Nearly 40 people gathered in Chicago during the RCCongress 2010 to honor the memory of the North American Broadcast Section of the World Association for Christian Communication, better known by its acronym, NABS-WACC. NABS, for short, hosted an annual gathering in early December in Florida. The Rev. Ed Willingham, a Baptist minister and executive director of the Council of Churches in Detroit, was the energy and glue that held NABS together. He was awarded Honorary Life Membership of WACC Wednesday, April 7 (Read more about the award ceremony here...)
Former members of NABS-WACC (Photo by Erick Coll)

The last such NABS gathering was in 2001. Former members gathered in a small meeting room at the Marriott Hotel to re-connect and share stories of what they’d been doing since the last time they met. Time and again, former members noted how this organization gave them shoulders of other communicators to stand on, helping them reach new heights in communications ministry.

Here are some of their comments:

• Dave Pomeroy—pastoring a United Church of Christ congregation one-half time in Las Vegas.
• David Bridel—retired in 1993 from the National Council of Churches, then went to work with The United Methodist Church as a planner. Has written a book on African-American soldiers who served in the Civil War.
• Stewart Hoover—has been in academia ever since the last NABS meeting; at the University of Colorado currently, and is recognized as an expert on media and religion.
• Graley Taylor—who attended every NABS meeting, said that he has flunked retirement twice. In 2002, he went to Thailand to do a film on the Church of Christ in that country, and he hopes to have the film finished soon.
• Shirley Struchen—has worked on the RCCongress since 2006, and serves as an officer for the Religion Communicators Council in New York.
• Maureen Rodgers—works for Catholic Charities in Chicago, where the mission is to help the poor. She said she met Ed Willingham in 1969, and he became a mentor to her, introducing her to the ecumenical explosion of those days. She said she has fond memories of dancing during the NABS meetings.
• Ed Willingham—in the past 10 years, he said, he has been the interim pastor at five churches in the Detroit area. “I love to preach,” he said.”
• Randy Naylor—said that he first went to NABS in 1983. Since the last NABS meeting, he has been General Secretary of WACC.
• Lydia Talbot—was remembered as the 1,000th registrant for NABS, in 1981.
• Keith Knight—the last official chairman of a NABS steering committee, in 2002. Since then, he said, he’s been working hard at being a grandparent and doing communications consulting.
• Sheila George—is currently the president of WACC North America and is partner in a communications consulting firm, Illumicom.
• Mike Moss—fully retired, he said, and living in Colorado.
• Nelson Price—said that he lives in Syracuse, New York, is retired, and enjoys life with his 13 grandchildren.
• Chuck Schisla—has been working freelance ever since the last NABS.
• Marty Thomas—said that she owes a great debt to NABS for giving her strong shoulders to stand on. She is currently retired and living in Ft. Myers, Florida, starting a parish library. “Send me your books,” she said.
• George Conklin—said that of the 40 or so people in the room, “I’ve stayed in half of your houses.” Conklin said that NABS gave him a place where people of faith and who were crafts’ people could come together to make a difference in the world.

At the conclusion of the meeting, WACC North America president, Sheila George, announced a new scholarship award, sponsored by WACC-North America and named in honor of NABS-WACC. The award of $500 will be given to a young member of the WACC North America board of directors for travel to continuing education events in the tradition of NABS. The first recipient, George said, of the award is Erin Green, communicator with National Council of Churches in Canada.

NABS-WACC members (Photos by Erick Coll

See more photographs at http://www.flickr.com/photos/49144177@N02/

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