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By Christine Kumar

At a day apart for older adults on April 23, retired Bishop Forrest Stith spoke to more than 100 people at the West River Center about tensions in the Middle East.

Stith encouraged everyone to stand up for justice, not just for Palestine but against war and racism. 'If we don?t do it, then who will?' he asked. 'We are it, and we are chosen as an awesome people to deliver reconciliation and peace to the world.'

Retired district superintendent, the Rev. Mary Jane Coleman, led a Bible study and encouraged small group discussion on peace-making practices and God?s vision of shalom.

The day?s activities included boat rides and workshops on making greeting cards, financial planning and long-term care insurance, and a discussion of older adult ministries in the local church.

Nearly 50 percent of United Methodists are 60 or older. This is not a sign of impending doom, denomination leaders say, but a call to reconsider ministries for older adults.

The older adult population in the United States increased from 130 million in 1950 to 419 million in 2000, according to a report by Rick Gentzler, director of the Center of Aging and Older Adult Ministries of the United Methodist Board of Discipleship.