Planned Giving
Leave a legacy of hope and healing through a planned or estate gift.
Find an Advance Project or MissionarySupport a missionary or project that matches your passion and interest.
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Here are the answers to the most often-asked questions of Global Ministries and UMCOR.
The General Board of Global Ministries is the global mission, relief and development agency of The United Methodist Church, its annual conferences, missionary conferences and local congregations. Founded in 1819, it is one of 13 denominational agencies that provide essential services, resources and ministries beyond the scope of individual local congregations and annual conferences.
Training, commissioning, assigning and supporting missionaries in the U.S. and around the world is a core aspect of Global Ministries’ work. Missionaries serve in more than 60 countries in many types of professional careers, including as pastors, evangelists and church coordinators; teachers and educators; doctors, nurses and other health workers; agriculturists; development specialists; community organizers and peacebuilders.
We encourage people who believe they are called to be missionaries to contact us for more information. After completing the application, candidates go through a discernment process guided by Global Ministries. Missionaries are commissioned into service after completing a period of orientation and training. Learn More
There are several ways to volunteer in mission.
If you are interested in a short-term assignment through Global Ministries, learn more about the Mission Volunteers program.
If you are interested in becoming a United Methodist Volunteer in Mission (UMVIM), contact the jurisdictional UMVIM office in your region. UMVIM Regional Offices
If you are interested in being trained as an UMCOR Early Response Team (ERT) member, contact your Conference Disaster Response Coordinator. U.S. conferences coordinate with UMCOR to train ERTs and deploy them where they are most needed.
UMC congregations can connect with a missionary by initiating a Covenant Partner Relationship with a particular missionary. Such a covenant allows both the church and missionary to be in prayer for one another and to deepen their experience of God’s mission. Along with giving financial support, Covenant Partner congregations receive newsletters, emails, social media posts and other forms of communication from the missionary, and in most cases, virtual meetings and shared worship can be arranged.
Learn more about Covenant Partner Relationships.
We work to strengthen racial-ethnic congregations and low socioeconomic communities in the U.S. and assist populations on the margins in response to practices and systems that limit their value and success in society. Three racial-ethnic national plans of the UMC enjoy a supportive place within Global Ministries: the Asian American Language Ministry, the Korean Ministry Plan and the Pacific Islander National Plan. Learn More
Global Ministries’ Leadership Development and Scholarships program (LDS) provides resources and opportunities for individuals and mission partners to develop expertise and capacities that help to fulfill mission priorities and goals in their regions. Learn More
Founded in 1940, the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) is the global humanitarian relief organization of The United Methodist Church. A part of Global Ministries, UMCOR works in more than 70 countries worldwide, including the United States and its territories, in the areas of disaster relief and recovery, migrant and refugee support, environmental sustainability, and food security and livelihoods. The organization’s mission, grounded in the teachings of Jesus, is to alleviate human suffering for all people.
When a community is impacted by a natural or civil disaster, UMCOR works to support immediate relief and helps communities rebuild their lives and recover over the long term. Through annual conferences, episcopal areas, Disaster Management Offices (DMOs) and ecumenical organizations, we partner with people around the world to help communities carry out their own disaster response, recovery and mitigation efforts.
No, individuals seeking help to recover from a disaster cannot apply for or receive a grant directly from UMCOR. Rather, UMCOR partners with other faith-based and nonprofit organizations to support the needs of a community for immediate relief and/or long-term recovery activities.
Kits are assembled by volunteers for distribution in the United States and its territories by UMCOR Sager Brown and other affiliated warehouses in the United Methodist Relief Supply Network. UMCOR collects relief supplies in the form of cleaning, hygiene and menstrual hygiene kits and encourages local procurement of kit items. See the pages below for how-to videos and further instructions:
UMCOR does not accept donations of clothing, food or supplies other than what is requested for the relief supply kits. Check with affiliated warehouses to see what they accept.
UMCOR encourages, supports and equips Methodist and ecumenical partners for migration ministry. It provides relief and recovery in the form of food aid, basic necessities and legal services for vulnerable migrants and refugees with support to organizations working directly with these populations.
UMCOR encourages United Methodist congregations to engage in local migration ministries. Recent opportunities include small “Mustard Seed” migration grants for congregations providing basic goods and services to migrants in their communities. Learn More
Another avenue of support is through our partner organizations, such as the Immigration Law & Justice Network (ILJN) or Church World Service (CWS), which reach migrants with programs in the U.S. that help them attain legal status, litigate asylum claims and resettle in U.S. communities. Both these organizations depend on volunteers to help with their work. Their national websites will help you identify whether they have offices or sites near you.
You can make a gift to support the work of Global Ministries and UMCOR through the Advance, which is the accountable, designated mission-giving arm of The United Methodist Church. 100% of each gift is used for its intended mission or ministry.
The Advance ensures that 100% of every gift reaches its intended mission or ministry through accountable channels that can be tracked online.
If you provide your email address to us, a receipt is emailed to you the day your transaction for donations is made online or over the phone. If you don’t see this email, please check your spam/junk folders.
Gifts made via ACH may take up to five (5) business days or more to process. If you have not received an emailed receipt after five (5) business days, please check to ensure your donation has been processed.
You may also view a history of past donations in “My Donations,” located in your account at the top, right-hand corner of the screen.
In addition, if we have a valid address for you, a receipt will be mailed to you if you have indicated you prefer mailed receipts. Please allow 3-4 weeks for these receipts to arrive.
You may also contact us at donationhelp@umcmission.org or by calling 888-252-6174 for other inquiries related to recent or past donations.
Learn how to make a donation on behalf of the local church. Note that you must be logged into the portal to donate on behalf of your local church.
Absolutely. You can learn more about establishing a Covenant Partnership Relationship with a missionary here. Covenant Partnership Relationships are sustained relationships that help provide support for missionaries through financial giving and prayer.
Learn how to access the gift tracker. Note that you must be logged into the portal to access the gift tracker.
Notice Regarding the Use of the Gift Tracker
To help in stewardship, the gift tracker is a tool that can be used by donors, Advance projects and Missionaries to confirm that Global Ministries/UMCOR or GBHEM has received and processed a gift.
Please note that there will be a delay between when gifts appear in the gift tracker and when these gifts are cleared for release by the Advance. Please consult with the Advance at advance@umcmission.org regarding any concerns with gift release.
Global Ministries and Higher Education and Ministry share an IT team, and many of our systems are shared systems. Automatic emails from the donor portal are sent through a GBHEM email address. Please contact us immediately at support@gbhem.org if you suspect spam or fraudulent emails have been sent to you that impersonate Global Ministries, UMCOR or GBHEM.
If you suspect fraudulent activity on your credit or debit card, please contact your banking institution directly.
Yes! We can accept gifts through the following ways:
By phone:
Credit card gifts can be accepted via phone. Please call us at 888-252-6174 to make your gift.
By mail:
To give by mail, make your check payable to Advance GCFA, write the name of the missionary or project and the Advance number on the memo line of the check and send it to:
Global Ministries/UMCOR
GPO
P.O. Box 9068
New York, NY 10087-9068
*Our offices are located in Atlanta, Ga., but we accept check gifts via drop box in New York City. Therefore, the address above is the correct address for gifts via check.
Give through your local United Methodist church:
Make your check payable to your local church.
Write the name of the ministry and the Advance code number on the memo line of your check so that your church and annual conference will forward your gift appropriately. Drop your check in any United Methodist church offering plate or give it to your local church treasurer.
Planned giving:
You can make a planned or estate gift in support of Global Ministries, UMCOR, or a specific Advance project. Learn more about planned giving here.
Gifts of stock:
Global Ministries/UMCOR accepts gifts of stock or appreciated securities. Please contact Izabel Scott, senior development associate, at iscott@umcmission.org.
Give through a workplace matching program:
Check with your employer (or former employer if you are retired) to see if you can multiply your support for Global Ministries/UMCOR through a gift match or combined charitable campaign program of your current or past employer.
Provide your company with UMCOR Tax ID 82-1449602 or Global Ministries Tax ID 30-0989628.
Give via IRA distribution:
People aged 70½ or older may make direct charitable gifts from traditional and Roth IRAs to charities in a total amount of up to $100,000. These gifts are free from federal income taxation. In addition, the income tax laws of most states also allow tax-free treatment for these gifts.
Making gifts from IRA funds that would otherwise lead to increased taxes can be a wise choice for many. This is especially true for those who must take required minimum distributions each year.
For more information, Check with us, your IRA administrator, or your tax advisor. (For all tax advice, please refer to your financial or tax advisor.)
Global Ministries and UMCOR do not accept donations of clothing, food or supplies other than what is requested for relief supply kits. Check with affiliated warehouses to see what they accept, and learn more about relief supply donations here.
To update the payment amount, payment date or payment method, please contact us at donationhelp@umcmission.org or by calling 888-252-6174.
You can update your address on your own in the account settings in the donor portal once you are logged into your account.
You may also contact us at donationhelp@umcmission.org or by calling 888-252-6174 to update your address or other information.
The easiest way to stop receiving emails is to click the “Unsubscribe” link at the bottom of any email you receive from Global Ministries and UMCOR.
You may also contact us at donationhelp@umcmission.org or by calling 888-252-6174 to be removed from email and physical mailing lists.
We acknowledge the gift tracker can be slow at times due to the volume of search results it delivers and apologize for this inconvenience. Please be patient with the gift tracker and give it time to process search inquiries.
No, all Advance project and missionary Advance numbers are the same as they were before the new portal was launched.
Yes, all links to previous giving pages have been redirected to the new donor portal.
No, there has been no change in your existing financial processes with regards to Global Ministries and UMCOR giving.
If your question is about a donation or donation history, please contact us at donationhelp@umcmission.org.
If you are having issues with using the donor portal, please contact us at support@gbhem.org.
*Global Ministries and Higher Education and Ministry share an IT team; all support for systems is directed through support@gbhem.org.
