Meet Our Leaders: Monica Jefferson

For the next year, each month, we will feature a different Conference board, committee, council or team by highlighting a member and their connectional experience of serving beyond the local church.

Clergy Support Team
(Missouri Standing Rule 113.00)

The Clergy Support Team is the Board of Pensions of the Missouri Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. The function of the Clergy Support Team will provide support for ministry through pensions, health insurance and equitable compensation and to cooperate with the Board of Ordained Ministry to consolidate clergy scholarships and continuing education funds into one process.

Featured Team Member: Rev. Monica Jefferson

Rev. Monica Jefferson has served as lead pastor of St. Andrew United Methodist Church in Florissant since 2007. She has previously served as the Conference Coordinator of Urban & Intercultural Ministries. Monica has served extensively in leadership at both the district and Conference levels throughout her ministry including as Conference Secretary, both the district and Conference Mission Councils and on the Conference Values Team.

What might surprise clergy and laity in the Missouri Conference about serving on this team?

The team is very much concerned with the physical, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing of clergy, spouses and families. The Clergy Support Team provides oversight that helps protect benefits, pensions, health, retirement savings and help reduce clergy tax liabilities.

What do you wish others knew about serving beyond the local church on a Conference team?

The Clergy Support Team provides important oversight that helps protect pensions, health benefits and retirement savings to support clergy and families. Our fiduciary responsibilities work in tandem with the spiritual, ethical and moral decisions we make. My interest in this team peaked as I became aware of the horror stories of people working for decades and pension plans going bankrupt or being stolen. I am also impressed with the communication about how changes in the marketplace effect clergy benefits past, present and future. The Clergy Support Team makes every effort to communicate and educate clergy and churches to help them make informed decisions about benefits.