Invitation

TO: Embassy of the United States of America
SUBJECT: Confirmation of Invitation to the General Conference of The United Methodist Church
April 23 – May 3, 2024 – Charlotte Convention Center, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
This letter is to confirm an invitation has extended to the person named below who has been duly elected by his/her
Annual Conference as a DELEGATE to the General Conference of The United Methodist Church. This letter is intended
for the sole purpose of supporting the below named person in the application for a travel visa to the United States of
America. Additional information about the event is provided on the second page of this letter.
Given Name: Dexter Lloyd Surname: Barroga
Email: sirdexterlloyds@gmail.com Delegation: West Middle Philippines
Home Address: The UMC, MH Del Pilar Street Mailing Address: The UMC, MH Del Pilar Street
2112 Philippines 2112 Philippines
Date of Birth: July 22, 1980 Gender: Male
Place of Birth: Olongapo City Nationality: Filipino
Passport Number: P338976A Date of Issuance: June 17, 2017
Passport Issued by: DFA Pampanga Date of Expiry: July 22, 2028
Travel Dates:
Delegates traveling from countries other than the United States will arrive in Charlotte, North Carolina on Thursday,
April 18, 2024 unless a different arrival date is assigned due to official activities. Delegates will depart on Saturday, May
4, 2024. The Office of the Business Manager of the General Conference will be booking travel for all Delegates through
the official travel agency of the General Conference. The General Conference will be booking all travel for a Delegate
once proper visas have been received.
Travel Provisions:
The General Conference pays the hotel directly for the Delegate’s sleeping room based on double occupancy (2
Delegates sharing a room with two beds.) Delegates will be provided three meals a day with the exception of Sunday,
April 28th. Delegates will be given a $50 per diem for Sunday, April 28 th.
Travel expenses from the Delegate’s home to the General Conference and fees related to attaining visas will be paid by
the General Conference.
Thank you very much for your cooperation in issuing an entry visa for the above-named person.
Sara Hotchkiss Rev. Gary W. Graves

Business Manager of the General Conference Secretary of the General Conference
Additional Information for the Consular Officer
Travel Information
Elected delegates to this event are seeking a B1 – Visitor Visa for Business. Travel, housing, and meal expenses will be
paid for the period of the General Conference by the Business Manager of the General Conference per the invitation
letter. General Conference office staff will make hotel reservations for delegates at the Hilton Garden Inn Charlotte
Uptown, 508
E. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Charlotte, North Carolina, 28202 USA.
You may contact Sara Hotchkiss for further information, using the contact information in the letterhead at the top of
the first page. Delegates should not arrive in the United States before Thursday, April 18 th unless it related to available
flights and/or the cost of the flights. If a delegate chooses to stay after the General Conference concludes, the General
Conference will not be responsible for those arrangements and does not sponsor any event outside the scope of the
dates of the postponed General Conference. This letter is not intended to endorse in any way events sponsored by
other entities. The Business Manager of the General Conference is not responsible for the expenses related to any other
meetings/events by issuance of this letter of invitation.
The United Methodist Church

The United Methodist Church is a connectional structure maintained through its chain of conferences. There are
approximately 48,000 congregations and 12 million members worldwide.
The United Methodist Church was created on April 23, 1968, during the General Conference in Dallas, Texas. This action
united The Methodist Church with The Evangelical United Brethren Church, both with histories that spanned nearly 200
years.
The United Methodist Church shares a common history and heritage with other Methodist and Wesleyan bodies. The
lives and ministries of John Wesley (1703-1791) and of his brother, Charles (1707-1788), mark the origin of their
common roots. Both John and Charles were Church of England missionaries to the colony of Georgia, arriving in March
1736. Organized Methodism in America began as a lay movement and was spread by circuit riding preachers. The first
conference of Methodist preachers in the colonies was held in Philadelphia in 1773 and over the years this event has
grown into the General Conference.
The General Conference
The General Conference is the legislative body of The United Methodist Church. The voting membership of the General
Conference consists of an equal number of clergy and lay delegates elected by fifty-six regional conferences in the
United States and seventy-five regional conferences outside the United States in the two years prior to the General
Conference. The General Conference meets every four years, gathering the duly elected global leaders of the
denomination to deliberate on the policies of the church. It is the only body that can speak officially for the
denomination.
6,000-8,000 people are anticipated to be in attendance. Approximately 860 are voting delegates and 400 are non-voting
delegates or reserve delegates. The remaining attendees are staff and observers.
United Methodist bishops serve as the presiding officers during the plenary sessions at the General Conference. Plenary
sessions are generally conducted in English with simultaneous interpretation into ten other languages. The event is
livestreamed through the work of the church’s communication agency.
Sara Hotchkiss, the Business Manager of the General Conference, is the chief operating officer of the General
Conference acting on behalf of the Commission on the General Conference. If you are in need of further information,
please do not hesitate to contact her.

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TO: Embassy of the United States of America

Sara Hotchkiss Rev. Gary W. Graves

The United Methodist Church

The General Conference

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