More than 350 pastors, teachers, and staff from across the Oregon Conference met at the Columbia Riverfront Holiday Inn at Jantzen Beach, January 8-9, for the first in-person Together as One convention since 2020! Beginning nine years ago in 2015, Together as One is an annual event focused on building collaborations between local Seventh-day Adventist schools and churches in the Oregon Conference. Recognizing the need for rest and rejuvenation after several challenging years, the theme this year was “Replenish.”

Oregon Conference leadership kicked off the event with exciting news––the introduction of Ron Jacaban as Oregon Conference’s new VP for education, who started immediately! Speakers throughout Together as One included Pastor David Ferguson, lead pastor of Crosswalk Chattanooga in Tennessee, Dr. K’dee Crews, a clinical psychologist who shared the importance of emotional intelligence in spiritual leadership, Pastor Ben Lundquist who led a plenary session focused on Mike Foster’s book The 7 Primal Questions and explored how childhood trauma informs our adult behaviors, and Dustin Young from the International Center for Trauma & Care at Andrews University. Breakout sessions included a Church Growth Strategy workshop for pastors with Oregon Conference and North Pacific Union leaders, a Teen Mental Health workshop, and others that explored topics like literacy, math, and professional learning communities. Worship music was led by pastor Josh Withers and a group of local pastors each day. 

For many pastors and educators who have joined the Oregon Conference team over the past few years, this year’s Together as One convention was the first time they’ve had the opportunity to attend.

“This is my first time attending Together as One,” shared Shéila Marday, Milo Adventist Academy’s VP of finance, “What I like about this is getting the chance to know other people who work in different areas of the Oregon Conference. The breakout session that focused on teen mental health and thoughts of suicide really helped––I want to bring this knowledge back to our school and be able to better help our students.”

Michael White, pastor at Woodburn and Molalla, was also attending for the first time. “I am really enjoying Together as One,” he said. “It’s a great location and a great chance to get everybody together, but I’m really enjoying the content as well. The framework that was presented during our morning session was something I’m really looking forward to discussing with more people. I already sent it to my wife! I just really appreciate the honest look at where we are and where we can go. Yes, there are some challenges, but there’s a lot of hope and a lot of opportunities, too. I’m glad I was able to come!”

As the Oregon Conference begins its ministry through its churches, schools, and more this year we invite you to keep us in prayer as we strive to move forward…together as one!

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This year's Together as One photos (including many that haven't been posted on our Facebook page) are now available on our Flickr account. Special thanks to Michael Blackburn for capturing these moments. Together as One photo album: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjB9M6f