United Methodist Campus
Ministry in the Rio Grande Valley was founded in 1953 by Dr. J. Lell Elliot and
his wife Florence. The couple met at a
Methodist campus ministry in Colorado while working on their undergraduate
degrees. Because of the blessings
they received from campus ministry, they were inspired to start a campus
ministry program in Edinburg after Dr. Elliot starting teaching at Pan American
College.
The campus ministry has
always been a jointly supported effort between the Rio Grande Conference and
the Southwest Texas Conference. The UMCM board of directors is made up of lay
people and clergy from both conferences. Property on the west-side
of the campus was purchased in 1957. The student center was called the
"Wesley White House." The "Wesley White
House" was destroyed during hurricane Beulah and the property remained
vacant until 1994 when Volunteers in Mission from Indiana built the current
student center. Today, despite financially struggles, the ministry continues to
grow. In 2000, with the aid of a
grant from the Moody Foundation, the ministry extended its work to South Texas
Community College in McAllen.
UMCM-RGV remains a vital
part of the higher education community in the Rio Grande Valley. The ministry provides spiritual formation, by
implementing Bible studies, prayer services, and worship. Our students are engaged in social service to
God's people, serving at a food bank, building homes, and several other
programs in which our students help those unfortunate of our community. Our students are also responsible for
maintaining the center, cleaning and even performing small repairs. The center is used for recreation, meetings,
various student gatherings and studying.
The center is equipped with wifi so that the students can study,
write papers and take tests. Most importantly, the student center provides
a place where students hang out in a safe Christian atmosphere, feel safe and
comfortable and prepare themselves for their service to their community and
God.
United Methodist Campus
Ministry remains committed to developing our students for their called
vocation. Many students are discerning
their call to ordained ministry and UMCM-RGV helps students in this process. We have had several students become elders in
the United Methodist Church serving the Rio Grande and Southwest Texas
Conference. UMCM-RGV is also committed
to helping our students to became productive members of our community. Our former students are now teachers,
doctors, lawyers, nurses, and many other professions. Our current students will soon be filling
those same rolls. With God as the center
of our ministry, we continue to provide leaders of our community.
