FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 16, 2016

Peoria, Ill. – The Committee on Episcopacy of the North Central Jurisdiction announced the assignment of Bishop Julius C. Trimble to the Indiana Episcopal Area Saturday, July 16. Bishop Trimble will begin his service Thursday, September 1, 2016. 

Trimble will succeed Bishop Michael J. Coyner who has served the Indiana Conference for the past 12 years and will retire Wednesday, August 31, 2016.

Trimble, who previously served as the resident bishop of the Iowa Area for the past eight years, was elected as Bishop in The United Methodist Church on July 18, 2008, from the East Ohio Conference. 

A native of Chicago, he was ordained deacon and elder in the Northern Illinois Conference where he served two churches before transferring to the East Ohio Conference. He served churches in the Cleveland, Ohio area and as District Superintendent of the Cleveland District from 1996-2003. He received training in faith-based community organizing and served as President of WECAN (Westside-Eastside Communities Action Network) in Cleveland, Ohio, a faith-based community organization addressing issues of safety, economic development, and public education.

A graduate of Illinois State University and Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, he received his Doctor of Ministry degree from Ashland Theological Seminary. A strong advocate for social justice and increased attention to ministries addressing mental health issues, he has promoted ministries related to domestic violence and the role of the faith community. Bishop Trimble has worked with ecumenical leadership in Iowa in response to gun violence and immigration reform. He serves as Chairperson of the United Methodist Interagency Immigration Task Force.

Before his election as a bishop, he served as Adjunct Instructor at United Methodist-related Baldwin-Wallace College in Berea, OH where he taught courses on the African American religious experience and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Married to Racelder Grandberry-Trimble, a professional counselor and graduate of Methodist Theological School of Ohio. They are the parents of three adult children: Cameron, Candiace, and Julius Thomas.

Bishop Trimble has preached throughout the United States and in Africa. He is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Bishop James S. Thomas Leadership Award presented by the Methodist Federation for Social Action of East Ohio. He was awarded the Iowa MFSA Social Action Award in June 2015.

His mission statement is:

"To encourage all people with the love of Jesus Christ to rise to their highest potential.”

Prayer 

Glory to God in the highest! We join the heavenly hosts in singing Your praises.

We bow in reverence to You, God of our salvation.

We thank You for the assignment of Julis C. Trimble as Bishop of the Indiana Annual Conference. We thank You for the call on his/her life and that it brings him/her to the Crossroads of America to lead the people of The United Methodist Church in making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. Enable and empower him with Your Spirit to walk out his faith with obedience and conviction.

We pray for Your direction as Bishop Trimble and his wife, Racelder Grandberry-Trimble, begin the process of transitioning to Indiana. Smooth the path before them as they follow You to unfamiliar territory and help them as they leave many people that they love behind.

Finally, Lord, open our hearts to receive our new bishop and his wife as we pray for them. Speak to us through him and make us responsive to his leadership that we may live out our faith in You and bring others to that same faith.

Now, God, Son and Holy Spirit, we invite You to have Your way in the United Methodist Churches of Indiana, for your ways are higher than ours. We pray this in the name of Jesus, our Lord and Savior. 

Amen.

NCJ Episcopal Assignments for 2016–2020

The Committee on Episcopacy of the North Central Jurisdiction announced today the recommended episcopal assignments for 2016-2020. These appointments traditionally begin in September, and most bishops traditionally serve two four-year terms in an episcopal area.

Dakotas Minnesota Episcopal Area –  Bishop Bruce R. Ough 
East Ohio Episcopal Area  – Bishop Tracy S. Malone 
Illinois Great Rivers Episcopal Area – Bishop Frank J. Beard 
Indiana Episcopal Area – Bishop Julius C. Trimble 
Iowa Episcopal Area – Bishop Laurie A. Haller 
Michigan Episcopal Area – Bishop David A. Bard 
Northern Illinois Episcopal Area – Bishop Sally Dyck 
West Ohio Episcopal Area – Bishop Gregory V. Palmer 
Wisconsin Episcopal Area – Bishop Hee-Soo Jung

Media Contact:
Skyler Nimmons
Communications Director
Indiana Conference of The United Methodist Church
skyler.nimmons@inumc.org
803.682.4642 (mobile)
317.564.3242 (direct office)