WELCOMING PASTOR CHUCK WILSON

Matthews UMC will welcome Dr. Charles (Chuck) W. Wilson II as new Lead Pastor July 1, 2016.

Pastor Chuck Wilson is currently appointed as Senior Pastor at Long’s Chapel United Methodist Church. Located at Lake Junaluska, one of the largest United Methodist Retreat and Conference Centers in the world, the congregation has over fifty retired clergy and three retired bishops that call Long’s Chapel their church home.

Dr. Wilson was ordained in ministry 29 years ago in the Central Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church. He completed his seminary work at Perkins School of Theology and Fuller Theological Seminary, and received his Doctor of Ministry Degree from Emory University, Candler School of Theology.

Upon completion of his seminary work, Chuck was appointed to a church in Waco Texas and later moved to the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church. He was grateful for an appointment at Matthews UMC from 1987-1992 that relocated him closer to his family who had retired to the mountains of North Carolina. In July of 1992, Chuck was appointed the Director of Congregational Development for the Western North Carolina Conference.

Chuck later served as Pastor of University City UMC and subsequently at Wesley Memorial UMC in High Point. During his years of service, Dr. Wilson studied Clinical Pastoral Education at Presbyterian Hospital in Charlotte, authored several writing projects that reflect his love for the local church and his desire for congregational vitality, and was presented with the Harry Denman Award in the Western North Carolina Conference. This award is given by the Foundation for Evangelism for outstanding leadership in evangelism ministry.

Since his appointment to Long’s Chapel in April 2008, Chuck has been very active in the larger church and community. Some achievements in his current position include developing a new community of faith as an extension of Long’s Chapel and launching Haywood Pathways Center, which houses the Haywood Homeless Shelter as well as a second site for the Open Door, a ministry to the poor and marginalized in the community.

Please help welcome Chuck and his wife Karen, along with their four children and their spouses, Chase, Ryan (Gina), Molly (Ben) and MacKenzie. Chuck shares that he loves a good joke, a genuine prayer, the crafted sermon, and a well-turned phrase.He is still amazed that God loves him and is very thankful for the life he knows.