Baptist and Reflector
NASHVILLE — The Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee announced Thursday that the 2021 Annual Meeting and Send Conference are being moved to the Nashville Music City Center.
The annual meeting was originally scheduled to be held at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center.
Ronnie Floyd, president of the SBC Executive Committee, announced the change in a press release on Thursday.
“I want to thank the city of Nashville, mayor John Cooper, the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center, the Nashville Convention and Visitors Corp, and the Music City Center for their incredible efforts in facilitating this move,” Floyd said in the press release.
Randy C. Davis, president and executive director of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, said he was pleased that the meeting will still be held in Tennessee.
“We are excited that the executive committee was able to work out keeping the SBC annual meeting in our great state in spite of COVID-19 restrictions that are still in place in Nashville,” Davis said. “I’m looking forward to seeing Tennessee Baptists roll out the red carpet for our Southern Baptist friends from across the nation.”
Floyd said the SBC Executive Committee has secured “adequate space to conduct proceedings on June 15-16 in accordance with SBC bylaws, in complete fulfillment of our order of business and in line with local COVID-19 protocols.”
Ronnie Floyd
The release said the shift to the Music City Center was made to provide abundant space and safety for attendees. The Executive Committee is also working to relocate events scheduled June 13-16 in conjunction with the Annual Meeting to the Music City Center and nearby venues, the release said.
“Remaining in Nashville protects previously made travel plans for messengers and attendees,” Floyd said. Current reservations at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and surrounding hotels booked through the Convention housing bureau remain in place, but the option to change to a hotel nearer the Music City Center will be available for those who desire to modify their reservations starting Monday, April 26 at 8 a.m. central.
“I especially want to commend the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center and their leadership for their flexibility, their understanding, and their partnership in keeping the Annual Meeting in Nashville,” Floyd said in the release.
The 2020 annual meeting, scheduled to be held in Orlando, was canceled due to the pandemic.
“The SBC Annual Meeting is a time for Southern Baptists to come together and celebrate how God is moving in and through our convention and churches,” Floyd said in the release. “In 2021, it will be a time for Southern Baptists to reconnect with one another after missing out on a gathering in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. … Be encouraged. God is at work. Over the past few days, we have seen Romans 8:28 illustrated before our eyes. The Lord is on His throne.” B&R
