The ICOC Cooperation Churches selected 11 chairpersons of various teams to serve our incredible group of over 530 churches in 140 countries. One of the service teams serving is focused on advancing the women’s ministry. Here is a recent update including an introduction to some of the Women’s Service Team members.
Walking on the Edge: 2008 International Leadership Conference Women’s Program
The women’s program at the ILC in Kiev was one of the most inspiring and encouraging programs to date. Lena Wooten from Kiev, Ukraine, spoke in her native language about Walking on the Edge as they bring the gospel to that great city; and Tammy Fleming from Birmingham, England , translated for her. They inspired us with a time of worship and powerful stories of how God has worked through Lena and so many sisters in the Kiev church. Vania Salim from Jakarta, Indonesia , shared about the many times God has answered her prayers for herself and the Jakarta church and challenged us to never stop praying. Irene Renton from Johannesburg, South Africa , preached a powerful lesson about Living on the Edge. She shared about the incredible challenges of living in Johannesburg, and her spiritual perspective and dependence on God was an upward call for all of us. Gloria Baird from Los Angeles, CA, and Elizabeth Sinn from Hong Kong, China , challenged us all to allow God to fill us up and use us as He sees fit. Their lives and words inspired us to go To the Edge and Beyond with God.
New Women Today website
Jeanie Shaw of Boston, Massachusetts and Nadine Templer of New Dehli, India are the Editors for our new Women Today site on DisciplesToday.org. Click here to see Women Today and to introduce you to Jeanie, Nadine and the other wonderful women editors.
2009 International Leadership Conference Women’s Program
This year Debbie Cook joined our team to help us plan the women’s program for the 2009 International Leadership Conference . Debbie and the women in Denver are looking forward to many women coming to Denver this year. Debbie currently serves as a Women’s Ministry Leader, working with the youth and family ministry of the Denver Church of Christ. She was converted over 20 years ago as a campus student at the University of Colorado-Boulder. Debbie has a bachelor’s degree in English and is a registered nurse as well. She and her husband Wade have been married for almost 17 years and have had the privilege of being in the full time ministry for 16 years! She is the mother of three beautiful daughters McKenzie 12, Chandler 9, and Alexis 8. They enjoy canoeing, hiking and skiing/sledding in Breckenridge and the great Colorado outdoors.
Anne Brigitte Taliaferro – San Antonio, Texas
Anne-Brigitte has been married to Mike Taliaferro for 27 wonderful and adventure-filled years. They have three sons – Matthew (20), Nathan (18) and Joshua (16). She loves the “wonderful world of boys” she lives in and wouldn’t have it any other way. After 17 years of working outside the U.S. in Brazil and different parts of Africa, they now work with the Mission Point Christian Church in San Antonio, Texas, USA. She considers it a gift from God to have worked with women all over the world and is grateful that God still wants to use her.
Gloria Baird – Los Angeles, California
Gloria Baird is a women’s ministry leader in the Los Angeles Church of Christ. Along with her husband, Al who is an elder in the West Region of the LA Church, she has also served in the ministry in Boston and helped to establish churches in the Middle East. Al and Gloria have recently celebrated their 47th anniversary and love to share the lessons that God has taught them through their years of marriage. God has blessed them with three wonderful daughters, who are all disciples, three best-friend son-in-laws – who lead their families in a powerful, godly way – and eight grandchildren (six girls and, finally, two boys). Their oldest granddaughter, Kiara, 14, who lives in New Delhi, India was baptized last year.
Laura Garcia – Los Angeles, California
Laura Garcia was baptized on May 16, 1984 in the campus ministry in Boston, Massachusetts. This year she will have been a Christian for 25 years. She studied Psychology and Sociology at the University of Massachusetts. She has been married to Peter Garcia for 20 years and they have 2 wonderful children, Lauren (15) and Nick (13). Together, she and Peter have built churches in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Rio de Janiero, Brazil, Bogota, Columbia and Mexico City, Mexico. After working for 10 years outside the U.S., they returned to serve in the churches in LA and Miami. Presently, they are serving in the LA East Region, oversee the teen ministry in the LA Church and are helping to grow the churches in Mexico and Central America.
In our future reports we will continue to share mini-biographies about our committee members. We will also provide reports from our committee members about exciting things happening in their parts of the world.
Thank you for your continued prayers for us and for your tireless work for our Lord.
Robin Williams, Chairwoman
Women’s Service Team
