When Mennonite Publishing Network (MPN) and Third Way Media merge on July 1, the new agency will be called MennoMedia. That was the decision of the board that now governs MPN and which will govern the new integrated agency.
The eight-member binational board voted unanimously to approve the name on April 8 during its quarterly meeting in Harrisonburg, Va., where the main offices of MennoMedia will be located.
MPN is the publishing agency of both Mennonite Church Canada and MC U.S.A. Third Way Media is currently a program of Mennonite Mission Network and had programming and operations in Canada from the mid-1950s to the mid-1980s. As a merged entity, MennoMedia will be binational.
A joint staff working group of Third Way Media and MPN proposed the MennoMedia name to the board, which was looking for a simple umbrella name.
The working group also proposed that the two agencies’ three brand names continue to be used. The three brands, or imprints, are: Herald Press—books; Third Way Media—video, radio, the Internet and other media; and Faith & Life Resources—Sunday school and other resources for churches.
“The term ‘media’ describes what we’re all about,” says Ron Rempel, executive director of MPN. “The new agency will deliver creative and inspirational content not only in print, but in a variety of electronic formats. The ‘Menno’ prefix should clearly identify the agency for church insiders and also for a broader audience.”
At its meeting in Harrisonburg, the board reviewed progress on the plans for merging the two organizations and approved a two-year budget. Rempel is retiring as MPN executive director in July; a new executive director is expected to be named prior to his retirement.
MennoMedia offices in Harrisonburg will be housed in what is now Third Way Media’s building. While the largest number of staff—about 20—will be in Harrisonburg, there will also be staff in Canada (Waterloo, Ont., and Winnipeg, Man.), and other parts of the U.S. (Newton, Kan.; Elkhart, Ind.; and other locations).
More than a century of publishing in Scottdale, Pa., will come to an end this summer when MPN merges with Third Way Media. Some of the staff in Scottdale will move to Harrisonburg and the Scottdale building will be sold.
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