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UMR’s Wilke accepts Upper Room post Robin Russell, May 28, 2009
Sarah E. Wilke
By Robin Russell Managing Editor
DALLAS—Sarah E. Wilke, CEO of UMR Communications since May 2004, has been selected to be the world editor and publisher of the United Methodist Church’s Upper Room Ministries, a division of the General Board of Discipleship (GBOD).
Ms. Wilke, 46, was elected May 26 by the 58 members of the GBOD, a general agency of the United Methodist Church, to head the Nashville-based ministry. In her capacity, she also will serve as associate general secretary for the Upper Room Division. She is expected to succeed outgoing editor and publisher Stephen Bryant, whose 12-year tenure ends in late July.
“We are sorry to lose Sarah, considering all that she has accomplished at UMR, but we’re excited she’ll be bringing her energy to such an important global ministry,” said Shari Goodwin, board chair for UMR Communications, the parent company of the nationally award-winning United Methodist Reporter.
John Greenberger, UMR’s chief financial officer since 2006, has been appointed interim CEO of the Dallas-based company.
In her new capacity, Ms. Wilke will lead an international staff of 81 and offices in Nashville and Johannesburg, South Africa. The division publishes The Upper Room, an ecumenical devotional guide with a circulation of almost 3 million in 40 languages. Africa Upper Room Ministries prints nearly 150,000 copies of the devotional in Portuguese, English and Arabic, and it broadcasts a radio edition in Kiswahili, French and Zulu.
In addition, 1 million copies of Prayers for Encouragement, a devotional for people suffering from HIV/AIDS and other serious illnesses, have been printed and distributed through Africa Upper Room networks.
“We at GBOD are delighted that Sarah Wilke is joining our staff,” said the Rev. Karen A. Greenwaldt, the agency’s general secretary. “She brings tremendous enthusiasm and knowledge about religious publishing from the perspective of the United Methodist Reporter and UMR Communications. Her commitment to linking spiritual formation daily practices with the practice of ministry in the church and the world is impressive.”
Under Ms. Wilke’s leadership, UMR Communications has significantly increased the circulation of the Reporter among United Methodist conferences and churches. And the nonprofit ministry has diversified to provide design services and targeted marketing services, as well as books, journals and other print and digital products for United Methodists and other denominations.
Ms. Wilke also spearheaded a collaborative relationship with the Women’s Division of the denomination’s General Board of Global Ministries to print and distribute its program materials. Other accomplishments during her tenure include the introduction of variable-data printing and marketing, as well as a customized Web site, the UMPortal, for local churches, United Methodist conferences and general agencies.
“It has been such a joy to be a part of the ministry of the United Methodist Reporter, and to lead UMR Communications through change and growth,” Ms. Wilke said. “I look forward to leading Upper Room Ministries with the same level of energy and enthusiasm.”
A search committee for a new CEO will be in place by mid-June, said Ms. Goodwin, the board president. “We’re working hard to ensure the vitality of UMR,” she said. “We completely believe that God is in this ministry.”
Mr. Greenberger said UMR’s unique offerings have sustained the company despite the downturn of the economy and the print industry in general.
“UMR offers communication tools and products to United Methodists that no one else does,” he said. “We intend to continue our commitment to growth and improvement.”
Before coming to UMR, Ms. Wilke served as director of urban strategies for the North Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church and as executive director of Wesley-Rankin Community Center in Dallas, a United Methodist-affiliated mission. She holds an executive MBA from Southern Methodist University.
Sarah E. Wilke
