In January 2015 when John Pethtel began in his new position as Director of Church Development and Pastoral Services, he stepped down as a member (and chairman) of the General Council. The General Council has elected Susie Fox (formerly vice chair) as the new chairman and Rod Noel as the new vice chairman. Dave Davis has been assigned as the interim (Jan-Aug 2015) replacement for John until a permanent replacement is elected during General Conference meetings July 26-Aug 1, 2015. Dave was already attending General Council meetings as the secretary and he will continue to perform this role as well during the interim period.

In her role as chairman, Susie leads the General Council meetings and serves as the primary point of contact and communication for the General Council.  As vice chairman, Rod assists the chair as needed, heads up the Disciplinary Committee during General Conference, and jointly works with the chair to produce a summary report back to the Coordinating Leadership Team and Councils following each General Council meeting.

As a group, the General Council addresses the business of the Seventh Day Baptist General Conference USA and Canada between annual conference meetings.  This includes providing coordination and oversight for the denominational executives and councils, making financial decisions regarding an integrated budget for the current year and proposed budget for the coming year, managing completion of action items from the conference business session, providing strategic direction for the denomination, and addressing new items requiring attention.

The members of the General Council are pictured below at their February 2015 meeting held at the Seventh Day Baptist church in Daytona Beach, Florida.  Members are (L to R in picture) Ron Ochs (ex-officio Financial Director), Rob Appel (ex-officio Executive Director), Dave Davis (interim member & secretary), Rod Noel (vice chair), Susie Fox (chair), Dannette Montague, and Dale Thorngate. The next scheduled meeting is May 29-31, 2015 at the First Hopkinton SDB church in Ashaway, Rhode Island and will include joint sessions with the Coordinating Leadership Team (CLT) on Friday May 29th.

 (The General Council can be reached at sdbgeneralcouncil@seventhdaybaptist.org and encourages your feedback, questions, or suggestions.)