Wesley Ministries

When you join Wesley, you join a diverse faith experience! Whatever your skills and talents, we can meet your interests in service and ministry, here at home, or worldwide.

Congregational Care, Community of Faith

Congregational Care Ministry
Wesley is a close and caring community of faith – diverse in its makeup, committed in its ministry, and exuberant in its social and intellectual pursuits. We strive to keep in touch with members experiencing adversity, illness, or extended periods of absence. The Congregational Care Ministry reaches out to members in any circumstance to communicate our concern. Through cards and phone calls, we keep the pastor and the congregation informed about a member’s status. If you have information on any member who is in need, please contact Congregational Care by calling the church or sending an email to info@wesleydc.org.

Prayer Partners Ministry
Prayer is one of the ways we draw closer to God. The Wesley congregation is committed to increasing our prayer life and reaching out to others who need the reassurance of our prayers for them. We Pray in Place, Mondays at 9:00 and 10:00 p.m. We gather together in prayer, no matter where we actually are located. As a congregation, we pray for those who have asked for prayer at Sunday service during “Joys and Concerns,” and for those who need prayer, but have not thought to ask. When members are absent due to illness or other needs, we add them to the prayer list to let them know they are in our thoughts and prayers. On Sunday evenings, an email is sent to all who are on the prayer email list so that everyone is notified for the Monday Pray in Place gathering. One does not have to be a member to be included in the Prayer Ministry. If you have a prayer request, or if you’d like to have your name added to the Pray in Place email list, please send an email to info@wesleydc.org.

Tippman Fund
Emblematic of Wesley’s care for its congregation, the Tippman Fund was established in the name of a benefactor to extend emergency financial assistance to those in the Wesley community of faith needing short-term help to address pressing difficulties.

Hospitality Ministry
Ushers and Greeters are immensely important at Wesley! They are often the first Wesleyites whom members and visitors see as they arrive for the Sunday service, greeting and often discussing the latest happenings with guests and members alike, adding to the mutual comfort and cheer many are seeking.

Children and Youth Ministry
Children at Wesley are embraced by the congregation, invited to join with the minister to preview the religious lessons of each service, and then encouraged to continue the discussion in Sunday School. They return to the sanctuary to share in communion with their families as each service ends. Sunday School, and special church projects for children, are exciting learning experiences, conducted by a Wesley Seminary intern or adult members of the congregation. The Wesley Community Spring Fair offers fun filled activities and creative play for children of all ages. In October, 2010, a bilingual Sunday School program in Spanish and English will begin, reflecting the diversity of the Wesley faith community.
Our Youth Ministry features acting classes to develop confidence and good public speaking skills, social outings, and community service in conjunction with Wesley adult activities like Seniors in the ‘Hood and A Wider Circle.

Adult Ministry and the Wesley Education Fund
Wesley also addresses the spiritual needs of its adult members with various interpretive Bible studies and current affairs programs relating Christian concerns to the concerns of the day. In addition, Wesley members maintain a scholarship fund used to support those in need of help with furthering their education.

Afro-Latino Ministry

Located in Wesley United Methodist Church, the Manuel Zapata Olivella (MZO) Center was founded in 2007 in honor of the memory and legacy of Manuel Zapata Olivella, an Afro-Colombian activist and writer. He championed the contributions African-descendant communities in Latin America have made to the history and culture of this hemisphere. The MZO Center is a community-based, nonprofit organization that provides direct services in the areas of artistic and cultural expression, vocational education and human rights advocacy with a special focus on the needs of Latin American and Caribbean people of African descent. The Center, currently the only organization in the Washington, D.C. area committed to working with Afro-Latinos, has been recognized with two distinguished awards -- the 2009, D.C. Congressional Latino Council Award and the Fiesta D.C. Award. Wesley members share their professional and teaching skills in supporting this ministry from ESL, to real estate, tax law and computer literacy to dance, music lessons, and a variety of other activities sponsored by the Center. Find out more by contacting programs@mzocenter.org.

Music Ministry
Wesley believes that music is at the soul of our community of faith. We have an eclectic group of musicians and choir members who lend their talents and voices to fulfilling this belief. Blending a variety of musical traditions and sacred music, this ministry inspires our services and trains young disciples in the choir. Various events throughout the year give expression to our joy in opening the church to everyone in celebration. We hold a Gospel Brunch once a quarter, monthly Jazz Jams, and Biweekly Tango and Salsa, hosted in our Fellowship Hall. Bring your voice, tune up your instrument, join the dance!
On May 13, the Music Ministry presented A Soul-Stirring Gospel Concert on May 13, featuring Minister Shirli Hughes and The Praise Team of Metropolitan Community Church of Washington DC (MCC)

Mission Outreach and Advocacy

Homeless Ministry
The Community Council for the Homeless at Friendship Place (CCHFP) is one of Wesley’s outreach ministries. Wesley members serve on the Board of Directors, the Executive Committee, the Education Committee, the Congregational Committee, and the Mentoring the Homeless Working Group. Wesley sponsors a formerly homeless individual, who has moved to independent living, and developed and produced Friendship Place’s first comprehensive Mentoring Manual. We are seeking others with a passion for changing lives to join this endeavor.
Through A Wider Circle and Bread for the World, Wesley also offers other opportunities for ministry to those in traditionally underserved populations.

Sandwich Sunday
The Wesley congregation is committed to feeding the hungry. Once a month after the Sunday service, we gather in the Wesley kitchen to make sandwiches, which are then delivered to Martha’s Table, a local “soup kitchen”. It is an opportunity for all of us to join hands in ministry during our Fellowship Hour. Youth in the congregation always get a kick out of helping to make, pack and deliver the sandwiches, and enjoy a lesson in Christian giving from their participation.

McKenna’s Wagon
Wesley volunteers help to deliver soup, sandwiches, and desserts directly to homeless and/or hungry people in the District once or twice a month, via McKenna’s Wagon, a van at Martha’s Table that is part of the District’s outreach efforts. Come ride the wagon!

Reconciling Ministry
Wesley Church was one of the founding chapters of B-WARM (Baltimore–Washington Area Reconciling Methodists), and continues its deep involvement with the Reconciling Movement within the Methodist Church and the Baltimore–Washington Conference. We continue to seek the commitment and enthusiasm of those who believe in the inclusion and acceptance of all individuals in the life and conduct of the church. This includes support for the District of Columbia’s Marriage Equality Act as well as independent initiatives and cooperative action on issues of social conscience.

Ministries for At-Risk Youth
The Barnes-Findley Foundation, set up by one of our members, is committed to the development and nurturing of young women in Africa and the African Diaspora. Its emphasis is on extending educational and economic support to young women, in Zambia, Zimbabwe, Madagascar, and Uganda. The Barnes-Findlay Foundation is on the web at www.barnesfindleyfound.org.
In response to a Request for Proposals from the U.S. Dream Academy and the Greater Southwest Cooperative, Wesley members initiated The JumpStart Media Project in support of special programs for at-risk young people in D.C.’s Ward 6. Based on the application of multiple intelligences theory, JumpStart teaches participants self-confidence, responsibility, teamwork, and social values through the art of filmmaking. The result of the first session was a short film called “Street Dreams” which premiered at the 2010 Amnesty International Human Rights Arts Festival.

Ministry to Seniors: “Seniors in the ‘Hood”
While we are in active ministry to our senior members at Wesley church, the senior population in our neighborhood has increased dramatically in recent years. Consequently, Wesley has initiated a new outreach ministry to The Methodist Home and Regency House, nearby senior living establishments. This ministry provides visitation and fellowship to residents. Rotating teams of church and Youth Ministry members engage residents in Sing-A-Long activities, Bingo, and One-on-One dialogue, while our Music Ministry will be adding music therapy and regular concerts. Another featured outreach is our bag lunch and communion service to those who wish to receive our Pastor’s celebrated communion bread.
Additionally, Wesley contributes yearly to the IONA Senior Center, based in Northwest D.C. Opportunities abound for those who wish to join us in helping others age in place with dignity.

Overseas Missions

As part of Wesley’s connection to the greater United Methodist Church, Wesley members help to fund the missionary outreach of Nan McCurty in Nicaragua as she works to improve the quality of life for indigenous peoples.
Periodically, the congregation chooses special overseas projects, often involving associational or learning interests cited by our Children’s Church or Youth Ministry. We have collected money to dig a community well in Senegal, and worked with the Heifer Project to select a variety of animals to help families in several Latin American countries develop sustainable agriculture and self-sufficiency. Wesley is sponsoring the shipment of over 40 donated medical books to Ghana to assist the programs of The Centre for Scientific Research Into Plant Medicine (CSRPM), www.csrpm.org, in Mampong, Ghana, a World Health Organization affiliate and the leading research institution in Africa for the development of herbal medicines.

The ONE Campaign
In support of the “Nothing But Nets” initiative of the United Methodist Church, providing long lasting insecticide treated Malaria nets for our brothers and sisters in Africa, Wesley also remains committed to the aims and efforts of the ONE Campaign, which advocates the need to have governments involved in helping eradicate poverty and AIDS in Africa and throughout the world.