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Spring Hill man appointed to national unity commission for United Methodist Church

By Gail Hollenbeck, Times Correspondent
In print: Saturday, October 11, 2008

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SPRING HILL — Walter L. Dry Sr., who has spent his life urging people to live and work in harmony, will have a chance to promote those ideals on a national stage over the next four years.

In July, Dry, of Spring Hill, was appointed to the board of directors for the General Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns, an arm of the United Methodist Church that works toward peace and unity by engaging with and talking to other Christian denominations.

The ecumenically minded commission, based in New York, also interprets the church's role in exploring relations with people of other faiths, cultures and ideologies — such as Muslims, American Indians and Jews — and participates in groups like the World Council of Churches and the National Council of Churches.

Dry is looking forward to his duties.

"I hope to do the best that I can with the spiritual gifts that I possess and to bring a better understanding with other communities around the world whenever I am called upon to work in God's name," Dry said. "As I am interacting with other faith communities, cultures and ideologies, I have promised to try to establish and strengthen our relationships in Christian unity."

Dry, 75, is well-known in Hernando County for his volunteer work with organizations such as the United Way and in his church, First United Methodist Church of Spring Hill, where he has served in many capacities since he and his wife, Glenda, became members in 1987.

He has served as president of the United Way of Hernando County, the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association and the Brotherhood/Sisterhood Association of Hernando County; he has been chairman of the board of directors for the United Way of Florida and has been active in numerous other volunteer organizations in Florida, New Jersey and New York.

While many people Dry's age are enjoying retirement in the Sunshine State, Dry, who retired from the clinical laboratory field in 1989 and from a position as an Equal Employment Opportunity investigator in 1999, still works from home as a labor relations and EEO consultant.

He has conducted lectures and training on the "Prevention of Discrimination and Sexual Harassment in the Workplace" for governmental agencies.

Dry's new, four-year appointment is just one of a long list of positions he has held within the Methodist Church at local, district, conference, jurisdictional and general conference levels.

Be it at the local level or in his new position with the General Commission, Dry said that to him it's all a part of his desire to serve God.

"I believe it is a blessing from God," he said. "It does not matter to me what I am doing in the church. God has been watching over me all of my life, and I believe that the spiritual gifts I possess are being utilized to help bring glory to his kingdom."

The 50-year-old commission's newly appointed secretary general, the Rev. Stephen J. Sidorak Jr., said Dry has already been exercising those gifts within the commission as part of the new personnel committee.

"We're putting him to work in human resources immediately," Sidorak said. "At the very first meeting in July, I alluded to some concerns about confidentiality when personnel issues are being spoken of. He shot right back with the need for a confidentiality agreement, drafted it overnight, submitted it around, got everybody to be signatories to it and now it's a done deal. So that was a bold, important stroke and a demonstration of his leadership at the outset."

Sidorak said he is impressed with Dry's background.

"That's what he's going to bring — manifold gifts and graces in the area of human resources," he said. "He understands both the business side of an organization and the people side, based on his long experience dealing with the EEO. It will help us a great deal to be able to tap into his expertise and experience there."

Sidorak said Dry has been helpful to him on a personal level and feels they already have a friendship in the making. He also believes Dry has a "powerful witness to make."

"He is a very skilled lay speaker, which is a noble tradition in the United Methodist Church. When he got up to speak on any number of topics during the course of our meetings together, he was always right on the spot with his commentary and very incisive in his criticism when it was necessary. So I think he's very articulate, even eloquent, and he brings that to us."

According to its Web site, the General Commission's leadership role within the United Methodist Church is twofold: "Working toward God's gift of unity of the whole body of Christ, which is integral to making disciples of Jesus Christ, and strengthening interreligious relationships, which enable community building."

Dry believes he is ready to meet that challenge.

"I believe that God has prepared me for the tasks that lie ahead," he said.

Bill Walker, past Florida Conference lay leader for the Methodist Church, says Dry will be an asset to the commission.

"I know Walter as a principled individual of deep faith, and with a passion for the health of any organization with which he is related," Walker said. "His long history in the church, including his early history with the AME Zion denomination, with whom this body concerned with ecumenical affairs has long been actively involved, is clearly an asset.

"So is his practical common sense, which keeps him firmly anchored and thus positioned to offer good judgment."

Timothy Whitaker, Florida area resident bishop, said he is happy about Dry's selection.

"Walter is respected as a person of deep personal faith who has a commitment to the church and a set of gifts and leadership skills, which the church needs," Whitaker said.

Dry said he has no personal agenda and is just looking forward to doing "whatever God wants me to do" for the commission.

"I just want to do the best that I can with the spiritual gifts that I possess," he said. "I owe my life and existence to God and through his son Jesus Christ as my lord and savior. And I will continue to work for the church until he calls me home."