BIENNIAL WORKSHOPS Saturday, October 10, 2026 Morning Sessions: 10:30 AM Afternoon Sessions: 2:15 PM "The American Baptist Foundation and YOU!" (Morning session only) Rev. Dr. Patricia Hernandez, American Baptist Foundation How can the ABF help the individual & church needs? Learn about everything from estate planning & charitable gift annuities to starting a church endowment and more!
Rev. Dr. Patricia Hernandez grew up in upstate New York as an American Baptist PK and then after seminary, she had her first call to ministry in an ABCNYS church! Dr. Hernandez has experience serving on regional and national denominational staff and recently began her work with the American Baptist Foundation.
"Youth: A Thriving Faith in Jesus” (Morning session only) Rev. Stephanie Schneider More than 1 million youth leave the faith each year, what difference can we make? Youth ministry isn't about a thriving youth program, but faithful discipleship with a thriving faith. This takes the whole church, not just the youth or children's program. Come hear more about a Faith Formation Framework developed by an ecumenical, free resource called Tenx10. This is perfect for all sized churches with 1 or 100 youth. Drag your pastor along too!
Rev. Stephanie Schneiderserves as Pastor of First Baptist Church of Glens Falls and Village Baptist, Fort Edward, as well as on the ABCNYS staff as our ABY Coordinator. She lives in Glens Falls, with her husband Andrew and their sons Lucas and Caleb, along with Bruce Wayne, their dog.
"Called to Care: Haitian Mission in the D.R.” (Morning and Afternoon sessions) Rev. Ketly and Vitale Pierre, Global Servants Learn about their ministry to Haitians in La Romana, Dominican Republic and how to approach ministry like a missionary from our Global Servants.
Rev. Ketly and Vitale Pierre serve as Global Servants for International Ministries, ABCUSA. They are traveling the United States at this time, sharing about their mission work and seeking churches to support their critical work with Haitians in the Dominican Republic.
"Technology & the Church" (Morning and Afternoon sessions) Rev. Dr. Paul Bailey & Rev. Dr. Jonathan David Lawrence, facilitators What are churches doing with tech that makes sense in your church? Come and learn and share!
"Estranged Adult Children: A Growing Concern” (Afternoon session only) Rev. George Stefani The statistics are painful: one in every eight parent-adult child relationships is broken, and only 10% will reconcile. The local church is not immune to such grief. This workshop will focus on understanding the rise in parent-adult child estrangements and on approaches to providing compassionate ministry to families experiencing estrangements.
Rev. George Stefani serves as Pastor of Latham Community Baptist Church and First Baptist Church of Saratoga Springs. He serves as moderator of the Capital Area Baptist Association. George and his wife Becky have two children and five grandchildren. They make their home in Clifton Park, NY.
"Opening the Door or Closing the Window: Options for Your Small Church” (Afternoon only) Rev. J. Steven Reynolds NOTE: OFFERED ONLY AT THE AFTERNOON WORKSHOP TIME SLOT
Is your small church holding its own, struggling or somewhere in between? In an era where many of our small churches are facing new challenges, what are the options that they have? In this workshop we will be looking at George Bullard’s “Life Cycles of the Church” as well as looking at the various options small churches have in light of where they fit in the “cycle.”
Rev. J Steven Reynolds has served as an ordained pastor in the American Baptist Churches for over 40 years and has had a wide variety of experiences in a number of church contexts. He is a member of Memorial Park, Vestal (Broome-Tioga) and serves on the Region's Board of Mission as well as the Regional Enhancement Team. Married to Marilyn (Brett) Reynolds, Steve is frequently out in the Region churches as a guest preacher and provides support to congregations in pastoral transition or rethinking their ministry's future.
"The American Baptist Foundation and YOU!" (Morning only) Rev. Dr. Patricia Hernandez, American Baptist Foundation How can the ABF help individual & church needs? Learn about estate planning, charitable gift annuities, church endowments and more!
"Youth: A Thriving Faith in Jesus" (Morning only) Rev. Stephanie Schneider More than 1 million youth leave the faith each year. This workshop explores a Faith Formation Framework from Tenx10 - perfect for churches with 1 or 100 youth.
"Called to Care: Haitian Mission in the D.R." (Morning & Afternoon) Rev. Ketly and Vitale Pierre, Global Servants Learn about their ministry to Haitians in La Romana, Dominican Republic and how to approach ministry like a missionary.
"Technology & the Church" (Morning & Afternoon) Rev. Dr. Paul Bailey & Rev. Dr. Jonathan David Lawrence, facilitators What are churches doing with tech that makes sense in your church? Come and learn and share!
"Estranged Adult Children: A Growing Concern" (Afternoon only) Rev. George Stefani One in every eight parent-adult child relationships is broken, and only 10% reconcile. This workshop focuses on understanding estrangements and providing compassionate ministry.
"Opening the Door or Closing the Window: Options for Your Small Church" (Afternoon only) Rev. J. Steven Reynolds Is your small church holding its own or struggling? Explore George Bullard's "Life Cycles of the Church" and options for small churches facing new challenges.