John Stoltzfus, Conference Youth Pastor and Campus Pastor for Dock Mennonite Academy, announced his resignation from both roles effective July 31. John has served in this capacity for six and a half years in a joint appointment between the school and both Franconia and Eastern District Conferences. He and his wife Paula, along with their children, will relocate later this summer to Harrisonburg, Virginia, where Paula will join the pastoral team of Park View Mennonite Church.
John’s steady work in accompaniment with our Conference youth pastors and acumen in working with the changing context of youth ministry has been key in the ongoing work of Anabaptist faith formation across the generations. John’s depth of commitment to pastoral presence, thoughtful engagement in our congregations and commitment to bridging the life of our Conference and Dock Mennonite Academy have helped to cultivate healthy relationships and honest open-handed collaboration.
John was the second person to serve in this joint appointment. Both the Conference and Dock Mennonite Academy anticipate interim appointments for the upcoming school year for campus ministry and conference ministry roles respectively. A Conference Youth Ministry Task Force report commissioned by the Franconia Conference Board is expected to shape the future trajectory for the role and responsibilities when released later this summer.
John wrote in his resignation letter, “This announcement is not an easy one to make as I have deeply appreciated the life and work of both the conference and school environment. It has not been without its challenges but I am so grateful for the privilege of working with a wonderful group of colleagues and friends. I have learned much in this role and I will take with me significant insights and skills learned here. I am confident of the good work that will continue here and of the way God’s Spirit will continue to raise up new leaders and empower you and the broader community for the work God has called us to do.”
The Assembly was centered on Psalm 133:1,3b, “How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity! For there the Lord bestows his blessing, even life forevermore.” The theme was Life Together, as the focus of the Assembly was that while these two conference may have split 170 years ago, they continue to do life together. A large part of the Assembly business this year was to look at whether these conferences would take the next step in their relationship, to look even more intentionally at reconciliation and what it would look like if they were to merge into one conference.
The weekend began with Friday night worship led by Tami Good of Swamp Mennonite Church, which included a worship team of folks whose first languages were Indonesian, Spanish and English and who came from congregations in South Philadelphia, New Jersey, and Upper Bucks and Montgomery Counties. The opening prayer was given in Indonesian, Spanish, English and even Pennsylvania Dutch. Videos were shown that highlighted Souderton Mennonite Church’s 
The congregations in the Los Angeles area consist of Jemaat Kristen Indonesia Anugerah (JKIA) pastored by Virgo Handoyo, Indonesian Community Christian Fellowship pastored by Makmur Halim, and International Worship Church pastored by Buddy Hannarto. All three have had relationships with Franconia Conference for over a decade. The four congregations’ members are largely from Indonesia and joined with Franconia Conference pastors Aldo Siahaan of Philadelphia Praise Center and Beny Krisbianto of Nations Worship Center to share in a song. To learn more about these congregations check out their 
The joint Franconia and Eastern District Conference Saturday worship was a time of song, 
The core recommendation from the team is that Eastern District and Franconia Conference “enter a formal engagement process for the purposes of healing and reconciliation and with the intention of becoming a single, unified conference by November 2019.” In order to do this, the team recommended the forming of two teams: one to work intentionally at addressing the “spiritual and emotional components of reconciliation,” known as the “Healing and Reconciliation Team”, and the other being the “Identity Development and Structural Implementation Team,” tasked with managing “the process of forming a single unified conference, with particular attention to the structure, staffing, financial, and cultural realities of creating a single conference from the two existing conferences.”
After a short break, the conferences gathered in separate rooms where their delegates recorded on flip chart paper their largest affirmations and concerns regarding moving forward with the recommendations. Present were David Brubaker and Roxy Allen Kioko, consultants from Eastern Mennonite University who had been hired in 2016 and were working with the Exploring Reconciliation Reference Team. Following this and some open microphone time for questions and answers, the delegates voted. With a 90% affirmation from Franconia Conference and a 99% affirmation from Eastern District Conference, both agreed to move forward with working at reconciliation and exploring more formally what a merged conference will look like.
One of the keys to developing an enduring faith in our youth is intergenerational relationships in the church. Part of the purpose of this annual event is to give our youth just that: a positive and memorable experience relating to other adults and youth in the broader church. Our youth need to know that they are valued and loved for who they are and that their questions and contributions matter in the life of the church.
Caleb Benner and Emily Grimes, both teachers at Dock Mennonite Academy, along with a band of high school students led a time of engaging worship. Juan Marrero, pastor at Christ Centered Church and director of Crossroads Community Center, challenged the youth to be doers of God’s word. He used the illustration of an athlete who looks at film to make adjustments to their game. So, too, we as Christians need to have a mirror put to our lives so that we can be more faithful to the way of Christ.
In addition to getting to answer random fun questions, another perk of being a Junior High youth sponsor is the freedom to experiment with crazy games. A popular new game introduced this year was Bubble Soccer. Picture giant plastic bubbles with legs bouncing off each other and rolling around!