‘Forward in Mission’ stories shared, Stromberg re-elected as Superintendent during Celebration 2026
The 2026 Northwest Conference Celebration—the Annual Meeting for both the Ministerial Association and church delegates—took place at First Covenant Church in Willmar, MN, April 23-25.
“This event remains one of the most important things we do together as a Conference,” said NWC Superintendent Kara Stromberg. “We find encouragement and joy in just being together and being the body of Christ together as the Church.”
Throughout the weekend, pastors, delegates and attendees heard video and spoken testimony of celebration and challenge from a variety of ministry leaders.
Friday Business Session
The Northwest Conference Celebration opened with the business session on Friday afternoon.
“It is a profound honor and joy for this congregation to be hosting you for this meeting today,” said Chris Pappenfus, Lead Pastor of First Covenant Church. “We are truly blessed to host this year’s Celebration.”
Cyndi Hoffman, Vice President of Finance, brought greetings from the Evangelical Covenant Church. During her report, Hoffman highlighted the One Covenant Community project, which “seeks to cultivate a thriving ecosystem of pastoral leadership across the ECC” by strengthening the “full arc of vocational discernment, theological education, credentialing, and lifelong support” through deep collaboration between a wide variety of Covenant institutions.
“The Denomination exists to support the churches and the Conferences, it’s a pleasure to be here celebrating with you,” Hoffman said.
During her report, Superintendent Stromberg highlighted the new Northwest Conference Mission statement: “In the Northwest Conference, we are rooted in Jesus, renewing lives and communities by starting and strengthening churches, investing in the next generation and developing healthy missional leaders.”
This renewed mission is reflected in the addition of the phrase “Forward in Mission” to the NWC brand mantra: “Developing Leaders. Thriving Churches. Forward in Mission.”
“At the Conference, we don’t do these things on our own, but we provide a scaffold of support so we can resource and build up the local church,” Stromberg said. “Everything we do supports the local church. This is the Lord’s Church, and we are called to be faithful.”
Stromberg highlighted the NWC’s efforts to build up pastoral pipelines, strengthen rural initiatives, grow into the Evangelical Covenant Church’s multiethnic mosaic and help young leaders explore their calls to ministry. She also announced a new Journey to Mosaic youth experience taking shape for fall 2026.
“God is already at work, accomplishing God’s mission,” she shared. “It’s our job to pay attention to where God is working, and to join Him in that mission.”
Stromberg announced that Sara Heacox Sosa will be concluding her time as Director of Children & Family Ministry in May and offered a prayer of blessing. She also shared that Steve Wong is joining the NWC staff as Director of Ministerial Health & Development in the coming weeks.
Stromberg’s report also featured a panel of Northwest Conference staff that included: Scott Nelson, Associate Superintendent; Ginny Olson, Director of Next Gen Ministries; Jon Kramka, Director of Congregational Vitality; Steve Wong, incoming Director of Ministerial Health & Development; and Edith Soto López, Latino Ministry Coordinator.
“We are not just running programs in Next Gen Ministry,” Olson shared. “We are developing wells and a pipeline for children, youth and young adults to really have an encounter with Jesus.”
Olson highlighted opportunities like MUUUCE, AIL and UNITE as examples of events that enable youth to deepen their relationships with God and others. She also shared that the NWC invests in leaders at all levels (whether full time, co-vocational or volunteer) to help them serve their local church better and is building pathways for young people to take the next steps in their faith journeys.
Olson challenged attendees by concluding: “Young people are not just the Church of the future, they are the Church of now, which is true. But also, they are the Church of the future, so how do we invest in them now?”
“Congregational Vitality is not just a value we embrace, but for us it’s also a strategy for our shared mission,” said Jon Kramka, Director of Congregational Vitality. “It is not just about strengthening one church, but it’s actually about fostering shared movement forward in mission.”
Kramka shared his view that Congregational Vitality is about “soil preparation.”
“I believe that Vitality breaks up hard ground. When multiple congregations in a region begin to do this work in partnership with the Denomination and their Conference, things begin to shift toward the positive,” Kramka said.
Incoming Director of Ministerial Health & Development Steve Wong shared that he’s excited to be called to serve in the Northwest Conference because of the growth that is evident.
“There are little shoots on the ground that we get to tend and actually be surprised by what’s coming out of the ground,” Wong said. “What a gift it is to be surprised by the grace of God, day after day, in the most unexpected places.”
Latino Ministry Coordinator Edith Soto López reflected on recent immigration enforcement efforts in Minnesota and the support provided by the Northwest Conference and its churches.
“The Church reacted and took action. I realized what I read, what I studied early on about the Covenant was still being lived out today,” she said. “They did not ignore our pain, nor were they ignorant to our suffering. I was speechless, in fact I still don’t have the words to tell how truly taken care of we have felt. Having the heart of the Covenant is having the heart of God.”
“My dream is that we would see more churches opening than closing, more pastors going into ministry than retiring from ministry,” Associate Superintendent Scott Nelson said. “We need all of us to find the future drivers of the car, and to work together to get them behind the wheel.”
In his day-to-day work, Nelson highlighted meeting with churches who have search teams, leading a church chair cohort, and continuing to bolster church planting efforts in the NWC.
“We live on a mission field. We are the fourth largest unreached country in the world,” Nelson said. “We have to train people to think more like missionaries. We can remember what started us, and we can live into that again.”
Following the Friday Business Session, delegates and attendees participated in workshops that included: “How Planting Can Change the Culture of Your Church” led by Scott Nelson, NWC Associate Superintendent; “Immigration Stories,” led by Jenny Groen, Willmar Area Program Director for Arrive Ministries; “Informative, Responsible and Ethical Use of AI,” led by Minnehaha Academy President Donna Harris; and “Navigating the World of Church Insurance,” led by Brad Hedberg, President and CEO at Portico Group.
Friday Worship Service
A team of musicians from throughout the NWC, anchored by Lakeview Covenant Church (Duluth, MN) Pastor of Worship and Arts Ryan Starr, led attendees in worship during the Friday evening worship service.
Ten Candidates for Ordination were also recognized and prayed for during the service. The Candidates for Ordination to Word and Sacrament include: Maria Francisca Alarcon Gonzalez (Iglesia Unidad, Fridley, MN), Jenny Rae Armstrong (First Covenant Church, Duluth, MN), Bertha Elizabeth Carrillo Sandoval (Nuestra Esperanza Covenant Church, Brooklyn Center, MN), Jason Samuel Hovis (Karmel Covenant Church, Princeton, MN), Laura Ann Kozamchak (Harbor Crossing, White Bear Lake, MN), Juan Humberto Lopez Perez (LaBendicion Covenant Church, Brooklyn Park, MN), Terri Michelle Russell (Salem Covenant Church, New Brighton, MN), Jamison Robert Staples (Renew Covenant Church, Eau Claire, WI), Elijah Kuich Yuek (South Sudan Covenant Church, Sioux Falls, SD). The Candidate for Ordination to Word and Service is Jennifer Marie Botzet (Sanctuary Covenant Church, Minneapolis).
Julio and Katie Isaza, Global Personnel with the Evangelical Covenant Church, shared a message entitled “Faithful Witness in God’s Upside-Down Kingdom.”
“It is a kingdom that reverses the values of worldly systems,” Julio said. “In this upside-down kingdom, the last are first, the least is the greatest, the humble are exalted, the servant is served, and forgiveness triumphs over revenge.”
“The proclamation of the upside-down kingdom is from everywhere, to everywhere,” Katie said. “We need the witness of our global family—desperately. To give witness to the upside-down kingdom means to demonstrate its reality through our words and actions by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Saturday Business Session
Saturday’s Business Session kicked off with worship and transitioned to a Q&A time with NWC staff responding to questions submitted via text.
Following the panel, attendees honored the legacy of two churches being deleted from the roster of the NWC and ECC (Calvary Covenant Church in Northome, MN, and Kensington Covenant Church in Kensington, MN), and welcomed two churches joining both rosters (Community Covenant Church in Mankato, MN, and Catalyst Covenant Church in White Bear Lake, MN).
Minnehaha Academy President Donna Harris shared a presentation from the life of the school that featured recent accomplishments and activities of MA students, centered around the private school’s core values (Distinctively Christian, Exceptional Academics, Cultivating Potential, Caring Community). She praised Superintendent Stromberg and the staff of the NWC for their support in ministry.
“Our desire is to serve our students and families well,” Harris said. “It’s a privilege to have a ministry partner to collaborate with as we do God’s kingdom work.”
During Saturday’s Business Session, delegates also approved a ballot that included the election of Dave Hugare (Lakeview Covenant Church, Duluth, MN) to serve a 1-year term as NWC Executive Board Chairperson, Nikki Kahoud (Rochester Covenant Church) to a 1-year term, and Jenny Aipperspach (Hope Covenant Church, Grand Forks, ND) and Brian Zahasky (Hope Covenant Church, St. Cloud, MN) to 5-year terms on the NWC Executive Board, as well as electing Hector Calvo (New City Covenant Church, Edina, MN), Erica Jensen (Sanctuary Covenant Church, Minneapolis, MN) and Jenny Johnson (First Covenant Church, St. Paul, MN) to 3-year terms on the Minnehaha Academy Board of Trustees.
Delegates also elected Kara Stromberg to serve another 4-year term as Northwest Conference Superintendent.
Delegates approved the NWC budget of $1,949,246, as well as the budget for Minnehaha Academy.
As the meeting was concluding, delegates were invited to come to Cedarbrook Church in Menomonie, WI, for the 2027 NWC Annual Meeting Celebration next April 22-24.
Attendees also had opportunity to learn about a variety of Conference and denominational ministries and organizations at display tables, and through one-on-one conversations and through a Ministry Partners panel throughout the weekend.
