Brenda Dickerson – Kansas City, Missouri … Central States Conference delegates met on August 3 during a regularly scheduled session for the purpose of electing leadership, receiving reports and conducting other church business. A total of 327 delegates plus special guests and observers from the five regions of the conference gathered in the G. Alexander Bryant Youth Center on the campus of the Central States Conference headquarters in Kansas City, Kansas.

Following a time of prayer and singing, associate youth director for the North American Division Vandeon Griffin called for a “heart reset” based on the session’s theme of “One Spirit, One Mission.” His devotional message focused on the value of uncommon “noise” in worshiping and experiencing Jesus, being uncomfortable enough with the status quo to give God complete control, and embracing unconventional ways of honoring Jesus Christ.

“God wants to do something unconventional,” he said.

As the Sixth Quadrennial/27th Session was officially beginning, outgoing CSC president Roger Bernard acknowledged a number of special guests present from the Office of Regional Ministries, who were in attendance to show their support.

Bernard and the other CSC officers, Cryston Josiah (vice president for administration) and Sister Kelley Paris (vice president for finance), shared their appreciation for department leaders who were retiring or taking other roles. In addition, much appreciation was expressed for Bernard and his wife Ivona for their decade of leadership in Central States. The Bernards are moving to Huntsville, Alabama, where Barnard is taking up a new role as president of the Office for Regional Conference Ministries.

Nominating Committee Recommendations 

The 19-member Nominating Committee chaired by Mid-America Union president Gary Thurber (with representation from each of the five regions based on membership numbers), met twice prior to the session, including the Saturday night preceding the session. The committee’s secretary, CSC pastor and ministerial director Joseph Ikner II, and the associate secretary, women’s ministries director Donna Brown, brought over 20 names throughout the morning for consideration as officers and department leaders.

As the names were presented delegates overwhelmingly voted to elect Cryston Josiah to serve as their new president. They similarly elected Kelley Paris to continue serving as vice president for finance, and Joseph Ikner to serve as vice president for administration.

Every name presented received strong support from the delegates. “The nominating committee has worked very hard, and I’m grateful to have served with them,” said Thurber.

Three positions were referred to the CSC Executive Committee to be filled at a later date. The Executive Committee is comprised of 22 people, including the three conference officers.

Conducting Other Business

Delegates voted six new congregations into the sisterhood of churches: three Spanish-speaking congregations, one Indonesian, one Indonesian-American, and one Haitian. One congregation was dissolved, with its members joining other nearby Adventist churches.

Reports on church membership, finances, and other statistics pertaining to the previous four years had been sent to the delegates prior to the session and were voted as a block. The financial report presented by the General Conference Auditing Service covering the years 2020-2024 showed an unmodified opinion, indicating reasonable assurance of the absence of financial irregularities.

In addition, session attendees reviewed proposed changes to the CSC Constitution and Bylaws. Delegates voted by a margin of over 90 percent to move from a four-year term of leadership service to a five-year team. Considerations for this included being in alignment with most other Adventist entities in North America; a cost savings of approximately $50,000 per term; and more time for elected leaders to strengthen ministries and initiatives.

The Conference Corporation Association Board members, who meet on an as-needed basis, were also elected. The Association Board is composed of the three CSC officers, three laypersons with legal and/or business expertise, and two pastors. The board is responsible for approving the acquisition and sale of all conference property.

Two parliamentarians were seated for overseeing legal compliance during the session: attorneys Loretta Collins and Darrell Huenergardt. At the conclusion of the session Huenergardt said he has been assisting at constituency sessions for 35 years and had never seen a session operate so peacefully from a parliamentary perspective. “We can feel the presence of God here,” he stated.

Gloria Bailey, a delegate from St. Louis, Missouri, said she has been present at five CSC sessions over the years and this was the best one yet. “It was informative and run very well,” she said. Another delegate stated this was his first time attending a session. He drove in from Missouri and brought three other delegates with him. The most important thing to him was that all believers “be together in one accord.”

Due to the rapid increase of CSC Spanish-speaking congregations, several delegates who do not speak fluent English were unsure of all that was happening. One delegate said she hoped translation services would be offered in the future so all delegates could participate fully.

Organizational Information

The Central States Conference covers the entire nine-state region of the Mid-America Union Conference and has 9,569 members (as of June 5, 2025). This represents a modest net gain of 398 members over the past four years.

As of July 30, 2025, the conference had 38 churches, 19 companies, and one active school.

The mission of the Central States Conference of Seventh-day Adventists is “to live and proclaim the Three Angels’ Messages in the heartland of America, growing healthy, Bible-based, multicultural communities of faith.”

Looking to the Future

As the session came to a close, President Josiah spoke briefly, expressing appreciation to his family and his predecessor, along with the other officers and pastors of CSC. Josiah credited his father, an experienced church leader who was in attendance, with showing him the importance of the correct alignment of the Three M’s in spiritual organizational leadership: 1) Men and women —people are most important; 2) Mission—to heal, preach and set at liberty; 3) Money—funding the mission comes through the people, completing the circle.

“Through humility, honesty, transparency, and integrity is how we’re going to move forward,” Josiah concluded.

—Brenda Dickerson is the associate communication director for the Mid-America Union and editor of OUTLOOK magazine. Republished with permission from OUTLOOK magazine news August 7, 2025, article. Photos supplied.