Asbury United Methodist Church stands at the corner of Springhouse Road and Walbert Avenue in South Whitehall Township, just off the Route 22 / Cedar Crest Boulevard exit near Target. A few miles west of center-city Allentown, on a site where a 1972 fire forced the congregation to start over, Asbury continues the work of Methodism in the Lehigh Valley that has been running in one form or another since the 1840s.
A Century of Methodism on One Site
Methodism in the Lehigh Valley goes back to 1842, when the Reverend John Boyle of Mauch Chunk began preaching in the home of sisters Elizabeth and Sarah Muffley on Walnut Street in Allentown. The sisters generously opened a small house behind their home for worship. As the group grew, members moved to a house at Law and Linden Streets, and by 1872 the Chew Street Methodist Episcopal Church (later named Calvary) had been built. That Calvary congregation later purchased a new site at Hamilton and Jefferson Streets, where the Allentown Public Library now stands, and merged with the Linden Street group there. The cornerstone was laid in 1921, and on October 1, 1922, the building was dedicated under the name Asbury.
Francis Asbury himself, the first Methodist bishop in America, had once passed through Allentown; his journal records him crossing the Lehigh River in July 1807 and declaring the town "beautifully situated." Just five decades after the building was dedicated, on October 22, 1972, fire swept through the structure as the congregation was preparing for its 50th anniversary. Members watched from nearby apartments as smoke poured from the church they had grown up in. As one lifelong member remembered, "the building burned, but the church was still alive." A new site was secured at Springhouse Road and Walbert Avenue in South Whitehall Township, ground was broken in 1974, and the present building has been the church's home ever since. Asbury marked its 100th anniversary in 2022 with a special service and a luncheon themed "The Best is Yet to Come," during which Senior Pastor Eric Yeakel launched a three-year initiative called Vision 2026 and the "Closing the Gap" campaign - closing the spiritual gap, the generational gap, the justice and kindness gap, and the opportunity gap.
Two Sunday Mornings at the Same Altar
Asbury offers two Sunday services in the same Sanctuary, both open to everyone and both broadcast online. Each runs about an hour.
The 9:30 AM service is the contemporary one. The Asbury Worship Band leads music that leans from the 1990s into today, with piano, keys, bass, guitars, drums, percussion, and on any given Sunday a wind or string player or two. The 11 AM service is the traditional one. The Chancel Choir leads anthems spanning classical church repertoire through gospel and contemporary choral works, with occasional handbell offerings from the Jubilation Ringers. Communion is normally observed the first Sunday of every month, and visitors who are not Asbury members are welcome to participate; the church celebrates an open table.
Between those two services sits Sunday School for every age. SPARK (ages 3 through Pre-K) and BLAST (Kindergarten through fifth grade) gather at 9:30 AM in age-appropriate rooms. Middle and high school students head to the Youth Lounge. Adults have several class options running during the same hour.
There is no dress code; suits and jeans both appear. First-time guests are asked to arrive in time to be checked in and seated before the service begins. Parking is free in either of two lots. The smaller upper lot is closest to the Sanctuary and has accessible spaces reserved for those with mobility needs; the larger lower lot, reached from the building's main entrance under the Cross and Flame logo, is where everyone who is able is asked to park.
A Church Built Around Music
Music isn't an add-on at Asbury; it's a defining part of who the congregation is. Three adult ensembles carry the major worship services.
The Chancel Choir is the adult vocal choir that leads the 11 AM worship from September through early June and sings on Christmas Eve, Maundy Thursday, and other special occasions. The choir rehearses Thursday evenings at 7:15 PM in the Choir Room (Room 102) and gathers again at 10:30 Sunday mornings to warm up before the service. In summer a Drop-In Choir invites anyone who wants to lead worship one Sunday to show up at 10:30 to rehearse and sing that morning.
The Jubilation Ringers is the handbell choir, ringing one of the largest collections of bells owned by any church - seven full octaves of English handbells, six octaves of handchimes, three octaves of Dutch handbells, and two octaves of silver melody bells. They rehearse Mondays from 7 to 9 PM, present a Christmas concert each December, tour to other Lehigh Valley churches each spring, and have produced recordings that are played in handbell communities around the country.
The Asbury Worship Band handles the 9:30 AM service year-round. Praise Team Leader Monika Short welcomes singers and instrumentalists of every skill level - "just bring your enthusiasm." For special services and series, the band has been joined by drop-in choirs, a flute quintet, and even a congregation-wide sing-along during a sermon series on the movie Wicked.
Wells, Barrels, and a Sewing School in Liberia
Asbury's two best-known mission efforts reach across the Atlantic to rural Liberia.
Barrels of Love was founded in 2001, after Dr. Chris Hena, then stationed in Kazakhstan, asked for children's books to replace those destroyed during Liberia's civil war. Several thousand books went in that first shipment. Today the program ships clothing, medical supplies, books, and small gifts twice a year in partnership with Through These Hands and Healthy Women, Healthy Liberia. Twice a year, volunteers gather at Asbury to pack and load the barrels.
Living Water Well Ministry began in 2013. Working with local partners in Liberia, Asbury helps fund and construct wells in villages without clean water. Each well is part-funded by Asbury and its partner congregations in Western Pennsylvania and Florida and is sited in close consultation with community leaders. The work is incremental and ongoing.
The Asbury Sewing School in Paynesville, Liberia, teaches sewing skills to men and women for career training and has celebrated its first graduating class. A Liberian Scholarship Program sponsors elementary through high school and university students in Liberia, and a separate gifts program supports Liberian university students in partnership with the Conference. Asbury has also raised enough to fund hand-cranked Mobility carts for adults who cannot walk long distances; one recent Christmas Eve offering alone covered the cost of dozens of carts, enough to lift more than three dozen people off the ground.
A quieter, evergreen fundraiser is the stamp ministry. Used stamps are collected year-round - they can be dropped into a marked drawer in the collection area across from the church office - and sold to stamp dealers, with the proceeds supporting Sunday school lessons in South America. The program has been running since 1972 and has raised well over a million dollars for the cause since it began.
Asbury in Mission Across the Lehigh Valley
Locally, Asbury in Mission - known as AIM - organizes the church's outreach into the surrounding community. AIM supports more than three dozen partner ministries throughout the Lehigh Valley. Local partners include the Allentown Rescue Mission, Casa del Rey / La Trinidad UMC (reaching the Latino community of Allentown), Community Bike Works, Daybreak (a Lehigh Conference of Churches program serving three meals a day to people living with mental illness, physical disabilities, addictions, HIV/AIDS, and the elderly), Grace Food Cupboard (East Penn School District), Kingdom Life Family Center Food Bank (Parkland area), Laundry on Linden (free laundry and health care in central Allentown), the Lehigh Conference of Churches, Meals on Wheels of Lehigh County, Parkland CARES Food Pantry, Salem Food Pantry, Sixth Street Shelter, and Turning Point (domestic violence services).
Asbury also maintains a special relationship with Ramos Elementary School through the Asbury-Ramos Initiative. Members collect classroom supplies at the start of each school year, donate supplies throughout the year, volunteer as classroom helpers, host a Trunk or Treat in October, sponsor a Christmas gift drive for identified families, and spend an August Saturday weeding, mulching, and cleaning up around the school.
At the national level, AIM partners with Eastern PA Conference Camps, Emerging Ministries Corporation (serving Philadelphia youth), Mobility Worldwide, On Mission Sports, the Worm Project, Through These Hands, Young Life Lehigh Valley, and the Conference's Project Restoration disaster recovery program. Internationally, alongside the Liberia and Ecuador work, Asbury supports Africa University in Zimbabwe, the Boake Family Home in South Africa, Fire and Fragrance in Southern Africa, Healthy Women-Healthy Liberia, Kevin and Kathy Bruce's Bible translation work among the Awa people of Ecuador, the Living Water Well sites, the Lofa River District UMC in Liberia, the Mercy and Truth Children's Home in Nepal, and Thembelihle Primary School in South Africa.
Members can drop off ongoing collections of toiletries (for the Lehigh County Conference of Churches Daybreak program), used cell phones (Turning Point of the Lehigh Valley), and stamps at the church's first-floor collection area across from the church office. Volunteers are always needed to staff the Allentown Ecumenical Food Bank and the Rise Against Hunger meal-packaging events.
Forming Children, Youth, and the Next Generation
Children's Ministries at Asbury span birth through fifth grade under Director Pam Unrath. SPARK (ages 3 through Pre-K) and BLAST (Kindergarten through fifth grade) gather Sundays at 9:30 AM during the school year. Family events - an Easter Eggstravaganza with an egg hunt, Vacation Bible School each summer, the Fall Festival with its bouncy obstacle course and trunk-or-treat, and the Blessing of the Dogs each June - bring generations together throughout the year.
Youth Ministry uses three words to describe itself: "be, share, love." Middle and high school students meet for Sunday school at 9:30 AM in the Youth Lounge and gather again Sunday evenings from 6:30 to 8:30 for Youth Group. The youth run a Spaghetti Dinner each spring to support a local nonprofit; partners in recent years have included Neighborhood House, the Allentown Rescue Mission, and the Allentown Ecumenical Food Bank. At confirmation, students in grades 8 through 12 spend several months learning what it means to become a member of the church and are confirmed on a Sunday in late spring.
Asbury's preschool programs share the campus. Asbury Preschool (serving 2- and 3-year-olds through pre-K) and Bright Beginnings are open to families across the Lehigh Valley and are run by Preschool Director Karen Bowermaster.
Small Groups, Circles, and Sunday Morning Classes
Asbury's adult formation takes several forms.
Sunday morning classes run during the 9:30 hour. The Chrysalis class covers topics chosen and led by the class itself, switching subject every couple of weeks. The Pioneers class has been meeting since 1978 - its usual rhythm is reviewing the previous Sunday's sermon, leading Bible studies, watching DVD materials from well-known pastors, and hosting visiting missionaries. Coffee and snacks are always on hand.
Small groups meet throughout the week, on campus and off:
- The Chosen Small Group watches and discusses the television show "The Chosen" on Sunday evenings.
- Brewology meets offsite at Hops at the Paddock in Allentown on scheduled evenings - theology on tap, all questions welcome, led by Pastor Eric.
- The Friday Morning Men's Group studies Bible-based topics on Friday mornings at 6:30 AM.
- The Men's Social Group plans one-off tours and outings: past trips have visited Hershey's Antique Auto Museum, the Lehigh Valley IronPigs' Coca-Cola Park, the Audubon Center at Mill Grove, and the Mack Truck Museum.
- The Cards Small Group plays cards on the third Wednesday evening.
- The Scrapbooking Club and the Games Small Group (open to adults 21 and older) round out the fellowship.
- Family Fun and Fellowship (F3) brings families together on alternating Sunday mornings after the 11 AM service for relaxed time at the Wesley Center.
- Starting Point runs periodically for those who are new to Christianity or returning after time away. It is structured as a short-term, conversational small group.
- Financial Peace University uses Dave Ramsey's nine-week curriculum when there's interest and a team to lead it.
United Women in Faith (formerly United Methodist Women) is a community within Asbury rooted in the purpose "to know God and to experience freedom as whole persons through Jesus Christ; to develop a creative, supportive fellowship; and to expand concepts of mission through participation in the Global Ministries of the Church." Members join one of seven Circles - Susanna (second Monday evening), Priscilla (second Tuesday evening), Sarah (third Wednesday evening with monthly virtual and in-person breakfast socials), Deborah (Thursday mornings), the Prayer Shawl Circle (third Tuesday afternoon), the Crafters Circle, and the Quilters' Circle (Wednesday evenings). Each Circle has its own flavor: Bible study, contemporary topics, fellowship, quilting for the Bazaar, prayer shawls for the ill and homebound, or crafting together. The Circles together host the annual Holiday Bazaar the Saturday before Thanksgiving; that event has historically raised tens of thousands of dollars for scholarships and missions. UWIF also funds scholarships through its Clara Koch endowment and gives a percentage of its annual budget to local, national, and international mission causes each year.
Care Ministries: Showing Up in the Hard Seasons
Care Ministries at Asbury are organized around the seasons of life when people most need a church.
The Keep in Touch lay ministry visits members who are hospitalized or homebound. Hospital visitors can request Holy Communion during visits; Asbury's hospital code is 743 for those who want their admission flagged.
The Meal Ministry, organized through Keep in Touch, prepares and delivers a few weeks of meals to families recovering from illness, the birth of a child, a death in the family, or major medical treatment. Volunteers sign up to cook and deliver, and the church office coordinates drop-offs.
Bereavement Ministry is led by Pastor Evelyn Stupp, Asbury's Pastor of Bereavement and Care Ministries and a certified grief counselor. The team offers one-on-one support, a monthly daytime Grief Support Group meeting in the Parlor, written resources, and seasonal services of remembrance. A funeral luncheon committee can host a reception following a service. Weddings are celebrated with a meeting with a pastor, a wedding coordinator from the church, and a sacred covenant ceremony; baptisms - by sprinkling, pouring, or immersion - are scheduled in worship on the third Sunday of each month for people of any age.
Prayer Ministry accepts requests through prayer cards in the Sanctuary, an online request form on the church's site, and direct calls to the church office. A weekly Zoom prayer group carries requests through the week, and the pastors are included on every request.
The Health Ministry Team writes a monthly educational article, hosts an annual flu/COVID/RSV shot clinic, and offers monthly blood pressure screenings in the Parlor on Sunday mornings. The team organizes an annual blood drive through Miller-Keystone Blood Center, where members can give under Asbury's tracking code throughout the year.
In a quiet corner in front of the church is Asbury's Memorial Garden, the resting place for the cremains of members and their families. Information, policies, and subscription forms are available through the church office.
On the Campus: Lots, the Sanctuary, and How to Find Asbury
The Sanctuary is the centerpiece of the building. The Wesley Center, a flexible gathering space, hosts large events like the Holiday Bazaar and Mission Breakfasts. Smaller rooms include the Parlor (Room 201), the Aldersgate Room, the Youth Lounge, the Choir Room (Room 102), and several other meeting rooms used for Sunday School classes and small groups.
The campus sits at the corner of Springhouse Road and Walbert Avenue, accessible from the Route 22 / Cedar Crest Boulevard exit near Target. There are three entrances to the parking area and two separate lots. The upper (smaller) lot is closest to the Sanctuary and includes accessible spaces reserved for those with mobility needs. The lower (larger) lot sits under the Cross and Flame logo at the building's main entrance and is where everyone who is able is asked to park so the upper lot stays available for those who genuinely need it. The church office can be reached at 610-398-2577 or info@asburylv.org; the building address is 1533 Springhouse Road, Allentown, PA 18104.
Beliefs, Affiliation, and Pastoral Leadership
Asbury is affiliated with the United Methodist Church and is part of the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference of the UMC. Its members hold to the historic essentials of the Christian faith as summarized in the Apostles' Creed: belief in God the Father, in Jesus Christ his only Son, in the Holy Spirit, in the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.
The mission statement reads, "to lead people into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ." The vision is "by living out our mission we will be changing lives and transforming communities." Members are challenged toward five practices of a fully engaged follower of Christ: worshiping, group life, serving, giving, and inviting. The church's practical goals include attending worship 90% of Sundays, participating in one small group a year, serving in the church or in one mission project a year, establishing a giving plan, and inviting one person a year.
The Senior Pastor, Rev. Eric Yeakel, has served Asbury since 2007 and has been Senior Pastor since 2013. A Bethlehem native, he earned an accounting degree from Old Dominion University and worked as a CPA in Virginia Beach before answering a call into ministry. He completed his studies at Moravian Theological Seminary and was ordained an Elder in the United Methodist Church in 2013. He and his wife Tammy are parents of Eric Jr. and Anna and have completed multiple IRONMANs and triathlons together. Rev. Rick Brown serves as Associate Pastor. Rev. Evelyn Stupp serves as Pastor of Bereavement and Care Ministries. Music ministry is led by Director of the Chancel Choir Kenneth Schneider, Praise Team Leader Monika Short, and Jubilation Ringers Director Jackie Grove. Israel's Olivieri serves as Director of Discipleship and Worship Production, and Pam Unrath is Director of Children's and Youth Ministries.
Asbury welcomes people of all identifications, orientations, and backgrounds to be part of its body of believers and has chosen to remain in the United Methodist Church as the denomination has navigated questions of human sexuality in recent years.