FUNCTIONAL TEAMS/COMMITTEES

1.     Gift Discernment Team.  This team identifies and recommends persons to the Board of Directors to fill elected positions which need to be affirmed by the delegates at the annual Member Meeting.  The team consists of the Moderator, Moderator Elect, Executive Conference Minister and two members elected by the delegates.  This Team is also a resource to identify persons to fill appointed positions in PNMC.

2.     Pastoral Leadership Team.  This team assists congregations in issues relating to pastoral leadership, including pastoral searches, evaluation of candidates, and calls to ministry.  This team grants credentials for ministry, and manages issues of discipline of persons credentialed for ministry, including revocation or non-renewal of licenses and ordinations.  This team consists of four pastors and one lay member appointed by the Gift Discernment Team.  The Executive Conference Minister and any other Conference Ministers and/or District Pastors are non-voting members of this team.  The team determines its own leadership, and is accountable to the Executive Conference Minister.

3.     Finance Team.  This team supports the Board of Directors, Executive Conference Minister and Treasurer in providing oversight to and carrying out the financial affairs of PNMC.  It ensures that policies established by the Board pertaining to the finances and assets of PNMC are properly followed and carried out, including overseeing the audit function.  The team recommends investment and monetary management actions to, and carries out decisions of, the Board of Directors.  It promotes stewardship among PNMC congregations and members.  The team consists of the PNMC Treasurer and two to three additional persons with financial or related gifts and expertise appointed by the Gift Discernment Team.  The Finance Team Chairperson (a member other than the Treasurer) is accountable to the Executive Conference Minister.

4.     Theological Education & Pastoral Development Team.  This team provides and promotes theological education across PNMC, develops a culture of call, strengthens Anabaptist identities in member congregations, and provides opportunities for personal growth and pastoral development to pastors and other credentialed persons.  The team consists of two PNMC pastors and two laypersons appointed by the Gift Discernment Team.  The team determines its own leadership, and is accountable to the Executive Conference Minister.

5.     In addition to the teams identified above, the Board may from time to time appoint such standing and special teams or committees as may be necessary and advisable to carry out the work of the administration of PNMC.

CONFERENCE COMMUNICATION COUNCIL

1.     Conference Communication Council.  A Conference Communication Council shall be organized to serve PNMC as follows:

a.   Serve as a regular forum for communication, discerning and advising the Board, the Member Congregations and their delegates and PNMC on issues confronting each of them relative to faith and life.

b.   Engage and promote dialogue between congregations, CIHAN and Mennonite-related organizations within the geographic area of the conference.

c.   Voice collective aspirations and concerns to conference leadership.

d.   Provide opportunity for communication between and among PNMC Board and staff, and teams and committees.

e.   Provide counsel to the Board on the admission or termination of a Member Congregation of PNMC.

2.     Membership.  The membership of the Conference Communication Council shall be comprised as follows:

a.     PNMC Board of Directors

b.     Executive Conference Minister

c.     Conference Ministers and/or District Pastors

d.     Committee/Team Chairs

e.     One lay member from each Member Congregation (preferably a delegate)

f.    One pastor from each Member Congregation (or additional lay member if no pastor is available)

g.   Congregations are encouraged to consider gender/age/racial/ethnic diversity in appointing their Communication Council members.

h.   Up to two (2) representatives appointed by each of the related organizations of PNMC, as determined by the Board from time to time.

i.    All designees to the Conference Communication Council shall be members in good standing of a Member Congregation of PNMC.

3.              Meetings.

a.   The Executive Conference Minister of PNMC shall preside at all meetings of the Conference Communication Council.  If the Executive Conference Minister is unavailable then the leadership shall be provided by such other person as the Conference Communication Council may determine from time to time.

b.   Regular meetings of the Conference Communication Council shall be held at least once a year and/or at such other times as determined by the Conference Communication Council.

c.   The Conference Communication Council may be called for regular meetings by the Executive Conference Minister on thirty (30) days notice to each member, either personally by U.S. mail, email, or other electronic communication.  Addresses for notice shall be those last on file with the Executive Conference Minister.  The Executive Conference Minister may call special meetings in a like manner on like notice, and also by written request of a majority of the members of the Conference Communication Council.

PASSION-BASED MINISTRIES

1.     Passion-Based Ministries.  PNMC strives to encourage communication across congregations, which will inspire higher levels of collaborative mission activities.  Many of these initiatives will develop organically and informally, without official recognition, accountability or financial support from PNMC.  These efforts are dynamic and will change over time.  Some of them may seek additional conference recognition and/or support.  Such ministries may be recognized by the Board of Directors pursuant to procedures and criteria established by the Board, or for long-term ministries, by delegate action based on recommendation by the Board.  These ministries, once recognized, would communicate primarily with the Executive Conference Minister.  To pursue funding from PNMC they would collaborate with the Executive Conference Minister on the objectives of the ministry, and would make a proposal to the Finance Team to pursue those objectives.

CONSTITUENCY GROUPS

Pacific Northwest Mennonite Conference recognizes the organization of ethnic groups represented among the member congregations of PNMC (Hispanic, Congolese, etc) as CONSTITUENCY GROUPS with the goal of facilitating PNMC´s mission among the churches of those cultural communities.

1.     Vision:  Encourage and strengthen a culturally rooted expression of the Gospel in each ethnic community, according to PNMC´s mission (Article II.3 of PNMC bylaws and Article III of CIHAN´s bylaws).

2.     Purposes:

a.     Promote the spirit of community among their congregations.

b.     Encourage companionship among pastors and local leaders.

c.     Move forward multicultural ties in PNMC.

d.     Promote the participation of ethnic congregations in PNMC yearly conference.

e.     Stimulate the development and participation of ethnic leadership at conference level.

f.      Encourage the planting of new ethnic congregations.

3.     Composition: PNMC can recognize as a CONSTITUENCY GROUP the organization of three or more member congregations of an ethnic or racial group.

4.     Organization:  Each ethnic community may organize its CONSTITUENCY GROUP according to its cultural context, observing the norms of faith and practice expressed in “A Mennonite Polity for Ministerial Leadership”.    Suggested minimum is a board composed of Moderator, moderator elect, secretary and treasurer, with the inclusion of PNMC Executive  Conference Minister and District Pastor as ex-oficio members.  The officers of the Constituency Group will be named by the ethnic churches that are organizing.   (Currently the Council of Hispanic Anabaptist Churches of the Northwest CIHAN is the only constituency group organized within PNMC but the hope is that others can follow a similar process).

5.     Representation: Following PNMC´s commitment to cultural diversity in the representatives in its functional structure (Article V.2.d) each CONSTITUENCY GROUP may recommend persons from their ethnic community to serve in PNMC positions.   In this case, the ethnic persons affirmed by PNMC for leadership positions should remember that they will be working for the good of the whole conference and not just representing their ethnic group.

6.     Lines of Responsibility:  The leaders of each CONSTITUENCY GROUP are responsible for their administration primarily to the ethnic congregations that called them to serve, and in second place, to PNMC board on any matter in which they have agreed to work together with the conference.

7.     Lines of Communication: The leaders of each constituency group will communicate with the PNMC Board through PNMC´s Executive Conference Minister.