Meet those who represent you
These elected representatives vote on your behalf and make decisions for the church. The General Conference is the only body that can officially speak on behalf of the church.
These delegates were elected at the 2019 Annual Conference. The first elected delegates became the chairpersons of the delegation.
About the delegation
The 2024 General Conference will have 862 delegates overall, equally split between clergy and laity. Of the 2024 delegates, 55.9% will be from the U.S., 32% from Africa, 6% from the Philippines, 4.6% from Europe and the remainder from concordat churches that have close ties to The United Methodist Church.
The Michigan Delegation to the 2024 General Conference was elected at the 2019 Annual Conference. It is comprised of 4 clergy and 4 laity. An additional 4 clergy and 4 laity are elected to serve as alternates to General Conference and the North Central Jurisdictional Conference. Typically, four more persons (2 clergy and 2 laity) typically serve as alternate delegates to the Jurisdictional Conference but current rules prevent filling those positions.
MICHIGAN GENERAL CONFERENCE DELEGATION
Laura Witkowski
Chairperson
LAITY DELEGATE
Member of Aldersgate UMC and Team Lead, Michigan Conference Associate Director for Connectional Ministries
Grand Rapids
Paul Perez
Chairperson
CLERGY DELEGATE
Detroit Central United Methodist Church
Detroit
Diane Brown
LAITY DELEGATE
Member of Chelsea First UMC and NCJ Secretary
Chelsea
Joy Barrett
CLERGY DELEGATE
Chelsea First UMC and Michigan Annual Conference Secretary
Chelsea
Jennifer Peters
LAITY DELEGATE
Member of Court Street United Methodist Church
Flint
Megan Walther
CLERGY DELEGATE
Clarkston United Methodist Church
Clarkston
Nichea Ver Veer Guy
LAITY DELEGATE
Member of Grand Rapids Trinity Church
Grand Rapids
Charles Boayue
CLERGY DELEGATE
Birmingham United Methodist Church
Birmingham
How can I contact the delegation?
Send your comments or questions to [email protected]
The delegation is hosting an in-person listening session on Saturday, March 16, 2024, from 10:30 AM to Noon ET at First United Methodist Church of Cadillac. Learn More
NORTH CENTRAL JURISDICTIONAL CONFERENCE DELEGATION
Ruby Anderson
LAITY DELEGATE AND GC ALTERNATE
Member of Scott Memorial UMC
Detroit
Joel Fitzgerald
CLERGY DELEGATE AND GC ALTERNATE
Albion First and Lion Lake United Methodist Churches
Albion
Hoon-Yung Hopgood
LAITY DELEGATE AND GC ALTERNATE
Member of Richmond FUMC
Chesterfield
Brad Bartlemay
CLERGY DELEGATE AND GC ALTERNATE
Retired Elder - Special Assistant to the Bishop
Holland
Ruth Sutton
LAITY DELEGATE AND GC ALTERNATE
Member of Sanford United Methodist Church
Sanford
Christina Wright
CLERGY DELEGATE AND GC ALTERNATE
Royal Oak First UMC and Associate Director of Spiritual Care at Michigan Medicine (University of Michigan hospitals)
Royal Oak
Gordon Grigg III
LAITY ALTERNATE
Member of Ishpeming Wesley United Methodist Church
Ishpeming
Sherri Swanson
CLERGY ALTERNATE
Georgetown United Methodist Church
Jenison