Ministers and wives are already arriving here in Cincinnati for the General Conference of Elders (GCE) meetings, some of which are slated to begin tomorrow. We expect about 300 men and women to come. Meetings begin Friday morning with our international ministry followed by a session with our new trainees and their mentor pastors to discuss how the first year of our new venture in ministerial development is progressing. Join us for Sabbath services on May 14 at 2 PM Eastern via the LIVE Sabbath webcast.

Esther Salcedo, the beloved wife of elder Dan Salcedo, died Tuesday, May 10th. I want to share comments from our two pastors in Southern California:

From the Seiglies: "Esther Salcedo died peacefully in her home on Tuesday evening. We were with her that day, as well as other family members. The date of the funeral will be Sunday, May 22, at the Fairhaven Memorial Park and Mortuary, at 1702 Fairhaven Ave in Santa Ana at 1:00 PM in the large Waverley Chapel.

"Esther was an outstanding example of a woman in Christ and an elder's wife. She and Dan were celebrating their 51st year in the Church. Esther will be sorely missed, but she has finished running the race of faith and is now resting in Christ, awaiting that crown of glory when Jesus returns."

From the Webbers: "We have known and served alongside the Salcedos for many decades. They were a wonderful couple and Esther was a remarkable lady of wit, charm, and steadfast resolve towards God and love for His spiritual family here below. The Psalms remind us: "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints" (Psalms. 116:15). Let's remember the Salcedo family in prayer and support at this humanly challenging time of transition of life's chapters."

Cards can be sent to:
Dan Salcedo
117 Lohrum Lane
Anaheim, CA 92807

Also, Don Waterhouse, long-time elder that we have known through the years, died this past week.

His son, elder Roy Waterhouse of our congregation in Columbus, Ohio, writes:

"Sadly I need to share that my dad, Don Waterhouse, died this week from a heart attack. He was the one God used to bring me to a relationship with God and with His Church. He was on a trip to Washington, DC, with friends and had a wonderful day sight-seeing and a nice dinner when he went back to the hotel having some chest pain. Shortly after, he went unconscious and passed away. He had no pain or suffering, for which we are very thankful. He was a wonderful father who taught me many good lessons. He will be greatly missed."

And, here is a new project: we would like our brethren to help us bring more attention to the work of the Church. At the GCE meeting we are distributing Beyond Today car-window static-clings that can easily be put onto everyone's vehicles. We are asking that all pastors and elders return home with enough clings for everyone in their congregation. If your pastor is not at the meeting this year, we will make arrangements for the clings to be shipped to your church areas.

If people ask you about Beyond Today after seeing the logo on your vehicle, you can then tell them about our website. If a person were to query a search engine on just the words "Beyond Today" they will come front and center to what the United Church of God is doing. This is one way that we can be personally involved in making known what we are doing.

Please pray for a fruitful conference that will bring us all together to share useful knowledge and discussion that will help all of us serve our Church more effectively.