|
January
2004
BCA News
Dishin'
with Doug
Position
Available
Got
news to share?
Dishin’
with Doug
2003-2004
BCA President
I
didn't have the privilege of knowing Albert McClellan, who died on January 9 at
the age of 91. But as one of BPRA’s 24 charter members, he was someone to
whom we owe a debt of gratitude for the organization we enjoy today. During his
fifty years of ministry, McClellan distinguished himself as a pastor, editor,
author, communicator and historian. For more than 30 of those years, he served
faithfully as a Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee staff member
with various public relations and program planning responsibilities. It is
fitting that one of BCA’s highest honors, an annual award given for
significant achievement in print media and design, is named for Albert
McClellan, for he set an example of excellence and professionalism worth
following today.
McClellan
served as BPRA’s fifth president. In fact, forty-five years ago this month,
he presided over the annual workshop, which took place at the Baptist Sunday
School Board in Nashville. Of his year of service to our association, he wrote,
“I was more an editor than a public relations specialist, though I was also
SBC press representative and director of Baptist Press. That the association
would turn to one not fully in PR shows the breadth of its vision.” He would
be glad to know that the breadth of our association continues to grow, as we
embrace new members, new technology, and new ways of telling the old, old
story.
This
April, when we gather to celebrate our 50th anniversary, McClellan
will be among the “great cloud of witnesses” the writer of Hebrews tells us
about, encouraging us to run the race set before us with perseverance. He has
joined a host of others who spent their careers communicating the Word and who
now are in the presence of the Word Himself, Jesus Christ. At our workshop,
we’ll have the opportunity to honor the legacy of those who have gone on
before us, while also continuing the legacy-building process for Baptist
communicators perhaps not even born yet.
If
you haven’t made your plans to be in St. Louis April 15-17 for BCA’s 50th
Anniversary Workshop, I encourage you to do so. You’ll find a wealth of
workshop information in this newsletter, plus you can visit www.baptistcommunicators.org
and follow the workshop links. Hope to see you in St. Louis!
Doug
Rogers is Communications Coordinator for the Alabama Baptist State Board of
Missions and has been a member of BCA since 1987. Contact him at drogers@alsbom.org.
Come
Experience the “Spirit of St. Louis”
Join
us on April 15-17, 2004, in St. Louis as we revisit the history of our
organization and take advantage of all that St. Louis has to offer. The
workshop theme "Spirit of St. Louis," will celebrate the
association's 50th anniversary right where it all began in 1954. The Westin-St.
Louis http://www.westin.com/stlouis will serve
as the conference hotel. For reservations call 1-800-Westin-1, or call direct,
1-314-552-5806, mention BCA to get the room rate of $119 Single/Double. The
workshop is an opportunity to learn from fellow members, share ideas, attend
the annual awards ceremony, and have fun afterwards with free-time to enjoy all
the culture St. Louis has to offer! Plus, it's a great place to adopt mentors,
make contacts, and meet new friends. Visit the BCA web site at http://www.baptistcommunicators.org/workshop/workshop04.htm
to see a preliminary schedule.
Apply
Now for Professional Scholarship
BCA
members have the opportunity to attend this year’s workshop in St. Louis for
FREE! – all you need to do is fill out a scholarship application. The two
professional scholarships are designed to cover the cost of the conference
registration and lodging. The individual’s institution or agency is expected
to pay travel expenses and all other related expenses. The deadline to submit a
scholarship application is Friday, January 30. Read more about the scholarship
guidelines and fill out an application online at http://www.baptistcommunicators.org/scholars/scholar_ap.htm.
Mission
St. Louis – The Write Stuff
How
would you like to use your God-given communication skills in a mission
opportunity? The East St. Louis Activity Center has a place for you. On April
17, during this year’s BCA workshop, we’ll join Chet Cantrell and his staff
to help students with a variety of writing projects. Some children will be
writing tribute letters to significant adults in their lives and others will be
looking for help with day-to-day written communication. What better way to
commemorate the 50th anniversary of BCA than by passing on the heritage of
quality communication in helping others?
Your
skills, in virtually any area, will be put to great use with students who might
not otherwise encounter a professional communicator. We need you. And you'll
have the opportunity to share how God has impacted your life and uniquely
equipped you to share His good news in an unusual way. The East St. Louis
Activity Center is just across the river from the workshop hotel. More details
will be coming soon, but if you would like to participate in this experience,
please reply to Joe Conway at jconway@namb.net.
BCA
Officer Nominations Being Accepted
Candidates
for the Baptist Communicators Association 2004-05 slate of officers are now
being accepted. Positions to be filled for 2004-05 are: president-elect,
program vice president-elect, membership vice president, communications vice
president, treasurer, awards chairman, historian, mission vice president and
professional development coordinator. Officers will be elected at the 2004
workshop. If you would like to nominate someone to serve as a BCA officer or
would like to be considered for a position, call Tim Yarbrough, nominating
committee chair, at (770) 410-6207, or email him at tyarbrough@namb.net.
For detailed information about each position, please visit www.baptistcommunicators.org.
Awards
Competition Deadline Nears
Entry
deadline for BCA's Wilmer C. Fields Awards Competition is February 2, 2004.
Start now reviewing your work from 2003 and pick out several of your best to
submit. The competition “Call to Entries” brochure was mailed to members in
December. If you didn’t receive one contact Keith Beene in the BCA office at
(615) 904-0152 or at bca.office@comcast.net.
Offering
Roadmaps to More Effective Service
Where
do you want to be in five years, if the Lord tarries? BCA wants to support the
call of the Lord in your life. How? Communicate your educational and vocational
requirements to your BCA Professional Development Officer. Remember, there are
300+ BCA members who could be willing to mentor you, or point you to resources
that have blessed them. This is not about bragging or about trying to get ahead
for advancement's sake. It's about service to God that is exemplary in every
aspect. Our BCA community is not only a benefit of membership, but it is a
responsibility for participation. If you have a developmental need, let Mark
Snowden, professional development officer, know about it. Contact Mark at msnowden@imb.org.
Let's see what we can do together. In the meantime, check out http://www.baptistcommunicators.org/prodev.htm.
Grapevine
STEPHANIE
DELGADO is working as a graphic artist at Digital Ink in Richmond, Va.
KELLY
DURHAM, graphic editor at The Christian Index in Georgia, gave birth
to a son named Brayden Michael on November 3. Brayden weighed 6 lbs. 12 oz.,
and measured 19 inches.
Charter
Member Albert McClellan Dies
Albert
McClellan, a charter member of the Baptist Public Relations Association, now
BCA, died in Nashville, Tenn., Jan. 9 after a long illness. He was 91. He
served as the Southern Baptist Convention’s public relations director from
1949 to 1959 and as its leader of program planning from 1959 to 1981. McClellan
had a hand in the formation of the committee that drafted the SBC's 1963
Baptist Faith and Message statement of beliefs and he was one of the 20-plus
members of the SBC Peace Committee during the mid-1980s. Prior to joining the
Executive Committee, McClellan was editor of the Baptist
Messenger, newspaper of the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma, from
1945 to 1949. McClellan served as BPRA’s president in 1958-1959 and the top
award for graphic design in the association’s annual awards competition is
named in his honor. He is survived by two sons, Alan of Nashville and Renick of
Chicago, and four grandchildren. His wife, Mabel, preceded him in death in
2000.
New
Members
CHARLES
ATKINS is the advertising manager at the Baptist
Messenger in Oklahoma City. catkins@okbaptist.net
CAROLE
HICKS serves as the media coordinator
for Westwood Baptist Church in Cleveland, Tenn. chicks@westwood.org
JULIE
ROBERTS works as associate director of
Communications at Kentucky Baptist Homes for Children. jroberts@kbhc.org
GRACE
THORNTON is the web manager for
The Alabama Baptist. gthornton@thealabamabaptist.org
ANTHONY
WADE is the assistant editor of The
Alabama Baptist. awade@thealabamabaptist.org
SONDRA
WASHINGTON works as a correspondent for The
Alabama Baptist. bhamfreelancer@bellsouth.net
Position
Available
Director
of University Promotional Strategies, Union University.
Responsibilities
include writing copy for university publications, as well as marketing all
academic units, special events and the university in general to local, regional
and national audiences. Will also direct a comprehensive advertising plan and
oversee production and placement of advertisements. Successful candidate will
have previous experience with similar
responsibilities, have good writing skills and hold a bachelor's degree from an
accredited institution. Union University is affiliated with the Tennessee
Baptist Convention and is ranked as a top tier institution in U.S. News & World Report. Send a letter of application and
resume to Dr. Kathie Chute, Associate VP for University Relations and
Enrollment Services, Union University, 1050 Union University Drive, Jackson, TN
38305.
GOT NEWS TO SHARE?
Send items for the BCA newsletter to Keith Beene at bca.office@comcast.net.
Back
to top
|
