The new union executive committee, elected in August to serve for the next five years, met for the first time Nov. 16. About 40 percent of the members were new to the committee.

During a brief orientation, members learned where the restrooms were, how to adjust the height of their chairs and that the union committee deals mostly with issues of policy and coordination, unlike local conference committees, which deal mostly with operational issues.

Then they got to work on an operational issue—church websites.

The committee voted that the union will purchase a server, utilize the free website software donated to the General Conference by TAGnet, pay the bandwidth and backup costs, and make the complete netAdventist website software available to every church in the union at no cost, effective Jan. 1. Churches who wish to may pay $10 or $20 per month to netAdventist for e-mail or phone support. (For details, see story on page 28.)

Returning to more usual business, the committee voted to approve ordination/commissioning for Glenn Gibson, Julyamin Hutauruk, Michael Jenkins, Peter Knudsen and Elizabeth Talbot, all from the Southern California Conference. And they authorized Ednor Eloi and Leon Brown from the Northern California Conference to pursue Doctor of Ministry degrees.

The committee voted to re-appoint all the Pacific Union departmental directors and associates (see sidebar).

The committee approved more than $6 million in loans to schools and churches. From the Church and School Loan Fund: Honolulu Japanese, $700,000; Honolulu Korean, $50,000; Quency (N-U), $36,744; Paradise Adventist Academy, $215,769; Holbrook Indian Mission School, $130,000; Orange County Vietnamese, $300,000; Southeastern California Conference (for Pine Springs Ranch), $650,000; Glendale Korean, $847,550; La Crescenta, $34,650.

And from the Union Income Fund: Las Vegas Paradise Valley, $440,000; East Bay Fil-Am (NCC), $350,000; Paradise Adventist Academy (NCC), $1.5 million; Arlington (SECC), $70,000; Inland Spanish (SECC), $222,000; Riverside Kansas Avenue, $673,425; Norwalk, $250,000.

The executive committee will meet again March 14 at the Pacific Union office.