Metrics

4 Days
February 1–4, 2024.

Houston, Texas
Hyatt Regency Houston Intercontinental Airport.

50th Anniversary
The gathering celebrated 50 years of ELCA World Hunger.

2 Service-Learning Sites
St. James Santiago Apóstol & Iglesia Luterana Príncipe de Paz.

84% Satisfaction
Reported / Evaluation

Overview

In 2024, I supported the planning and implementation of the ELCA World Hunger Leadership Gathering in Houston, Texas. The gathering brought together hunger leaders and special guests from across the United States and abroad for worship, learning, network-building, and shared reflection on hunger and its root causes. Official event materials describe the gathering as a signature event centered on the theme “Embracing Hope – Taking Action – Moving Forward!” and focused on partnership, future generations, and connections among hunger, migration, housing, climate justice, disaster preparedness, and equity.

My Role

Serving as Consultant, Building Resilient Communities, I supported core aspects of the event from pre-planning through delivery. My documented scope included helping book venues and transportation, scheduling speakers, managing event operations, conducting day-of logistics checks, responding to participant inquiries, assisting with event evaluation, curating weekly email content, and drafting ELCA World Hunger resource materials connected to the ELCA Youth Gathering.

Participant Experience & Bilingual Leadership

A central part of my contribution was helping create a gathering that felt organized, welcoming, and responsive to participants. The official program positioned me as a participant-facing contact for hotel confirmations, reservation questions, and feedback support. A public recap of the event also notes that I led a bilingual worship service, reinforcing the multilingual and community-centered dimension of my role.

Program Highlights

The gathering included worship, ministry fair and advocacy content, service-learning visits, mini-sessions, Makers Café workshops, regional conversations, and a 50th-anniversary gala dinner. Public and official materials also highlight the event’s engagement with AMMPARO and learning related to migrants and asylum seekers in the Houston area, especially through visits to Príncipe de Paz and St. James Santiago Apostol.

Why It Mattered?

This project reflects the kind of leadership I bring to mission-driven work: thoughtful logistics, strong follow-through, bilingual communication, and relationship-centered support that helps people connect, learn, and move forward together. According to our Report / Participant Feedback, the event evaluation reflected an 84% satisfaction rate, underscoring a strong participant experience across a complex national gathering.

Key Contributions:

• Event logistics and operations

• Participant communication and hospitality support

• Speaker scheduling & transportation coordination

• Evaluation support

• Weekly email content coordination

• Spanish-language resource development

• Bilingual worship leadership

“The ELCA World Hunger Leadership Gathering strengthened my experience in national event coordination, participant support, bilingual leadership, and mission-driven execution within the large ELCA Churchwide Network in the U.S and abroad.…”

Ismael C.