JACKSON Tenn (May 29, 2015) – Lay and clergy delegates, along with family, friends, and special guests, will attend the 2015 Annual Conference of the Memphis Conference of The United Methodist Church at the Carl Perkins Civic Center and Jackson First United Methodist Church.

The Civic Center is the primary location while Jackson First United Methodist Church will host youth and children’s activities, a Sunday evening memorial service, Tuesday evening ordination service and an assortment of private meal events.

The Memphis Conference includes more than 81,000 members in 421 United Methodist Churches in West Tennessee and Western Kentucky, as well as many cooperative United Methodist ministries and college campus ministries throughout the area.

“Offering Christ to a Hurting World” is the theme for the 2015 Memphis Annual Conference, as announced by Bishop William T. (Bill) McAlilly, who will preside.

McAlilly is the resident bishop for the Nashville Episcopal Area of the United Methodist Church that includes the Memphis (West Tennessee and Western Kentucky) and Tennessee (Middle Tennessee) Conferences. He began his current assignment in September 2012 after he was elected to the episcopacy in July 2012 at the Southeastern Jurisdictional Conference of the United Methodist Church.

The last time the Memphis Annual Conference met in Jackson was in 2012. It was held in Paducah, Ky., in 2014 and in Collierville, Tenn., in 2013.