Wesley Foundation outgrows chapel
October 8, 2008 by REBEKAH SMITH For The Red Black
Filed under News
The Wesley Foundation campus ministry has outgrown its facilities.
Since the beginning of the fall semester, Wesley has been meeting at the Classic Center on Wednesday nights in downtown Athens.
“The last couple of falls we had students who we had no room for in our chapel. Last spring attendance grew, so we felt we would start the year here [the Classic Center],” said Bob Beckwith, Wesley director.
Before the move, attendees dealt with scorching heat in cramped services, but the Classic Center solves that problem, said Stephen Byerly, the director of Freshman Ministries.
“We were going to have to buy all new sound equipment, but then a church basically donated all of the sound equipment we have now. And then there were some private donations given that are used to help pay for the rent,” he said.
Attendance at Freshley, a small group ministry held Mondays, has grown too.
“We have 30 small groups and not enough space to put the groups, so we are looking for a facility for that,” he said.
No plans to renovate or restore the existing facility will happen in the “foreseeable future,” he said, citing a lack of funding.
“It would cost too much at this point in time to do anything like that,” he said.
Renting the Classic Center every week comes with a hefty price tag, but Byerly said Wesley will stay there for some time.
“Our plans concerning the Classic Center as of now are to stay there as long as the money is available.”
Plans depend on attendance levels.
“As long as the money holds out and the students come, then we will stay. If it ever goes down, we will go back. We just wanted to be able to accommodate the students who wanted to be with us at the start of the year,” Beckwith said.
