January 16-18, Turner, Oregon hosted the annual Latino-Hispanic Ministries annual RED Conference at Aldersgate Camps & Retreats. RED—Redeeming, Equipping, and Discipling—is a significant annual event, this year bringing together more than 300 mission-driven leaders from across the conference, including pastors and board members from all Hispanic churches within the Oregon Conference.

RED Conference takes place every year during the third week of January, serving as a cornerstone event for Hispanic pastoral and lay leadership in the Oregon Conference. This year’s focus strengthened and complemented the 2025 theme, which emphasized practical evangelism, faithful worship attendance, Christian stewardship, and continuous lay training. United by a shared calling, participants this year dedicated the weekend to spiritual renewal, leadership development, and strategic planning, under the theme “I Remain Where I Belong.”

As is tradition each year, the retreat began with a communion service, reminding leaders that effective leadership must be rooted in a servant’s heart. Through this sacred moment, participants reaffirmed their commitment to model the servant leadership of Jesus Christ, recognizing that genuine influence flows from humility, service, and love for others.

The primary objective of the RED 2026 retreat was to recognize and address the ongoing challenge of low retention among new church members. While many congregations are experiencing evangelistic growth, sustaining long-term engagement remains a pressing concern. Guided by this reality, church boards and pastors worked collaboratively to design church-wide strategies that reflect their unique cultural and congregational contexts.

Throughout the weekend, leaders benefited from presentations by specialists in key areas such as positive relationship building, a biblical theology of retention, practical evangelism, youth integration, intentional investment in children’s care, and the active involvement of the entire congregation in ministry. These sessions emphasized that retention is not the responsibility of a single ministry or leader, but a collective effort requiring intentional participation from the whole church. A central highlight of the weekend was the Sabbath keynote message, delivered by Oregon Conference President Dr. John McVay, who was accompanied by his wife, Pam. His message challenged leaders to cultivate churches where people are not only welcomed, but deeply rooted, spiritually nurtured, and meaningfully connected to the life of the congregation.

Throughout 2025, the Spirit of God was powerfully at work among Hispanic churches, bringing evangelistic and financial growth and strengthening faith communities. RED 2026 affirmed this movement and equipped leaders to continue building churches where people truly remain where they belong.

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