Share the Love: Leaving a Legacy Through Wesley

Valentine’s Day is often associated with cards, flowers, and chocolates. But at Wesley Foundation, love looks like something deeper. It looks like open doors, shared meals, late-night conversation and lifelong friendships. Love at Wesley looks like students finding belonging, purpose, and faith in a place that feels like home.

This Valentine’s season, Wesley’s “Share the Love” campaign supporting A Legacy of Welcome is an invitation—not just to celebrate what Wesley has meant, but to ensure that same love and legacy continues for generations of students to come.

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A Love That Changes Lives

For many students, Wesley isn’t just a campus ministry. It’s a turning point.

“Wesley has fundamentally changed the course of my life,” shares Adrian Walker, Secretary of Council on Ministries, Church Outreach Coordinator and Senior Coordinator of Winterization.“It’s the reason I’m a Christian. It’s the reason I’m a better person. And I wouldn’t be who I am today without being a member of Wesley Campus Ministry.”

Stories like Adrian’s are not uncommon. Wesley meets students in moments of transition, uncertainty, and searching and offers them something lasting.

“I had a rough transition to college and Wesley made that transition so much easier,” reflects Ellen Jahoda, a member of the Winterization Committee.

What begins as a place to visit often becomes a place to stay.

“I love Wesley because it really gave me a space to be connected,” says Kris, Part-Time Intern at Wesley. “When I finally started going to Wesley, it gave me a space to feel like I belonged, and that feeling only grew stronger over time. Now I don’t even want to move away anymore. I really love being here. It really changed my life in that way.”

A Love That Creates Belonging

At its core, Wesley is about community. It’s a place where students are welcomed exactly as they are.

“I love Wesley because it gives me a place to have community and be myself,” says Ryan Branstetter, Student Leader of Graduate Student Group and Hospitality Committee.

Megan Stohr, Full-Time Intern at Wesley, echoes that sentiment: “I love Wesley because there is a deep sense of community and belonging and at the same time there is so much room to be silly and whimsical.”

Wesley is both meaningful and joyful. It’s a place where students can grow spiritually, emotionally, and personally while building friendships that last far beyond their college years.

For some, Wesley becomes more than a community. It becomes home.

“It’s a home,” says Samuel Piper, Spiritual Nurturer Chair. “It provides shelter, it provides food, it provides friendship, it provides company, and it provides opportunities for people to grow as human beings.”

And that sense of welcome is intentional.

“I love Wesley just based off of the motto, ‘open minds, open hearts, open doors,’” shares Colin Kelly, Rec Chair and Friday Fellowship Chair.

A Love Worth Passing On

The love experienced at Wesley doesn’t stop with one generation. It continues through those who believe in its mission and want future students to experience that same belonging.

“Having kids of my own in this age group, it’s really heartwarming to know that there's a place like this for students to go,” says Desiree Keiper, Business Administrator at Wesley. “So they find that love and acceptance that they are really searching for.”

Every meal served, every conversation shared, every student welcomed through Wesley’s doors is made possible because someone chose to invest in its future. That’s what the Legacy Campaign is all about. It’s about making sure that years from now, another student will walk through Wesley’s doors feeling uncertain—and leave feeling known, loved, and transformed.

Leave Your Legacy. Share the Love!

This Valentine’s Day, you have the opportunity to be part of something lasting.

When you give to the A Legacy of Welcome: The Campaign for Wesley Foundation, you’re doing more than making a donation. You’re creating space for belonging. You’re making transformation possible. You’re helping future students discover faith, friendship, and a place to call home.

Share the love that Wesley has given you. Leave your legacy for the students who will walk through these doors next. Make a gift today at https://www.wesleyfoundation.org/campaign