Where Campus and Community Meet on West Green Street
Wesley United Methodist Church sits on the north edge of the University of Illinois campus at 1203 West Green Street in Urbana, where it has stood for more than a century. The congregation describes itself with a phrase that doubles as an address: where campus and community meet. Inside the building and out, two intertwined ministries share space, staff, and mission: Wesley United Methodist Church, the congregation, and the Wesley Foundation, the United Methodist Student Center on campus.
People come to Wesley from many places and stages of life. Long-time residents, university students, international scholars, and families with young children all worship in the same sanctuary and gather in the same coffeehouse. The congregation's own description puts it plainly: a diverse community where people of all ages, from all over the world, gather to worship, study, and serve together.
Two Sunday Services, One Congregation
Sunday mornings at Wesley offer two distinct services under one roof.
The Traditional Worship service begins at 9:30 a.m. in the main sanctuary just off Green Street. The service follows a classic United Methodist pattern with traditional hymns accompanied by the church's pipe organ. Following the service, the congregation gathers for a fellowship coffee hour in Watseka Lounge. The sanctuary itself is home to a 1925 E.M. Skinner organ, Opus 521, originally installed in Smith Music Hall on the University of Illinois campus and relocated to Wesley in 1965, where it has anchored the church's musical life ever since.
At 11:20 a.m., the Eleven20 Coffeehouse Worship takes place in the Etc. Coffeehouse at the corner of Goodwin and Green. Eleven20 features modern music and is geared toward young adults while remaining welcoming to multiple generations. Holy Communion is celebrated weekly at this service. (Eleven20 goes on a summer break each year and resumes in mid-August.)
Sunday School for children Pre-K through fifth grade runs from 9:45 to 10:45 a.m. in Rooms 127A and 127B, just outside the sanctuary near the nursery. A nursery is available throughout the morning for children from birth through age three, overseen by Childcare Coordinator Christina Holderly. Children are welcome in either worship service.
For those unable to attend in person, the 9:30 a.m. Traditional Worship service is livestreamed, and recent services remain available online.
The Wesley Foundation Student Center
Sharing Wesley's campus footprint is the Wesley Foundation, the United Methodist Student Center and Campus Ministry at the University of Illinois. The Foundation's invitation to students is brief: believe, belong, become, and be you.
Undergraduate and graduate students are welcome to be part of the Wesley congregation, the Student Center, or both. Many students attend Sunday morning worship with the congregation and then take part in the Student Center's weeknight programming. The Student Center has a separate calendar for campus ministry events, available through its own site.
Student leadership at the Student Center is shaped by peer ministers. Recent peer ministers include Katie Hatzis, a PhD candidate in chemistry whose Methodist upbringing drew her to Wesley; Alisha Thomas, an English and Political Science double major who followed her aunt's example into the Etc. Coffeehouse; and Claire Lambert, an English major and graphic designer who found in Wesley a place to explore faith in a way that felt both genuine and liberating. Their stories speak to a community intentionally built around openness and shared table.
Midweek Dinners and the Etc. Coffeehouse
The Wesley Student Center runs the Etc. Coffeehouse, a cozy, self-serve space for studying and connecting. Midweek, the Student Center's signature weekly gathering, brings students and friends together for dinner and worship on Wednesday evenings. The structured format helps newcomers ease into conversation, and the regulars speak of it as a refuge from the pressures of coursework and labs.
On Friday afternoons, the Student Center's ESL class gathers students and international friends for a free English-as-a-Second-Language lesson followed by the International Coffeehouse, a time of friendship, conversation, and cultural exchange. Lessons often pair with outings: a visit to Curtis Orchard after a unit on apple farming, a football game after a lesson on American sports. Some participants, students say, do not leave the house all week except to come to Coffeehouse; the gathering is, for many, the social anchor of their week in a new country.
Wesley Food Pantry
Wesley operates the Wesley Food Pantry, a community food ministry serving neighbors in need. The pantry is directed by Dawn Longfellow and can be reached at wesleypantry.org. It is supported separately through Wesley's donations, and student interns from the University of Illinois help stock and run it.
Food assistance is one of the most visible ways Wesley carries its calling to serve beyond the walls of the church.
Children, Youth, and Christian Formation
Children's ministry at Wesley centers on Sunday morning. The nursery welcomes infants and toddlers from birth through age three. Children Pre-K through fifth grade attend Sunday School during the 9:30 service in rooms adjoining the sanctuary. The church is in the process of hiring a part-time Director of Children and Youth Ministries to lead Christian education and spiritual formation for children and teens, plan youth group meetings and service projects, coordinate volunteers, and shape seasonal events like Vacation Bible School.
Older youth are drawn into the wider life of the church through service projects, the Midweek dinners at the Student Center, and seasonal events like the Welcome to Wesley Potluck each fall and the Student Center's Christmas celebration.
The E.M. Skinner Organ and a Century of Music
The 1925 E.M. Skinner organ at Wesley is a treasured example of American organ building. Originally installed in Smith Music Hall on the University of Illinois campus, the instrument was relocated to Wesley in 1965, where it continues to inspire worshippers, students, and concertgoers alike. Wesley marked the organ's centennial in 2025 with a series of recitals: Rev. Dr. Jay Regennitter in September 2025, Dr. Zach Klobnak in October 2025, and Katelyn Emerson in April 2025, each concert free and open to the public.
Music is led by Director of Music Dr. Laurie Matheson, who also directs the choir. The choir is a warm and inviting group of students and congregation members that rehearses on Wednesday evenings during the academic year and sings in Sunday services. Wesley hires paid soprano, tenor, and bass section leaders from the community to support the choir's musical leadership.
Social Principles and Welcoming the Stranger
Wesley's public life is shaped by the United Methodist Social Principles, which the congregation has made a prominent part of its teaching and identity. The Social Principles are presented as a prayerful and thoughtful effort to speak to contemporary issues from a biblical and theological foundation, and Wesley offers them as downloadable PDFs in sections covering the Community of All Creation, the Economic Community, the Social Community, the Political Community, and the Social Creed.
That commitment shows up most concretely in the church's Immigration Resources, titled Welcoming the Stranger: A Faithful Response to Immigration. Wesley makes a wide range of resources freely available as downloadable PDFs: a pastoral letter from the Council of Bishops, an Illinois Great Rivers Conference resource list, an ICE Response Checklist for Places of Worship, primers on how the U.S. immigration system works and ten things to know about U.S. immigration, and Know Your Rights handouts in both English and Spanish. As part of a diverse campus and community, the church says it is called to welcome the stranger with compassion and courage.
Pastoral Care and Small Groups
Wesley's care ministries extend well beyond Sunday morning. WesCare is the umbrella for several ongoing groups:
- A Grief Support Group for adults grieving a death meets on the fourth Tuesday of the month at 6:15 p.m. The group offers a place to talk with others who understand what grief feels like, in all its unpredictability. A Longest Night service each December brings comfort to those for whom the holidays are difficult.
- A Caregivers Support Group for those caring for a loved one meets on the second Thursday of the month at 6:15 p.m., with a separate daytime option on the second Friday at 1:00 p.m. in the West Lounge.
- Half-Baked Bible Study, a relaxed, discussion-based study, gathers on Wednesday evenings through the summer. Questions are encouraged, different perspectives are welcomed, and no one is expected to have all the answers.
- The annual Wesley Literary Tea, now in its nineteenth year, draws readers together in the West Lounge for an afternoon of conversation around a curated list of books, with recent selections including both classic and contemporary mysteries.
Peace with Justice and the Wider Community
Each year on Peace with Justice Sunday, Wesley honors a community organization doing the work of justice. Recent recipients include Champaign County Health Care Consumers, presented with the Jean Cramer-Heuerman Peace with Justice Award during worship, with a rose bush planted in Wesley's grounds in Jean Cramer-Heuerman's memory. Wesley also co-sponsors the annual Illinois Interfaith Conference, a free gathering for University of Illinois students and campus allies that brings together people of religious and non-religious philosophical traditions to engage questions of interfaith cooperation on the college campus.
Other recurring programming includes Nonviolent Communication workshops, seasonal Fall Seminars on topics that have ranged from Sufi meditation to the history of the Potawatomi Trail of Death through east central Illinois, and a Stewardship Sunday and Thanksgiving Potluck each November that fills the Great Hall with turkey, stuffing, and the comfort foods members bring from home.
Parking, What to Wear, and Other Practical Details
Wesley is a campus church, and parking is one of the most common questions asked by first-time visitors. The church is fortunate to have a large parking lot on South Goodwin Avenue behind its facilities, providing ample space on Sundays. Street parking is free on Sundays along Goodwin, Matthews, and Illinois. During weekday office hours, visitors should sign in their vehicle at the Center Office. Wesley also leases a limited number of parking spaces to nearby workers and residents; lease applications go to a waitlist managed by the church office.
Visitors often wonder what to wear. Wesley's answer is simple: come as you are. Some people dress casually at every service, others wear something more formal. Both are welcome.
Children are welcome in both Sunday services. The nursery is staffed throughout the morning, and Sunday School for children Pre-K through fifth grade runs during the 9:30 service.
Giving and Getting Involved
Wesley accepts online giving through a secure portal, with separate funds for Wesley UMC, the Wesley Food Pantry, the Wesley Foundation, the Etc. Coffeehouse, and the Elevate Wesley Building Campaign. Newcomers who want to connect can fill out a Connect Card during the livestream or reach the church office at info@wesleyui.org.
The church's flagship publication is The Spire, a monthly newsletter available in both PDF and online magazine format. News is also shared through the Wesley Connection newsletter for alumni and friends of the Wesley Foundation.
Leadership
Wesley is served by Rev. David Fuquay, Senior Pastor and Campus Minister, and Rev. Yiwen Bi, Associate Pastor and Campus Minister. Music is directed by Dr. Laurie Matheson. The Food Pantry is led by Director Dawn Longfellow. Childcare is coordinated by Christina Holderly. The Wesley Foundation Student Center is governed by a Board of Trustees chaired by the Rev. Dr. Jay Regennitter, with church administrative, business, development, and communications work carried out by Donna Giffen, Chanda Davidson, Rebekah Rauschenberger, and Susan Mei.
Wesley is part of the Illinois Great Rivers Conference of the United Methodist Church, in the conference's East District. The church's life together is shaped by the United Methodist Social Principles and by the conviction, often expressed, that God's love for the world is an active and engaged love.