Nurturing Faith - Becky
Becky attended campus ministry at the University of Kansas (KU) at a time when it was a combined ministry between the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod and the ELCA predecessor bodies. As a graduate student in music education, she found a place in campus ministry to develop leadership skills, worship skills, and a faith that still serves her today in her congregation and her daily life.
Growing up, Becky went to church weekly and when she arrived at KU it felt natural to join campus ministry. She was looking for other people her age who were exploring their faith and she was looking for positive faith experiences to share with other students her age.
Campus ministry gave her this community and helped validate and grow her faith as well as her comfort-level in church-going. For Becky, campus ministry was a place for encountering God and faith and sharing positive experiences with other students that kept her coming back to campus ministry: experiences like worship services that used the Chicago Folk Service and Sunday night dinners for students who took turns preparing food for everyone else.
Today, campus ministry remains a combined ministry, but now the denominations that work in covenant are Wesley KU and LCM-KU, both active in Westwood House on the south side of KU’s campus. Becky continues to support campus ministry by serving on the LCM-KU Ministry Team and advocating for student ministry in the community. She believes that students today can gain the same sense of community and faith that she gained through worship, food, and fellowship.
As the current campus ministry students look to finish the spring semester, Westwood House continues to be a place on campus where students can grow their faith. There is a Wednesday night meal that precedes a worship service. There is also a Thursday night dinner that gives students time to gather in community and be nourished with food and conversation. This is a place for students who are exploring their faith today just like Becky was when she was a student. These experiences are made possible because of incredible generosity from campus ministry’s friends and supporters.
We give thanks to God for the opportunity to continue the work of Jesus through campus ministry.
