Conference-Wide Leadership Training

for Lay Leaders, Trustees, Finance, Nominations, and S/PPRC

Join us for one of five virtual workshops designed to equip you to serve in your local church as Lay Leader or on the Finance, Trustees, Nominations, or Staff/Pastor Parish Relations Committee.

Whether you are starting a new leadership role, or have been serving in church leadership for years, we hope this model of leadership training will prepare you for your much-needed ministry. Laity and clergy in partnership with one another is the key to a church’s success in making disciples.

How It Works

We will host five Zoom meetings broken down into two sessions, and registrants can choose the topic that they need. If you need more than one training, register for the training(s) you would like to attend live. If you are interested in more than one topic in a session, no need to worry. We will send the recording links for all the sessions about a week after the event.

Who Can Register?

Anyone! We send invitations to the Lay Leader and the chair of each committee: Finance, Trustees, Nominations, and S/PPRC. However, we heartily recommend that all committee members attend the training. It is helpful when all committee members receive the same instruction. In addition, anyone who wants to learn more about how these committees work is more than welcome to join.

About the Presenters

Lay Leader, led by John Hall

John Hall was elected Conference Lay Leader of the North Carolina Conference in June 2020 and previously served as the Conference Director of Lay Servant Ministries. He has been an active member of the laity within the NC Conference for many years, including serving as a district president of United Methodist Men and participating in the Leadership Fellows program in 2013-2014 as the lay partner from Aldersgate UMC in Durham, where he continues to serve as a lay minister with a focus on church sound and media. John enjoyed a 23 year career as a R&D development engineer with Hewlett Packard company, retiring in 2006. He then joined SAS as a technical trainer with a focus on computer architecture, retiring in 2018. John is married to his wife Holly and has two children and one amazing grandson.

S/PPRC, led by Jon Strother

Jon Strother partners with local church membership and pastors to serve as district superintendent of the Sound District. Since answering his call to ministry, he has been in pastoral leadership since 1982 and has served all shapes, sizes, and expressions of church, both in North Carolina and around the world. He enjoyed serving small town and county seat churches, large congregations, and he planted a church through New Faith Communities. He is married to Cathy Thompson, who practices law, and they call Greenville, NC home

Nominations, led by Paul Lee

“Paul” Woo-il Lee is the Assistant Conference Secretary and Pastor at Raleigh First Korean United Methodist Church located in Garner, NC. He also serves as the Vice Chair for the Board of Trustees of The United Methodist Retirement Homes, Inc; as a board member of The United Methodist Retirement Homes Foundation, Inc., the Board of Directors of The Intentional Growth Center, Lake Junaluska, NC, and of North Carolina Annual Conference Board of Institutions, Inc. He previously served the Northampton Charge (Jackson) and Bethel UMC (Goldsboro). He holds degrees from University of Nebraska – Kearney (B.A. in Communications and Sociology), Duke Divinity School (M.Div.), and North Carolina Central University School of Law (Juris Doctor). He is the principal attorney at Paul Lee Law Firm, PLLC, specializing in real estate, business law, and personal injuries. He is married to Gina Choe with four children: Christina, Jeremiah, Joshua, and Joseph.

Finance, led by Christine Dodson

Christine Dodson is the Conference Treasurer and Benefits Officer. She has been with the Conference for over 20 years and provides leadership for the overall financial and administrative ministry of the Conference. Christine is a lay member of Mt. Moriah UMC in the Harbor District where she serves as Finance Committee Chairperson. She also serves the wider denomination as Vice-Chairperson of the General Council on Finance and Administration. Christine is a CPA and received her Doctorate in Business Administration, focused on leadership. Christine is married with one child in college and two in high school.

Trustees, led by Gray Southern

Gray Southern is the Conference Secretary and Assistant to the Bishop. He previously served the Capital District; The Apex UMC Family; the former Durham District; St. James Church (Greenville); Trinity Church (Durham); West Nash (Wilson); Oriental; and St. Paul (Goldsboro). Gray grew up in Smithfield, NC, and graduated from Smithfield-Selma Sr. High School. He also holds degrees from UNC-Chapel Hill, Yale Divinity School, and Columbia Theological Seminary. Gray was a part of The Lily Endowment’s Pastor-Theologian Program which was also a formative part of his life. He was a member of General and Jurisdictional Conferences in 2008, 2012, 2016/2019. Gray and his wife Susan, a former public school teacher, have two children: Kirk (married to Giselle) and Mary-Gray.