Mondays @ 8PM
Freshmen Ministry is for first-year students seeking an authentic faith. We meet on Monday nights @ 8pm at the Wesley Foundation. At these meetings, students can expect passionate worship and applicable teaching, as well as a chance to connect with others in a small group setting. Our Freshmen Ministry uses small groups, retreats, mission trips, and fellowship events in an effort to help first-year students develop and maintain an authentic, lasting relationship with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Freshmen Community Groups
It’s surprising how difficult it can be to find good friends on a campus of 30,000+ students. New students experience this difficulty year after year, and that’s why we offer Freshmen Community Groups. The groups are led by students from our Leadership Team who remember what it feels like be to the new guy/girl on the scene. These same-sex groups are intended to help you connect with God and connect with others. The groups meet after worship and a short teaching on Monday nights.
Freshmen Retreat
What does it really look like to follow Christ? It’s a question you might be asking by your second week in classes in Athens. Freshmen Retreat is a great opportunity to worship, hang out, and learn more about how to follow Christ as a student at UGA. Look for sign-ups at Freshley!!!
Jamaica Information
Date: March 6-13
Cost: $1350
Registration Deadline: November 9th
Deposit due by Nov. 9th: $100
$600 due by January 24
Full balance due by February 28
- We will be taking two trips to Jamaica this year. One will go to Montego Bay, lead by Stephen Byerly, and one will go to Port Maria, lead by Caren Dilts.
- The Montego Bay team will be hosted by the MoBay YWAM base (Youth With A Mission). YWAM is a well established missions organization found all over the world. The base is very safe as the entire property is fenced in with a locked gate. We’ve been here the past 2 years.
-The Port Maria team will be hosted by local Jamaicans out of the Casa Maria. We have a very established relationship here and have been to Port Maria 5 out of the last 8 years. This base is also gated and very safe location.
-Here is the tentative itinerary, although you quickly learn that things change in Jamaica(I’d remove this part) The specific details are still to be worked out, but here is the general plan.
Saturday: Travel Day
Sunday: Jamaican church in the morning, prep for the week in the afternoon
Monday-Wednesday: These days will start out by going to a local school and leading a Vacation Bible School for the kids. We will then leave the schools and work on a construction project. There will be a variety of construction projects with varying degrees of intensity. The evenings will conclude with some team time
Thursday: This day is mostly devoted to prayer. We will spend time in local churches or other parts of town praying for the island and for our team.
Friday: Fun day. We will travel to Ocho Rios, visit the local craft market, shop for souvenirs, and then we’ll head to Dunn’s River Falls. We’ll be back around dinner time
Saturday: Travel Day
-Food: We will eat something light for breakfast (pop-tarts, cereal, etc), we’ll take sack lunches (PB&J’s) to the work sites for lunch, and then have dinner back at the bases. They will offer a nice blend of authentic jamaican food as well as some Americanized options. We have not had any problems with the drinking water. Please let us know if you have any special dietary needs or restrictions.
-Passports are required for entrance into Jamaica. There are no other eligibility requirements.
-Support: Students are expected to raise their finances for this trip if they are unable to pay for it on their own. The Wesley staff will offer training to the freshmen students on how to raise these funds.
-While in Jamaica we will travel on buses. We have a very established relationship with the drivers in both locations. All drivers are registered and certified.
- Over the past 7 years we’ve taken over 350 students and leaders to Jamaica. We have never had any problems. This is a very safe trip!
If you need anymore information please contact Stephen Byerly at stephenbyerly@gmail.com or Caren Dilts at carenlynn@gmail.com.