The Western Jurisdiction Mission Cabinet is pleased to announce that Gwen Bortner has been contracted as a project manager for the next 11 months. Serving in a part-time capacity, Bortner will collaborate with existing leaders to provide appropriate support and assistance to the Annual Conferences, Mission Cabinet, Leadership Team, and grassroots movements within the jurisdiction as they determine how best to embody a wholistic, inclusive expression of United Methodism. She was selected from a field of 37 candidates.
In announcing the selection of Bortner, Western Jurisdiction College of Bishops President Robert T. Hoshibata, a member of the Mission Cabinet’s Executive Team, said, “Gwen is a proven consultant and facilitator in leadership development and organizational change. She brings the professional leadership experience we need to move forward strategically and pairs that with involvement in and understanding of The United Methodist Church. The College of Bishops of the Western Jurisdiction looks forward to working along with Gwen and welcome her to leadership in our Jurisdiction.”
Bortner is a fourth-generation United Methodist and a graduate of the University of the Pacific in Stockton, California, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in computer science. Bortner says she has “a lifelong commitment to the call of the laity” that was inspired by the example of her parents.
Bortner’s denominational experience includes leadership positions in the local church and at district and conference levels, as well as providing pulpit supply as a Certified Lay Speaker in the California-Nevada Annual Conference. Her consulting business primarily focuses on providing executive leadership for companies throughout the country in a part-time, virtual capacity and providing workshops on improved workplace communication and project management.
“During this liminal time in the Church, I’m excited to be working with the established leaders and emerging voices within the Western Jurisdiction on the path ahead,” she says. “I intend to keep up the momentum as we follow God’s direction for a church for all.”
Bortner will serve until September 15, 2020, as a consultant to the Western Jurisdiction Mission Cabinet, reporting to the Executive Team.
The Western Jurisdiction Mission Cabinet is composed of the active bishops, directors of connectional ministries, and the chair of the Leadership Team. It is focused on providing the guiding vision for the ministries and missions of the Western Jurisdiction of The United Methodist Church.
