Q&A with Bishop Laura Merrill
In November 2022, Bishop Laura Merrill was elected as a United Methodist Bishop and assigned to the Arkansas Annual Conference. She has recently moved to Arkansas and begun serving in her assignment, and she has plans to travel to meet as many clergy and laity as possible over the next few months. So that you […]
Obituary – Gloria Bessie Renfroe
Gloria Renfroe, 91, of Clinton was born on May 02, 1931 to the late Robert and Elizabeth (Jones) Ashbrook in Cave City, Arkansas and passed from this life on January 17, 2023 surrounded by her loving family. She served as a pastor’s wife for over fifty years and taught school for thirty of those years. […]
Welcome to the refreshed ARUMC.org website!
In July of 2018, I had the honor and privilege of announcing a radically redesigned and reconstructed Arkansas Conference of the United Methodist Church website. This website consolidated many Conference websites into one, made it secure and mobile-friendly, and provided far more information than it ever had before. However, in the four and a half […]
Experiencing the year in Jubilee
contributed by Rev. Dr. Michelle Morris, First UMC Bentonville The Year of Jubilee was a celebration that was meant to take place every fifty years in Ancient Israel in which the land laid fallow and was allowed to recover, and all past debts were canceled and people were returned to their ancestral land. It was […]
Hot Springs First UMC Blessed the “Loveys”
Last Sunday, First United Methodist Church in Hot Springs hosted a special celebration of God’s love for all by inviting children of ANY age (adults, too!) to bring their “lovey” (stuffed animal or special blanket) to worship for a special blessing. Michelle Wilkins, children’s minister, shared, “Children learn through play, so this is a unique […]
Arkansans Relish Time Spent with NOMADS Ministry
contributed by Shelley and Roy Lee, Central District Disaster Response Coordinators Hello from south Texas! About two years ago, Roy and I discovered a truth about disaster response: when it’s busy, it’s REALLY busy, but while we are enjoying “blue skies,” the deployments are few and far between. Roy and I serve as the Central […]
Cabot United Methodist Church receives gift for debt and pastoral expenses
January 9, 2023: (Little Rock, AR) After the November 2022 Special Called Session of the Arkansas Conference of the United Methodist Church did not ratify the request to disaffiliate from Cabot United Methodist Church, and after the senior pastor and a part of their membership chose to withdraw from the United Methodist Church to begin a […]
Dr. Karen K. Petersen Named 13th President of Hendrix College
Petersen to begin June 2023, following retirement of W. Ellis Arnold III
CONWAY, Ark. (January 9, 2023) — The Hendrix College Board of Trustees has named Dr. Karen K. Petersen to be the 13th President of Hendrix College, beginning in June 2023. Petersen will succeed W. Ellis Arnold III ’79, who will become President Emeritus following his retirement in June. A native of northwest Arkansas, Petersen was selected […]
Obituary – Bill Gregory
With heavy hearts, we announce the death of Bill Gregory of Augusta, Arkansas, born in Little Rock, Arkansas, who passed away on January 4, 2023 at the age of 77. Leave a sympathy message to the family on the memorial page of Bill Gregory to pay them a last tribute. He was predeceased by : […]
Obituary – Rev. Carr Racop, Jr.
Rev. Carr Dee Racop, Jr. passed away on Thursday, Dec. 22, 2022, at the age of 91 in Plano, Tex., after a brief illness. He was born on July 6, 1931, in Pine Bluff, Ark. to Carr Dee Racop, Sr. and Elva Hobbs Racop who predeceased him. He was also predeceased by his sister, Ella […]