• New Deputy Chief Investment Officer
• Participant Communications
• Systems Unavailable—June 30 at 8:00p.m.
• Wespath Holiday Closing—Independence Day

New Deputy Chief Investment Officer

Will succeed CIO Dave Zellner upon retirement

We're pleased to announce that Johara Farhadieh will join Wespath this fall as deputy chief investment officer (deputy CIO). Johara is intended to succeed current Chief Investment Officer Dave Zellner when Dave retires in summer 2024.

As deputy CIO, Johara will oversee Wespath's Investment Management team and work closely with Dave and our entire Investments team to assure a smooth transition of leadership, skills and knowledge within the faith-based environment that Wespath serves. This transition period also gives Johara ample time to build relationships with our institutional investors, including United Methodist foundations and endowments and other entities related to UMC annual conferences.

While serving as DCIO, Johara's responsibilities will involve gaining familiarity with Wespath's investment strategy, funds, asset managers, board of directors governance, and the polity of The United Methodist Church. She will work closely with General Secretary/CEO Andy Hendren and will join Wespath's Senior Leadership Team (SLT) at an appropriate time in her transition. Johara brings a mission orientation, investment expertise, and experience with defined benefit (DB) and defined contribution (DC) retirement plans from prior work experience, including her current role at the Illinois State Board of Investment.

Read more about Johara in this press release.

Dave Zellner to Retire Summer 2024

Retaining Johara as deputy CIO is a key pillar of leadership succession that supports Dave Zellner in his desire to retire in summer 2024 after nearly three decades leading Wespath's investment strategy. Dave joined Wespath in 1997 and oversees all aspects of our investment activities. He also provides primary strategic investment direction and oversight for our Wespath Institutional Investments (WII) subsidiary. We will celebrate and recognize Dave more fully in 2024.

Participant Communications

Over June 29-30 we are sending an eblast to approximately 5,800 participants who did not make personal contributions to UMPIP in 2022. The eblast content was tailored to specific age groups (46-55, 56-62 and 62+), outlines the benefits of contributing to UMPIP and connects participants with the Contributions Election form.

Systems Unavailable—June 30 at 8:00p.m.

Wespath Portal, Benefits Access (participant and plan sponsor portals), Contribution Management, Wespath Institutional Investor Portal and the Comprehensive Benefit Funding Plan will be unavailable from Friday, June 30 at 8:00 p.m. until Saturday, July 1 at 7:00 a.m., Central Time, to allow for system maintenance and updates. We apologize for any inconvenience this brief outage may cause.

Wespath Holiday Closing—Independence Day

Wespath will be closed on Tuesday, July 4, for Independence Day. Customer Service assistance will be unavailable that day.

Benefits Access for participants can be used to access acount information and complete transactions 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The Benefit Access Portal for Plan Sponsors and Wespath Institutional Investor Portal will be available to plan sponsors, conferences and institutions.

---

Copyright © Wespath Benefits and Investments,
a general agency of The United Methodist Church
Share your suggestions and comments about On Board Express