Join us for our opening worship and keynot with Rachel Held Evans.

Join Rachel for a time of discussion and q&a.

Grab some new friends and enjoy all that Irvine has to offer at a local eatery!

Dawn Price, Executive Director of Laguna Beach's Friendship Shelter, shares her story of faith & works.

Dawn Price is Executive Director of Friendship Shelter, Inc. Dawn has spent most of her 30+ year career serving human services organizations that help disadvantaged individuals. Prior to joining FSI, she served Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Rio Grande Valley, Planned Parenthood of Greater Iowa, and Drake University in various management and fundraising capacities. She holds an MA in Mass Communications from Drake University and a BA in English from Carthage College, as well as a certificate in non-profit leadership from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.

Paul Tellström, Senior Minister at Irvine UCC, shares his story of faith & works.

For eleven years, Paul was on the board of Hope-Net, an interfaith non-profit organization dedicated to eradicating hunger and homelessness in Los Angeles. He is the immediate past president of Hope-Net, an agency that has grown to form a network of twelve food pantries and six feeding programs throughout the city. In addition to food pantries that operate throughout the week, Hope-Net owns Hope-West Apartments, a 17-unit low income apartment complex.

The Rev. Dr. Tellström is the recipient of the 2001 Paul Rothman Humanitarian Award. This award was given in honor of his service to the fight against HIV/AIDS by AIDS ReSearch Alliance.

Paul arrived at IUCC having been the Senior Minister of the Mt. Hollywood Congregational Church, where he spent eight years. His work at that church is featured in Dr. William Avery’s book, Revitalizing Congregations, in the chapter entitled, Peace Congregational Church. In 2001, their story was featured on the front page of the Los Angeles Times, and in 2002, he accepted the Martin Luther King, Jr. Award for Social Justice on behalf of the church.

Mandy Sloan Flemming, Senior Minister at Laguna Beach UMC, shares her story of faith & works.

Rev. Mandy Sloan Flemming is a native of Knoxville, Tennessee. After hearing her call to ministry while working on staff at Camp Wesley Woods, Mandy attended Oglethorpe University in Atlanta, GA, which, ironically, had no religion department. Regardless, Mandy was admitted to Princeton Theological Seminary, from which she received her Masters of Divinity and a spouse. 

After graduating from seminary, Mandy began a Masters in Sacred Music in Voice at Westminster Choir College, but was especially grateful to be appointed to serve West Farms UMC in Farmingdale, NJ, who taught her how to be a pastor. A year later, the church was yoked with Bethesda UMC in Adelphia, NJ, and the experience of preaching on a two-point charge while mothering an infant gave her the false assurance that she was invincible. 

In June 2005, Mandy joined the staff at Grace United Methodist Church as the Children's Minister in Atlanta. In 2007, she was appointed to serve as the Minister of Christian Education and Spiritual Formation at Saint Mark United Methodist Church. It was here that her heart was warmed to ministry for and with the LGBTQ community. 

In June 2014, Mandy was appointed to serve as the Senior Minister at Laguna Beach United Methodist Church in Laguna Beach, CA. She is suffering for the Lord with an ocean view from the sanctuary and a marvelous and inclusive congregation with which to serve. She still thinks that Camp is the best week of the year, and boasts of knowing all the verses to "Pharaoh, Pharaoh." 

Mandy is joined in ministry with her husband, Matthew, their children, Jackson, Cooper and Sloan, their curmudgeonly beagle, Edgar, and two impossibly small dogs named Posey and Lola. Together, they watch a lot of baseball.