2026-07-23 Good News

A Reflection on My Reappointment to WesleyRev. John Oda At the start of every year, the Cal-Nevada Annual Conference Bishop and her Cabinet meet to decide where each pastor in the conference will be appointed. This year, their decision means I get to continue serving at Wesley. July 1, 2026 marked the official start of my fifth year with you; though, as I'll explain, my actual anniversary here goe...

Congratulations to Jeffrey who placed second in Informative Speaking at the 2026 National Speech and Debate Association National Tournament.  This tournament took place in June in Richmond, Virginia and is one of the largest academic competitions in the world. 1,500 schools and 7,000 students from every state gathered to debate ideas, tell stories, and practice the essential skills of democracy—cr...

UWIF Rummage Sale Thank You!by Terri Thornton I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to everyone at Wesley and the UWIF Rummage Sale volunteers who offered recommendations before and during the rummage sale on school workbooks, supplies, and other items for Golden Hills School in Windhoek, Namibia.I was able to ship a 20-pound box of supplies right after the rummage sale which arrived on July ...

Wesley Goes to Hokkaido, Japan!by Rev. John OdaReflections on the 2026 Wesley Japan Trip On June 23 a group of 29 of us set off on the 2026 Wesley Japan Trip. For 13 days, we mostly crisscrossed Hokkaido.  It was an amazing trip.We began in Sapporo, where a day trip to Otaru had us blowing our own glass and wandering the famous canal.  Later we did a walking tour of the Historical Village of Hokka...

Around 20 members of the Wesley Ukulele Band attended their annual fun-filled and relaxing summer potluck and practice at the scenic Frank Bramhall Park in Willow Glen on 12 July.  The weather was perfect, a bit overcast but the group was shaded between two very large old oak trees. All were plied with good food provided by talented band members who can also cook.  They jammed and sang some favori...

年次総会とは何か―そしてなぜ重要なのか？ 1か月前、マーク牧師、エィトン・エィブリル、そして私は、サクラメントで開催された合同メソジスト教会カリフォルニア・ネバダ年次総会（年会）に出席しました。私が初めてウェスレー教会の2名の代表者の1人になってから数年が経ちますが、今年になるまで、年会の意味や重要性について真剣に考えたことは一度もありませんでした。その経験を振り返り、私と同じように年会についてあまり詳しくない方々のために、私が抱いていた疑問に対する答えを書き留めることにしました。年会とは何か？年会は、合同メソジスト教会（UMC）の基本的な統治機関です。ある意味では、企業の取締役会に似ています。メソジスト教会の創始者であるジョン・ウェスレーは、クリスチャンは互いに責任を問い、励まし合い、意思決定を共有するために定期的に集まるべきだと信じていました。UMCはこの年会を通して、その伝統を受け継...

Asian Camp 2026—Connected by Loveby Hatty Lin Bright and early on Sunday June 28th, Wesley youth and families met at San Jose airport to began the trip down to Camp Wrightwood in Southern California for Asian Camp. This year Wesley had fifteen campers, four counselors and one adult chaperone going to Asian Camp. We arrived at camp around 2 pm, by bus with Blaine UMC. All were tired and some were n...

The Wesley Senior Fellowship Lunchby Kiyomi Yanai The Wesley Fellowship Hall was the scene for some Hawaiian Aloha spirit on June 24 as approximately 110 “seniors” were welcomed with leis and gathered for a Hawaiian-inspired lunch dedicated to them by our Umbrella Ministry team. The meal of kalua pork sliders, mac salad, sushi, gyoza, and edamame was served in a Japanese bento box, followed with a...

God’s People in Hokkaido: A Personal Reflection By Barbara Hiura Space…the final frontier, these are the voyages….oh uh…wrong story line!!!  But indeed space…trees, rivers, lakes, marshlands, mountains, deer, bears and foxes!!!…I mean real space where animals and humans can roam in quiet and aaahhh, peace.   Where are we?  Pinecrest Lake? The fjords of Norway?  Nooo…I’m describing Japan…not the To...