interviews and watching them go through the ordination process. Seeing the candidates on ordination day is very rewarding!”
Courtney’s job also involves lots of communication. From answering pastoral questions to website updates and sending out regular district communications to helping pastors and congregants stay tethered to their district colleagues is a huge task for a district that covers lots of territory, but Courtney loves it!
Sherry Laurence, district administrator for the Great Lakes Region, has had a calling since age 16 to serve those in ministry. Her work, like the other district administrators interviewed, involves systems, communication, ASR and LCSR season, and (in her case) overseeing the Regional Board of Ministerial Development (RMBD) with over 200 students and licensed ministers in the pipeline and keeping communications with and records for over 700 different ministers and students. “It feels like there’s always a ‘puzzle’ to keep the records up to date,” Sherry reflected.
As she prepares for retirement, Sherry offered this encouragement for those in local churches wondering how they might support, encourage and empower district administrators in their role:
“Pray for your admins, they work for you and want to give churches, pastors and congregations the tools you need to help fulfill the Great Commission. When you see them serving well — drop them a note, email or give them a call. I have been privileged to serve with a gifted and dedicated group of admins in both the GLR and across TWC. These incredible individuals have a love to serve God and his churches and pastors in The Wesleyan Church. Another way you can encourage a district admin is to love on your local church admins!”
Rev. Ethan Linder is the pastor of discipleship at College Wesleyan Church in Marion, Indiana, and contributing editor at The Wesleyan Church’s Education and Clergy Development Division.
