About Us

Learn More About Who We Are 

You have a place at Wellspring Congregation!

Wellspring is a new congregation whose foundation is the welcoming, transformative grace of God. We are called to the ministry of reconciliation and love. We affirm that all people are created in the image of God and are worthy of God’s love and grace.

 

As an intentionally inclusive community of faith, Wellspring Congregation welcomes and affirms people of every sexual orientation, gender identity, race, ethnicity, age, faith history, economic status, marital status, physical and mental ability and education.

 

Wellspring is a welcoming place to grow your faith.

 

 

"Wellspring Congregation: An Inclusive United Methodist Church is a Lighthouse Congregation of The Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church. Our church is committed to remaining United Methodist and we are excited to continue our work to spread the light and hope of the gospel to our community.

 

We commit ourselves to serving those who have lost their church homes through disaffiliation or closure. We will partner in this work by providing worship opportunities, creating space to grow and learn, serving others through tangible ministries, sharing an open Communion table and offering pastoral care to those in need.

 

At Wellspring, all of who you are is welcome. We are a loving, reconciling and inclusive community of faith and we honor our calling to be a Lighthouse Congregation."

 

What to Expect

1.

Wellspring worship is each Sunday at 10am. You can expect a sincere welcome, a safe place for you and your children and an emphasis on growing in your faith.  And we want you to dress in the way that's most comfortable for you. 

2.

We are at different places on our journeys and we believe that is something to celebrate. There is no expectation that you have all the answers to your faith questions or even a deep well of faith. There will be no hard sell, no pressure.  We just want you to come and try us out.

3.

From the outset, Wellspring will be an intentionally inclusive community of faith. Because we believe that God has created every person with love, we will faithfully welcome, include and walk alongside those who seek to grow in their faith. 

4.

Our worship services will include music, a message, laughter, safety, honesty and an acceptance of doubts and uncertainty. Through worship, we want you to be strengthened for the week ahead and ready to approach your life through a lens of love and joy as you come to know yourself as a beloved child of God.

Meet Our Team

Ashley Crowder Stanley

Pastor

Rev. Ashley Crowder Stanley is the founding pastor of Wellspring United Methodist Church, a new congregation in Asheville, NC. After serving churches in Minnesota and North Carolina for over 3 decades, Ashley is joyfully astonished that she is now living her long held dream of helping to establish a church passionately focused on hospitality and grace for all people.  Her ministry passions are preaching and worship, community building and social justice work. Ashley and her husband T have three adult children, four young grandchildren, and two chocolate labs.

Kelly Dotson

Associate Pastor

Rev. Kelly Dotson joined our team as associate pastor in July 2022 after being ordained an elder in full connection in the Western North Carolina Conference. Kelly has been pastoring churches in WNC since 2014, serving churches in Canton, Otto, Franklin, Morganton and Nebo. The longing of Kelly's heart is to share the good news of God's love with those who have been exiled from the church and to work towards bringing God's Kingdom to "earth as it is in heaven." It is a dream come true for her to join the staff of Wellspring Congregation.  Kelly is affectionately known as preacher woman, Pastor Kelly and PK. Kelly resides in Franklin with her partner, Shannon, and they share four adult children between them as well as 4 cats.  

Sarah Fowler

Wellspring Musician

Sarah R. Fowler has served our community as a church music director and pianist for the last 20 years. A graduate of Western Carolina University, she has performed at the Grand Ole Opry, the Asheville Lyric Opera, and throughout various theatre companies in WNC. As a church music director, she has led both traditional and contemporary worship, adult and youth choirs, handbell choirs, church orchestras and praise bands. Currently Sarah is a medical assistant on the path to becoming a Physician Assistant. She lives in Lake Junaluska with her schnorkie, Luna Mae.

Sarah Myers Hancock

Administrative Coordinator

Sarah came to Wellspring in August of 2022. She has several years knowledge of administrative duties and social media management, specifically in non-profits and visual arts environments. Sarah graduated from Winthrop University with a BA of Fine Arts. She lives with her husband, Rob, their children Frank and June, and giant black dog Boris, in Arden, NC. 

Leadership Team

WLT

The Wellspring Leadership Team (WLT) is comprised of a diverse group of people who have enthusiastically come together to form an inclusive, welcoming and loving congregation. The WLT has been working together since September of 2019 to have a joyous launch of our ministry fueled by our mission to provide a safe place for all people to grow in the love of God and neighbor.

Our Beliefs

We believe that God’s table is large with room for all people. As a United Methodist Church, Wellspring shares a connection with people all over the world who seek to love God, serve their neighbors and grow in faith.  We believe God-centered connection and community are life-giving and essential to being a follower of Jesus and living well in this world.  You have a place at Wellspring and we look forward to welcoming you.

Reconciling Ministry

Wellspring Congregation

An Inclusive United Methodist Church

Reconciling Ministries Network Statement

 

God calls Wellspring United Methodist Church to the ministry of reconciliation and love. We are a member of the Reconciling Ministries Network(RMN). We affirm that all people are created in the image of God and are worthy of God’s love and grace. God’s love covers us all. 

 

As an intentionally inclusive community of faith, Wellspring welcomes and affirms people of every sexual orientation, gender identity, race, ethnicity, age, faith history, economic status, marital status, physical and mental ability and education.

 

We respect the valuable contributions each member makes to our faith community, neighborhood and world. We do not seek to erase our difference and we believe that we can love alike even though we will not always be alike. This statement of welcome extends to all persons who seek to love and serve God and neighbor.