Normal First United Methodist Church stands at 211 North School Street in Normal, Illinois, just across from the campus of Illinois State University. The congregation has gathered on this corner since 1957, and its roots in the town go back to 1865, when six men met at the home of A.C. Mason and elected the first Board of Trustees. Today the church describes itself with three short phrases: Love Boldly, Serve Joyfully, Lead Courageously, and it lives out those words in three weekend worship services, an on-site college food pantry, a music program that ranges from a chancel choir to a praise band, and a wide roster of small groups that meet in homes, restaurants, and on Zoom. The church's mission is to connect all people with Jesus Christ, and its vision is to be transformed by God and to transform the world into a compassionate, just, inclusive, Christ-like community. Normal First is recognized by gaychurch.org as an LGBTQ-affirming congregation and believes that all people are created in the image of God and celebrated for who they are.
Three Weekend Services on School Street
Worship happens three times each weekend. On Saturday at 5:00 pm, the sanctuary hosts an informal service that mixes traditional pieces with a relaxed setting. Music comes from piano and guitar, and the dress is whatever worshippers were already wearing - jeans are as welcome as suits. People coming from a day in the garden or an evening Redbirds game fit right in. Open Communion is celebrated on the first weekend of the month.
On Sunday at 9:30 am, the sanctuary fills for the traditional service. The chancel choir and guest instrumentalists anchor the music, an organist leads from the front, and the congregation follows a familiar liturgical flow. This service is also livestreamed, so people at home, in the car, or on the road can join in. Dress is by preference, from shorts and jeans to suits and ties. Open Communion is observed on the first Sunday. Nursery care is available for infants through age three, and children ages four through twelve may leave after the children's sermon for Sunday School.
Sunday at 11:00 am brings the contemporary service, which meets in the Fellowship Hall around tables with drinks and snacks. The Worship Band, drawn from musicians of many backgrounds and skill levels, leads the music. Families worship together, and a play area keeps younger children engaged. Like the other services, it celebrates Open Communion on the first Sunday of the month.
A hearing induction loop was installed in the sanctuary seating in 2019. Anyone whose hearing aid has a telecoil can switch it on and receive the service audio directly, and receivers are available at the door for those who need them.
A Place for Every Age
The children's ministry is called Kids @ Normal First, with the tagline Worship, Wonder, Grow. The goal is for every child to feel God's love in a way that makes them safe, celebrated, and valued. Sunday School meets at 9:30 am, and nursery care is offered during the same hour for infants through age three. A dedicated Masterpiece Ministry classroom provides specialized accommodations for students with disabilities.
Children move through a series of Milestones in Ministry: Baby Recognition, Baptisms, a First Grade Prayer Retreat, a Third Grade Bible Retreat, and a Fifth Grade Service Retreat. Family festivities run through the year and include Vacation Bible School, a Christmas Pageant, Trunk or Treat, pool parties, and the all-church Fun Fest held at Maxwell Park. Wonderful Wednesdays, on the first and third Wednesdays, gather families around a 5:15 pm meal followed by children's programming and a Young Families group.
Ignite Youth is the middle and high school ministry for students in grades six through twelve. The group meets Sunday mornings for Jr. High Sunday School (9:30-10:30) and Sr. High Sunday School (10:30-11:00), serves in worship on the first Sunday of each month, and gathers from 5:30 to 7:00 pm on Sunday evenings for food and fellowship. The youth also take part in mission trips, pool parties, lock-ins, and service projects. Confirmation is offered each year to seventh through ninth graders as a yearlong faith formation class led by pastors and youth ministry staff.
For college students at nearby ISU, the church partners with MERGE, the United Methodist Wesley Foundation campus ministry, which is housed on the lower level of the building. MERGE exists to help students experience God and become disciples of Jesus Christ in a place where they can belong, believe, and become. The church also runs a 2nd Families program that pairs student members with congregational families for friendship and connection during the school year. The Young Adult/Families small group gathers on Wednesday evenings during the Wednesday Connect suppers.
The School Street Food Pantry
Opened in 2018, the School Street Food Pantry addresses food insecurity among college students in McLean County. Distributions happen on Fridays from 4:00 to 6:00 pm, with Thursdays during the summer, providing free, healthy, fresh foods to ISU students and any other college student in the Bloomington-Normal area. The pantry operates out of the church and is managed by Elaine Capek. It functions as its own nonprofit with a separate site at schoolstreetfoodpantry.org and a corps of volunteers drawn from the congregation and the wider community.
The food pantry is part of a larger culture of service that runs through the building. A Blessing Box is attached to the church garage and is stocked 24/7 for neighbors who need a quick meal. On the last weekend of each month, the children lead the Noisy Offering during worship, with all of the loose change going to support The Baby Fold, a local agency serving children and families.
Music Across the Week
Music ministry is led by Director of Music Nathan Rodriguez and Organ and Pianist Kari Kaps. The Chancel Choir rehearses on Wednesdays from 7:00 to 8:30 pm and sings regularly at the Sunday 9:30 service as well as seasonal services. The Praise Band rehearses on Thursdays from 5:00 to 6:00 pm and leads the music for the 11:00 contemporary service and other services through the year. The band welcomes singers and instrumentalists with experience in a worship setting.
An Instrumental Ensemble draws on guest musicians for the Christmas and Easter seasons and for special music throughout the year. Children have their own music opportunities through Kids @ Normal First, with activities and performances designed to nurture their talents and spiritual growth. The music program explicitly welcomes LGBTQIA+ people and people from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds, and is committed to providing a safe, inclusive, and open environment.
Learning for Every Season
Life-Long Learners is the umbrella for adult formation. The Slow and Steady Bible Study meets on Thursdays at 12:00 pm and 3:30 pm in the church lounge, with a Zoom link available for those who cannot attend in person. Led by Pastor Kent, the study assumes no Bible knowledge and walks through the text at a steady pace.
A Sermon Reflections Sunday School Class meets at 10:45 am on Sundays in Room 303 to discuss the morning's message, and a Book Study hosted by Pastor Kim meets on the first Thursday of each month at Morningstar UMC in two sessions, 1:00 pm and 6:30 pm. The United Women in Faith circles - Mercy, Sonrise, and Vesper - meet monthly for support, study, and mission, with Mercy Circle on the third Wednesday at 9:30 am, Sonrise Circle on the first and third Wednesdays at 6:30 am, and Vesper Circle on the third Tuesday at 1:30 pm.
A Social Justice Small Group meets on the third Tuesday of the month at 3:00 pm and 6:30 pm, educating members about issues of justice and finding ways to be in solidarity with the community. Past activities have included a field trip to the Project XV Voting Rights Museum in El Paso, an antiracism training, and a speaker on racial health disparities.
The wider Small Groups ministry offers more than a dozen gatherings: Brunch Bunch, which meets the last Friday of the month at 11:00 am at a different restaurant; Card Ministry; Dinner and A Movie; Guys Night Out on odd months; Ladies Night Out on even months; the Men's Group on Wednesdays from 6:00 to 7:00 pm in Room 303 from September through May; Newcomers; Prayer Chain; Prayer Shawl Ministry; 2nd Families; 2nd Sundays Out at Bob Evans Restaurant on the second Sunday of each month; and a Technology and Troubleshooting group. The Prayer Shawl Ministry invites knitters and crocheters to make shawls for those in need of comfort.
A Building That Welcomes
The current church building at 211 North School Street has been the congregation's home since 1957. The church parking lot sits on the north side of the building, with additional weekend parking available in the Bone Student Center lot and the ISU lot east of the building across School Street. First-time guests are encouraged to use the canopied entrance on the north side.
Elevator access reaches every floor, including all classrooms, the Fellowship Hall, the Sanctuary, the Chapel, the Library, the kitchen, restrooms, and offices. Ushers are stationed at the rear of the sanctuary during every service to assist with any need, and the church provides bus service from Westminster Village on Sundays.
The building is a Safe Sanctuary Church, with policies in place to protect children and youth. The sanctuary itself hosts weddings, baptisms, and funerals for members and the wider community, and the Fellowship Hall and other spaces can be reserved for private events. Ushers hand out a bulletin with the order of service, announcements, and the names of the worship leaders before each service, and pastors stay at the rear of the sanctuary for conversation afterward.
Pastors Kent and Kathy King-Nobles share ministry together, with Kent focusing on sharing the good news that God loves everyone and Kathy enjoying being part of faith journeys with people of all ages. Pastor Kim Burke, an ordained deacon called to ministries of compassion and justice, journeys with youth and adults through challenging seasons of life.
Outreach in Bloomington-Normal
The church's outreach calendar assigns a different community partner to each month of the year, with two partners in March and two in August. January highlights HSH Ministries, February brings a partner of its own, March has two partners (BNFI and the Carle Compassion Closet and Cupboard), April features Chestnut Health Systems, June supports the Lessie Bates Davis Neighborhood House, July is McLean County Center for Human Services, August has two partners (Boys and Girls Club of Bloomington-Normal and the School Street Food Pantry itself), September supports Habitat for Humanity of McLean County, October highlights Charis Church's OCO ministry, and November features the YWCA Labyrinth.
The congregation supports UMCOR, the United Methodist Committee on Relief, through regular offerings to help communities recover from floods and tornadoes. The Interfaith Green Team partners with other Bloomington-Normal faith communities to educate and advocate for more sustainable ways of living. Wednesday Connect suppers gather the church family around the table on Wednesday evenings, and volunteers are always welcome to help with meal preparation, serving, and clean-up.
The building also hosts two recovery and meditation groups that are open to the wider community. Al-Anon meetings are held on Mondays at 10:00 am and Fridays at 5:30 pm. A Buddhist Meditation Group meets weekly for guided meditation following modern Buddhist practices.
From 1865 to Solar Panels
Normal First United Methodist Church has been a downtown church since 1865, when the Illinois Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church responded to a request from Illinois State Normal University President Richard Edwards and combined the Twin Grove and new Normal churches into the Normal Circuit. The Reverend C.D. Jones was appointed as the first pastor. The first sanctuary was built in 1867 at Fell Avenue and Ash Street, where College Avenue now runs. In 1957, the congregation moved to its current location at 211 North School Street, in the heart of the ISU campus. In 2015, the church celebrated 150 Years of Service to the community, the nation, and the world.
Today the congregation continues that long arc of service. An active capital campaign has organized teams around gift gathering, prayer, hospitality, youth and children, communications, and creative giving. A solar energy initiative is exploring the installation of solar panels on the building as part of the congregation's care for creation. Giving is supported through online giving, ACH transfers, bill pay, qualified charitable distributions from IRAs, and in-service offerings.
Normal First United Methodist Church welcomes students, families, and neighbors from across Bloomington-Normal into worship, learning, and life together at 211 North School Street, just where it has been since 1865.