A refreshing COLA

MILWAUKEE — Members of the Presbytery of Milwaukee’s Committee on Local Arrangements and presbytery staff joined the Unification Commission Thursday in the Baird Center, the site of the 227^th General Assembly, to update commissioners on how preparations for the gathering, set for June 22-July 2, are proceeding.

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The Rev. Ann Gibbs, Presbyter for Ministry Vitality at the Presbytery of Milwaukee, told commissioners there are “a lot of little things about hosting that you don’t think about until you host. They’re all doable, but there’s a thousand of them.”

The hosts are working to post the liturgy online that’ll be used during worship in Milwaukee-area churches on June 28, so that Presbyterian congregations around the country can participate if they choose to.

“For me, this project has been an experience. It’s my first assembly,” said Nancy Lalla, a COLA member and retired computer programmer originally from Trinidad and Tobago. “I’ve had a million questions, but it’s been a great experience to meet people from around the presbytery.”

“It’s definitely the church coming together,” Gibbs said. “We would welcome your prayers. We have felt the support from your national team.”

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Gibbs said she appreciated receiving a manual from counterparts at the 226^th General Assembly, the Presbytery of Utah. In similar fashion, the Presbytery of Milwaukee COLA members and staff plan to work with local arrangements folks for the 228^th General Assembly, which has been announced for San Juan, Puerto Rico.

“We take hospitality seriously. We want you to have a good time,” she told commissioners, “and we want the assembly to be surrounded with prayer.”

Enterprise Risk Management

Ian Hall, president of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), A Corporation, and the Rev. Jihyun Oh, Stated Clerk of the General Assembly and Executive Director of Presbyterian Life & Witness, said they’ve been talking for the past eight months about Enterprise Risk Management, defined as a holistic business framework used to identify, assess and manage risks across an entire organization. “Our hope is by involving both [the A Corp Board and the yet-to-be-announced PL&W Board] and doing related work, this will offer clarity about responsibilities,” Oh said. “We will engage the new board in this process.”

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Hall said a 2026 goal is to “build a more holistic plan” driven by both boards. A committee of the A Corp Board currently highlights “the higher-level risks, which aren’t shared widely, and the mitigation risks currently in place,” Hall said, adding that “a good ERM document is a living document. Over time the plan changes,” and it’s helped along by subject-matter experts on the staff of the Administrative Services Group.

“It makes sense that this reporting structure become part of the new board’s work. Work is underway for our team to start working with the PL&W leadership team to create these plans,” he said, adding that it’s appropriate to talk about the need for what could be an annual joint meeting in part to look at “the different pieces that make up the plan.”

The report of the Stated Clerk/Executive Director

Oh’s report included mention of a staff table she’s meeting with regularly. The weekly Wednesday Chapel Service is now augmented by training opportunities for staff members, Oh noted.

General Assembly social witness policies can now be accessed on this landing page. A prayerbook on gun violence, “How Long, O Lord?” can be purchased here.

Oh reported on her long-term relationship with Dakota Presbytery. “Each meeting has been an important step in deepening relationship and being able to assist and support the presbytery’s named needs,” she said. “The presbytery has now asked for tangible assistance and presence at their fall meeting in Montana, which I will be working on fulfilling.”

The report of the Co-Moderators

The Rev. Tony Larson, who along with the Rev. CeCe Armstrong is Co-Moderator of the 226^th General Assembly, said between them they’ve visited 73 of the PC(USA)’s 166 presbyteries and each of its 16 synods since taking office two years ago.

The Moderators have discerned that the offering at General Assembly will support three ministries: the Young Adult Volunteer program, the Office of Public Witness for the work it’s doing to combat Christian nationalism and the Milwaukee chapter of Habitat for Humanity.

Worship

During an interactive worship service, the Rev. Dr. Felipe N. Martínez, the commission’s co-moderator, asked those present to note a statement of praise on one card and something they’ve learned about the PC(USA) through their work and something they’re hopeful for on another card.

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The statements of praise included a reminder that God remained with commissioners even through difficult times, thanksgiving for being near the end of a long journey, for lasting friendships because “no one else understands what it has taken to achieve this result,” and for the opportunity to serve God, “who is always faithful.”

Among what they’ve learned are “that our decisions deeply affect one another,” that “at our best we are deeply relational,” that the Church “is big and messy and challenging at times like a family, which is what it is,” and that “the breadth and depth of the PC(USA) is so much bigger than we knew.”

Among people’s hopes were for “investment in young adult faith and leadership development,” that the Holy Spirit “continues to fire our imaginations,” for “a long-term sustainable mission and ministry,” and that “we would welcome and embrace God’s future for us and for the world.”

Two scripture passages — Exodus 18:13-23, the account of how judges were appointed, and Mark 6:7-13, Jesus sending the apostles out in pairs — were read aloud, both from the Contemporary English Version of the Bible.

“Today’s stories are about the logistics of committed partners,” Martínez said. “I picture the Bible as a love story between God and humans. It has its ups and downs, rejection and reconciliation — and endless hope for the future.”