Created on April 23, 1968, when the Evangelical United Brethren Church and the Methodist-Episcopal Church merged, The United Methodist Church is deeply rooted in the Methodist movement started by John and Charles Wesley while they were at Oxford in the 1730s. In the United States, five regional bodies, called jurisdictions, were created: Northeast, Southeast, North Central, South Central and Western. More information on the history of The United Methodist Church and Methodism is available at umc.org.

Each jurisdiction is divided into annual conferences, presided over by a bishop. The West Ohio Conference is part of the North Central Jurisdiction, and our bishop is Gregory Vaughn Palmer, who was appointed to serve here in 2012.

The Mission of the West Ohio Conference is to equip local churches to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world… A world of justice, love, and peace filled with people growing in the likeness of Jesus Christ.  

The West Ohio Conference has six districts: Great Miami River, Western Lakes, Maumee River, Scioto River, Hocking River and Olentangy River. Districts are a geographic area of the Annual Conference. Each district is led by an Elder the bishop named District Superintendent (D.S.). Superintendents oversee the ministry of the district’s clergy and churches, provide spiritual and pastoral leadership and are part of the Conference’s Cabinet. District Superintendents work with the bishop and others to appoint ordained ministers to serve churches in the district, presides at meetings of the charge conference and oversees programs within the district.