New chief: Recent disasters drive UMCOR changes
By Linda Bloom*
Oct. 10, 2007 | NEW YORK (UMNS)
The Rev. Sam Dixon
|
Recent major disasters — 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, the 2004 Asian
tsunami — have led The United Methodist Church's relief
organization "to rethink how we do everything," according to its new
chief executive.
The Rev. Sam Dixon, interim leader of the United Methodist Committee
on Relief since Jan. 31, was elected permanently to the position Oct.
10. The election came during the annual meeting of the United Methodist
Board of Global Ministries, UMCOR's parent agency.
The 58-year-old pastor oversees the board's Health and Relief unit,
which includes UMCOR and the health and welfare department, and he also
leads the mission volunteers unit.
In an interview with United Methodist News Service, Dixon said the
magnitude of recent disasters — along with the generous response by
church members to fund relief efforts — has changed the way UMCOR
operates.
The changes include more participation by staff in other parts of the
Board of Global Ministries; establishing relationships with new
organizations in new areas, such as with Muslim Aid in Sri Lanka and
Indonesia; and dealing with other development issues, such as
microcredit, sanitation and health care.
The biggest task, Dixon, added, "is just preparing for the next one."
The ranks of United Methodist Volunteers in Mission are growing, and
more of those volunteers are becoming involved in disaster relief work.
At the regional level, more United Methodist conferences have disaster
coordinators, and warehouses have opened to store flood buckets, health
kits and other emergency supplies.
Individual local churches are joining forces with UMCOR as well. The
Ginghamsburg (Ohio) United Methodist Church has become partners with
UMCOR in Sudan, pledging $1 million in aid this year and $1.5 million in
2008, according to Dixon.
Nearly a decade of service
Dixon is no stranger to either UMCOR or the Board of Global
Ministries. He first joined UMCOR on July 1, 1998, the same day as his
predecessor, the Rev. Paul Dirdak. He was in charge of UMCOR's
non-governmental organization unit, which secures grants from the U.S.
and other governments and the United Nations to implement projects
assisting vulnerable people around the world.
Three years later, he took another job within the board, and during
his two-year tenure as executive director of The United Methodist
Development Fund helped expand its assets to $125 million. The fund
assists local churches to acquire proper facilities for ministry.
From Sept. 1, 2003, until his return to UMCOR last January, Dixon led
the board's evangelism and church growth unit and two years later was
given the added responsibility of overseeing mission context and
relationships and mission education.
Besides working directly with Dirdak, he has had contact over the
years with the Rev. Ken Lutgen and Norma Kehrberg, two former UMCOR
chief executives. "I see myself building on the strengths of those who
came before me," he said.
Changes at UMCOR
UMCOR has seen a number of other staff changes since the agency
responded to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States.
"We've almost re-staffed UMCOR since that point in time," Dixon said.
The agency also has rearranged how some of its units operate, such as
moving the nongovernmental unit from Washington to New York to more
fully integrate its work within the organization. "We really want people
to see every division of UMCOR as a part of UMCOR," he explained.
A North Carolina native, Dixon has a bachelor's degree in political
science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a
doctor of ministry degree from Chicago Theological Seminary. He became a
clergy member of the United Methodist North Carolina Annual (regional)
Conference in 1974, serving various churches. From 1990 to 1996, he was
director of missions, evangelism and VISION 2000 for the conference's
council on ministries.
He and his wife, Cindy Leapley of Wilson, N.C., have four adult children and two grandchildren.
*Bloom is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in New York.
News media contact: Linda Bloom, New York, (646) 369-3759 or newsdesk@umcom.org .
Audio: The Rev. Sam Dixon on:
The new level of response to big disasters
The new case management style of response
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Resources
United Methodist Committee on Relief
Board of Global Ministries |