Listening to one of Governor Andrew Cuomo’s press briefings on the coronavirus (COVID-19) contagion the other day, I was struck by something he said. The governor of New York encouraged New Yorkers to remain spiritually connected even as they complied with his Executive Order to practice social distancing.

Warmest Christian greetings,  

The Coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic continues to wreak havoc at home and abroad, bringing entire countries and communities to their knees. By now, everybody has been impacted by the pandemic in some way.   The non-stop torrent of news about the virus is difficult to ignore, and I suspect that many of you have stocked up on supplies to get you through the coming weeks, if not months.

As we knew would happen, there has been a whirlwind of rapid developments that call for an update on what the Lake Region Conference (LRC) has done and is doing to deal with this unprecedented situation. Please note the following items, some of which are actions voted by LRC’s Administrative Council, ADCOM.

Katherine Johnson passed away on February 24, 2020, at age 101. You’re probably knitting your brow wondering who was Katherine Johnson and asking why is her death noteworthy. Johnson was one of the first African American woman hired by NASA and one of the three African American women scientists depicted in the movie Hidden Figures that compellingly tells of the pioneering work they did at NASA. Not surprisingly, the performance of the brilliant women mathematicians, who toiled in the shadows at NASA because of their race and gender, was not celebrated or recognized at the time.  If the movie Hidden Figures teaches anything, it is that the contributions of African American women were often overlooked and undervalued by society, all because of their race and gender.