Unity amid diversity

At the 75th Anniversary Banquet of the Tulsa Metropolitan Ministry (TMM), Mouzon Biggs received a Lifetime Achievement award. From left are Rev. Dr. Biggs, senior pastor at Tulsa-Boston Avenue; Sister Sylvia Schmidt, former TMM executive director; and Rabbi Charles Sherman, who also received the Lifetime Achievement. TMM’s board chairman is Bill Crowell, an associate pastor at Boston Avenue.

At the annual dinner of the Oklahoma Conference of Churches (OCC), in Oklahoma City, guests included Pastor Jeannie Himes of OKC-Douglas Boulevard, center, with her husband and son, Jim and Sam Eller.

United Methodists attended several recent events designed to build bridges of understanding between people of different faiths and to honor the compassionate work of diverse faith communities.

A number of United Methodists took part in all these events; sponsor tables were funded by the Oklahoma Conference’s Mission & Service Ministry Team. The team has under its umbrella the work of Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns. The ecumenical officer is Twila Gibbens, pastor at Tulsa-St. Paul’s.

Two banquets are featured in these photos. Also in Tulsa, the Oklahoma Center for Community and Justice held its 54th annual awards dinner. Nancy Day, a Boston Avenue member, is the center’s executive director, and Maggie Jewel, a member of Jenks UMC, is Fund Development Director.