New Executive Committee Elected at 29th Columbia Union Conference Constituency Meeting

Story by Ricardo Bacchus

On May 17, delegates to the Columbia Union Conference 29th Constituency Meeting voted to approve a new executive committee to serve for the next five-year term. 

Executive committee members are composed of presidents, pastors and lay members from each of Columbia Union’s eight conferences. They also include representatives from the union’s headquarters, Washington Adventist University, Adventist HealthCare and Kettering Health.

The executive committee serves as the union's governing committee. It convenes quarterly, bringing together members whose composition is deliberately shaped to represent a range of races, regions, genders and ages. Each member is nominated by the entity they represent, and, collectively, they hold oversight responsibility for the union's operations.

Beyond receiving reports from departmental and entity leaders, the committee plays an active role in approving pastoral ordinations put forward by local conferences, supporting special project funding and authorizing personnel changes. They also partner with conference leadership to shape a shared vision for the territory.

The following individuals were elected to serve on the new executive committee:

Executive Officers

Marcellus T. Robinson, President, Columbia Union

Celeste Ryan Blyden, Executive Secretary, Columbia Union

Emmanuel Asiedu, Treasurer, Columbia Union

Institutions

John Sackett, President/CEO, Adventist HealthCare

Michael Gentry, CEO, Kettering Health

Cheryl Kisunzu, Interim President, Washington Adventist University

Allegheny East Conference

Trevor Kinlock, President

Moses Njuguna, Pastor

Cheryl Chavers, Lay Member

Denise Crarey, Lay Member

Nadege Duvernay, Lay Member

Jane Lee, Lay Member

Lila Mejia, Lay Member*

Allegheny West Conference

Marvin C. Brown, III, President      

Furman Fordham, Pastor*  

Elethia Dean, Lay Member

Carlos Vasquez, Lay Member

Chesapeake Conference

Andre Hastick, President               

Reinhardt Stander, Pastor 

Celinda Bauer, Lay Member            

Keith Blair, Lay Member

Mountain View Conference

Tim Bailey, President               

Eddie Reyes, Pastor*

Elaine Buchanan, Lay Member

New Jersey Conference

Stephen Lee, President 

Anthony Ponterio, Pastor  

Jacky Forss, Lay Member

David Nazaire, Lay Member*

Reina Zapata-Mendez, Lay Member

Ohio Conference

Bob Cundiff, President               

Yuliyan Filipov, Pastor 

Michael Sanborn, Lay Member

Vimbai Mazani, Lay Member

Pennsylvania Conference

Gary Gibbs, President                         

Murvin Camatchee, Pastor 

Mark Sorensen, Lay Member

Potomac Conference

Charles A. Tapp, President

Paolo Esposito, Pastor                   

Cecil Calliste, Jr., Lay Member

Leena Daniel, Lay Member*

Robert McLennan, Lay Member 

Mario Quintanilla, Lay Member

K–16 

Ruth Nino, Associate Director for Elementary Education, Columbia Union

Monica Wringer, Education Superintendent, Pennsylvania Conference

*Young Adult