Administration
The Oklahoma Conference Administration is made up of three executive officers: President, Executive Secretary, and Treasurer. These officers are elected by the Oklahoma Conference Constituency and work collaboratively with each other and the Conference Executive Committee to direct the overall mission of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Oklahoma and to ensure that the conference is keeping with denominational policy and beliefs.
The Roles of the Officers
The president is charged with coordinating the many-faceted mission of the church in the Oklahoma Conference territory. He is designated as the first officer of the conference. He, or his designee, chairs all board and committees of the conference and its related entities. He is part of the representation of the conference to higher organizations. The president, with the other officers, is accountable to the Executive Committee and Constituency, and indirectly to the Southwestern Union, North American Division and General Conference.
The executive secretary keeps most of the official records of the conference and supervises the implementation of the Executive Committee actions. He also manages Human Resources for the conference, assists the president in ministerial matters and oversees issuing the proper credentials and licenses for the workers.
The treasurer is the Chief Financial Officer of the conference. He is to safeguard all monies received and disburse them in harmony with denominational policy. Additionally, he must present an accurate and comprehensive accounting of such funds on a timely basis. He is also ultimately responsible for all finances of all conference, church, and school entities within the conference.
Executive Committee
The Executive Committee of the Oklahoma Conference is comprised of a diverse group of conference employees and laypeople from around the conference territory. The committee is formed at the quadrennial constituency session, the most recent of which occurred in 2021. In the interim, open positions are filled and voted by the executive committee.
The committee is chaired by the Conference President, James Shires, and also includes conference administrators, Apple Park, Executive Secretary, and Charles Reel, Treasurer. The Southwestern Union President or his designee is invited to each committee meeting.
The executive committee is comprised of 21 members in total; two lay people (L) and one conference worker (W) from each of the 6 regions of the conference and the conference administrators.
Northwest
Paul Evans (L)
Penny Landeros (L)
Mang Lian (W)
Northeast
Roland Bland (L)
Sherry Fisher (L)
Dominick Alipoon (W)
Southwest
Mary Ann Essex (L)
Buster Swoopes (L)
Harvey Gil (W)
Southeast
Charles Hill (L)
Bruce James (L)
Wes Via (W)
OKC
Eliezar Castanon (L)
Andrea Chavez (L)
Lonnie Carbaugh (W)
Tulsa
Lun Cing (L)
Osmaylin Pena (L)
Ruthie Vargas (W)