Connecting Columbia Union Seventh-day Adventists

July 2019

Photo of the Perlas courtesy Calhoun Photography

“Two weeks later, my last living grandparent passed away,” Anissa Perla remembers. “It was a horrible, dark time in our life. I remember thinking, I need to grieve and just let my opinions out. I wanted to take it to another level in terms of sharing with other women and men. Miscarriages happen more often than we think; it’s [approximately] 1 in 4 women. We don’t talk about it. It’s like a sad, secret society.”

After 31 years, Beltsville's principal, Wendy Pega, is handing over the reigns to Jerson Malaguit.

For 31 years, Principal Wendy Pega was often the first one to arrive and the last one to leave Potomac Conference's Beltsville Adventist School (BAS) in Maryland. This summer Pega turned off her computer, handed her keys to the new principal, Jerson Malaguit, and closed the door for the last time. After more than three decades, Pega has retired.

Ohio Conference Baptism

In the early months of 2018, the Ohio Conference launched an initiative designed to help congregations regain their focus on growing spiritually. The program, known as Disciple Ohio (DO), began as an idea and hope of conference President Ron Halvorsen Jr., to have a practical and tangible way to help churches become more effective in reaching their communities in Ohio.