Wesley Memorial Methodist Church in High Point
Wesley Memorial Methodist Church gathers at the corner of Chestnut Drive and Westchester Drive in High Point, North Carolina, a 2,500-member congregation in the United Methodist tradition that has occupied its present campus since 1960. The church runs three Sunday services, a Wednesday evening Vespers, and a long-running Christian preschool, and it pours its energy into dozens of local and global mission partnerships. Members describe the tone of the church with the words on the connection card: "No matter who you are, you belong here." The church's stated mission is "to make and sustain spiritually healthy followers of Jesus Christ who live in ways that transform the world."
From a Washington Street One-Room Church to a Triad Mainstay
Wesley Memorial's story stretches back to 1856, when a small group of Methodists under the leadership of Peter Doub, one of Methodism's most famous circuit riders, built a one-room church on what was to become Washington Street in a town as yet unincorporated. That first congregation numbered seventeen people, seven men and ten women. The church was then called Washington Street Methodist Episcopal Church South.
A second building rose on the same site between 1888 and 1890 and housed the congregation until 1915. The third church was built that year on North Main Street, and the name was changed to Wesley Memorial Methodist Episcopal Church, South, in honor of John Wesley, Methodism's founder. Membership continued to grow, the North Main Street site became landlocked, and in 1953 a tract of land was purchased on Chestnut Street. Construction of the Chapel and the Administrative and Education wing began in 1958 and was completed in 1960; the present sanctuary was occupied by 1968. That same year, in the wake of the national merger of the Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren, the name became Wesley Memorial United Methodist Church.
From its earliest years, Wesley Memorial has been a mission-oriented church supporting local and foreign missions. Members have traveled to Haiti, Puerto Rico, South Africa, Kenya, and many places in this country, alongside ongoing work in local food pantries, clothing closets, after-school tutoring projects, and feeding programs. "It is a concerned, caring, and loving church for all people," the church's own history reads. A fuller account, A Pictorial History of Our Church, was published recently in two hardcover volumes covering 1856 through 1960 and 1960 through 2024, written by Roy Shipman and available through the church office.
Three Sunday Services for One Congregation
Wesley Memorial meets three times each Sunday, with each gathering in a different part of the campus. The 8:30 a.m. traditional service is held in the Chapel. The 9:30 a.m. contemporary service fills the Fellowship Hall, with a praise team and song lyrics projected on screens so that newcomers can sing along or engage with worship however they feel most comfortable. The 11:00 a.m. traditional service is held in the Sanctuary, the home of the famed stained-glass windows, and includes classic Christian hymns, the Apostles' Creed, and powerful liturgies. Each service runs about an hour.
Sundays are intentionally casual and relaxed. "Come as you are and expect to feel welcomed as our guest," the church tells first-time visitors. Newcomers are not met with shame, guilt, or condemnation, and "we don't care how you're dressed or what your political affiliation is. Our church is made up of imperfect people with every kind of story imaginable." The 9:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. services are livestreamed; recordings are available as a podcast and a sermon archive.
Wesley's Windows: Stories in Glass and Light
The highlight of any visit to Wesley Memorial is its collection of stained-glass windows in the neo-Gothic sanctuary. Twenty-six windows, completed in 1968, depict more than 135 biblical scenes and figures, and the daytime light passes through them across the sanctuary as the hours change. The windows were designed by Marguerite Gaudin, a longtime master designer and eventual vice president of the Willet Stained Glass Studios of Philadelphia, and crafted at the 127-year-old firm using techniques little changed in a thousand years. A member-led Wesley Stained Glass Team offers tours of the sanctuary by request, with a typical tour running 60 to 90 minutes; a virtual tour is available for those who cannot visit in person. Photographs of the windows are also sold as greeting cards and Christmas cards to support their ongoing presentation and preservation.
The windows fall into several thematic sets, each anchored by a single grand image. The chancel window at the front of the sanctuary, called the Triumph of the Triune God, places the risen Christ at its center surrounded by four post-Resurrection scenes. The Praise window in the east transept celebrates the centrality of music in Judeo-Christian worship, while the companion Prayer window in the west transept honors prayer from Bible times forward. Ten high clerestory windows along the nave are each devoted to one of Jesus' "I AM" sayings from the Gospel of John. Lower nave aisle windows carry "injunctions as to present conduct," scenes drawn largely from Matthew's gospel that speak to how Christians are to live day by day. The North window offers a broad chronology of the Christian church from the four evangelists to the twentieth century, and a vertical Stages of Life window in the narthex traces the human journey from birth to death.
Wesley Memorial School: A Preschool on the Same Campus
Wesley Memorial School sits inside the same Chestnut Drive campus and has been a Christian school of excellence serving the High Point community for more than 60 years. Voted Best Preschool in the Triad, the program enrolls children in nursery, pre-kindergarten, and kindergarten and runs from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Director Ashley Gatewood, an early childhood educator with more than sixteen years of teaching and leadership experience, holds a degree from Carolina University in Winston-Salem and has built the program around engaging, educating, and empowering young learners in a loving, Christ-centered environment. Chaun Doak, a former Wesley Memorial teacher assistant who went on to earn a master's degree from High Point University in educational leadership and administration, supports the school's families. Tours can be arranged through the school office.
Children's Ministry from Nursery through Fifth Grade
Wesley Memorial Kids welcomes children from birth through fifth grade, with the goal of partnering with parents "to foster the growth of the love of Jesus in children." Loving nursery care is provided for the 9:30 a.m. contemporary service and the 11:00 a.m. traditional service for infants through age two, with the nursery located on the Children's Ministry Hallway. Sunday Fun-Day, Wesley Memorial's Sunday school for ages two through fifth grade, meets at 9:30 a.m. and ends when the 9:30 service concludes. During the 11:00 a.m. traditional service, children ages four through fifth grade are invited to exit after the Children's Sermon for Children's Church, using the Go! Curriculum at 9:30 and the Bible Engagement Project at 11:00. Worship bags are available in the narthex for younger children.
Wednesday Nights at the church are given over to Games and Gospel from September through May, 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. for infants through fifth grade. The evening includes a free dinner for kids (donations accepted), children's choir time, indoor or outdoor play, and a hands-on Bible-centered lesson. The Wesley Memorial Kids Choir practices Wednesdays at 5:30 p.m. in the Praise Room and is open to children in kindergarten through fifth grade. All staff and volunteers who work with children are screened and complete Safe Church training, reference checks, and background screening before serving.
Students and a 105-Year-Old Scout Ministry
The church's student ministry gathers on Wednesday nights from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. for food, friendship, and encouragement, with Sunday morning small groups at 9:30 a.m. and a steady stream of events. Harrison Hart serves as Director of Student Ministries.
Wesley Memorial's scouting ministry is one of its longest-running partnerships with the wider community. The church has sponsored Boy Scouts Troop 4 since 1920, making it one of the oldest continuously chartered Boy Scout troops in North Carolina; the troop has produced 282 Eagle Scouts over its 105-year history. Cub Scouts Pack 4 meets on Mondays at 6:30 p.m. for boys and girls in kindergarten through fifth grade, the church sponsors Sea Scouts for youth ages 14 to 20, and Girl Scouts Troop 13211, founded at Wesley Memorial in 2017, has grown from five Daisies into a multi-level troop that meets every other Sunday afternoon and serves girls in every level from kindergarten through twelfth grade.
Men, Women, and the Wesley 100
Wesley Memorial Men, called the Wesley 100, gather on the third Saturday of each month at 8:30 a.m. in the dining hall for a home-cooked breakfast and a working meeting. The group's name echoes a quote from John Wesley: "Give me one hundred men who fear nothing but sin and desire nothing but God, and I care not a straw whether they be clergymen or layman; they alone will shake the gates of hell and set up the kingdom of heaven on earth." The thirty-five to sixty active men of the group have supported the church's local mission partners, including the Wesley Memorial School, Victory Junction, the Hinton Rural Life Center, Fairview Elementary School, the Macedonia Resource Center, and West End Ministries, while also cooking chicken and apple pies, hosting the Shrove Tuesday Pancake Dinner, and helping prepare Wednesday night suppers.
Wesley Women gathers the church's women into circles that support the church's largest fundraiser, the Carolina Christmas Bazaar, held annually in November. The bazaar, which has been a tradition for more than fifty years, draws about seventy-five vendors and includes a bake sale, silent auction, general store, and café, with proceeds shared between the church and a long list of nonprofit partners. Circles meet separately for Bible study, fellowship, and service projects, with the Susannah Wesley Sunday School class, Women of Wesley (WOW), and Blessed Beginnings, a Bible study for expecting, new, and preschool moms that meets on the first and third Sundays of each month, providing ongoing connection throughout the week.
Adult Formation: Sunday School, Unity Groups, and Bible Studies
Wesley Memorial runs a network of adult formation opportunities rooted in the conviction that small groups were the essence of John Wesley's Methodist movement. Sunday School classes meet at 9:30 or 9:45 a.m. on Sunday mornings and include the Friendship Class led by the Rev. Perry Crouch, the John Wesley Class, the Susannah Wesley Class, the Bible Class, and the Brand X Class, each with its own character and demographic mix. Unity Groups, Wesley Memorial's signature small-group program, are intimate gatherings designed for Bible study, prayer, fellowship, and mutual support; current groups include the Fish Unity Group at River Landing in Colfax, the Great Day Unity Group for women in their seventies, the 4-H Happy Hearts with Helping Hands group, the Contemporary Unity Group that meets after the contemporary service, the Second Story group for men, the men's Seekers Unity Group that meets Tuesday mornings, the Pineapple Unity Group that meets Wednesday mornings, the Wednesday Night Men's Group, Women of Wesley, Blessed Beginnings, and a new Couples Unity Group for married couples under forty-five.
A series of Bible studies are also offered throughout the year. Rev. Dr. Jeff Patterson leads a Monday morning study of Isaiah in the Dining Hall and Wednesday studies of Hebrews at 9:30 a.m. and 6:45 p.m. in the Media Center, alongside a Lent series, a winter study, and seasonal offerings such as GriefShare, DivorceCare, and Single and Parenting. The church also maintains an archive of sermons and a regular podcast through Apple, Spotify, and Google Play.
J.O.Y. 55+ Senior Adults
Wesley Memorial's senior adult ministry, called J.O.Y. (Just Older Youth), serves members ages 55 through their nineties, "the largest portion of our congregation," as the church notes, and offers a full calendar of luncheons, learning series, fellowship trips, and service opportunities. The Alzheimer's/Dementia Autumn Lights Prayer Vigil is held in September, drawing families from across the parish. Psalm 92:14 guides the program: "They still bear fruit in old age; they are ever full of sap and green." The Golden Helping Hands team provides short-term practical help for older members, and Wesley Memorial volunteers deliver Mobile Meals twice a month on behalf of Senior Resources of Guilford.
A Hundred Mission Partners
Wesley Memorial invests heavily in mission. In the first six months of 2026, the church granted $97,369 to nonprofit partners and logged more than 4,000 service hours. The list of supported organizations reads like a portrait of High Point and the wider world: A Simple Gesture, the Community Clinic of High Point, Compassion International, Cover the City, Crossnore Children's Home, Fairview Elementary School, Feeding Lisa's Kids, Henderson Settlement in Frakes, Kentucky, the High Point Jail Ministry, the Macedonia Center, Open Door Ministries, Prison Fellowship Angel Tree, Rise Against Hunger, the Ervin UMAR Home, Ward Street Community Resources, and World Relief for refugees in the Triad. The church also partners with the Hinton Rural Life Center, the Wesley School in Nakuru, Kenya, the Wheels 4 Hope car ministry, White Christmas for West End Ministry and Leslie's House, HP Young Life, Boys and Girls Club of High Point, the YWCA Baby and Women's Closets, Mobile Meals, and the Good Samaritan Clinic in the Dominican Republic.
On the first Sunday of each month the church collects canned food, half of which goes to the Open Door Ministries food pantry and half to the Macedonia Food Pantry. Rise Against Hunger meal-packing events fill the fellowship hall each year, and on the first Wednesday of every month volunteers pack and deliver food through Feeding Lisa's Kids, a grassroots effort founded by Wesley Memorial member Lisa Hawley.
Music and the Chancel Choir
The Traditional Music Ministry supports worship at the 11:00 a.m. service and presents special programming throughout the church year, particularly during Advent and Christmas, Holy Week, and All Saints. The Chancel Choir, always open to new members including teens and young adults, rehearses on Wednesday evenings from 6:45 to 8:15 and gathers at 10:15 on Sunday mornings for the 11:00 a.m. service, with childcare available upon request. The Handbell Choir rehearses Tuesday afternoons from 12:45 to 1:45 and Wednesdays from 5:30 to 6:30, playing once a month during the school year and for special services. Instrumentalists of all kinds are encouraged to share their gifts, and the music ministry also hosts concerts and events for the wider High Point community.
Wednesday Vespers
On Wednesday evenings the chapel hosts Vespers, a thirty-minute service of hymns, a brief homily, Holy Communion, and anointing with oil for healing and prayers of healing. Vespers runs from 5:30 to 6:00 p.m. September through May, and from 6:00 to 6:30 p.m. June through August.
Stephen Ministry, Pastoral Care, and the Good Shepherd Fund
Wesley Memorial's Stephen Ministry provides one-on-one confidential care from trained lay caregivers for people facing job loss, illness, separation or divorce, loneliness, or other life difficulties, with Stephen Leaders Abbigail Felton and the Rev. Dr. Glenn Myers coordinating referrals. Care Ambassadors check in regularly with members who cannot attend services in person. Eucharistic Visitors bring consecrated communion to members at home, and a Prayer Shawl and Comfort Pillow Ministry sews, stuffs, and delivers more than 700 comfort pillows each year to the High Point Regional cancer center and to hospice patients across the community. The Good Shepherd Fund offers confidential financial help to members of the Wesley Memorial family in times of need.
Weddings, Funerals, and an Open Campus
Weddings at Wesley Memorial are worship services that celebrate the love between a man and a woman and acknowledge their commitment to live together as husband and wife under the lordship of Jesus Christ; the church welcomes both members and non-members, and Wedding Coordinator Judy Hustrulid helps couples plan every detail. Funerals at Wesley Memorial are services of worship that express gratitude to God for the life of the one who has died and bear witness to the hope of resurrection, with a Funeral Planning pamphlet available to help families through the process.
The Chestnut Drive campus also includes a Prayer Labyrinth, a Columbarium Garden, a chapel that is open for prayer on Wednesdays from noon to 6:30 p.m., a Fellowship Hall with gym space, a Dining Hall, and a fully equipped sanctuary. Greeting cards featuring the stained-glass windows are sold on Wednesday nights and Sunday mornings, with proceeds supporting the preservation of the windows. The Carolina Christmas Bazaar fills the campus every November with seventy-five vendors and a faithful crowd from across the Triad. Wesley Memorial has been voted Best Preschool in the Triad and continues to grow, drawing new members and families "every single year," as the church's own history puts it, "even though the church may be large."