BUCKHANNON, West Virginia – An annual tradition, West Virginia Wesleyan College’s The Great Gathering is scheduled to be held in the Social Hall on Tuesday, September 26 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. The guest speaker will be the Reverend Charles DiRico who is the leader of Word on the Street in Charlotte, North Carolina.

DeRico is an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church. He currently leads a movement of Fresh Expressions of Church that is known as Word on the Street. The four primary expressions of Word on the Street that have emerged thus far are dinner churches. Three of those dinner churches involve persons who are experiencing homelessness in the Charlotte area and the fourth is a bilingual dinner church that is held in a local mobile home community.

Throughout all its expressions, Word on the Street is committed to listening and loving for the Word of God, who is Jesus, on the streets of their community. That commitment to listening and loving is even represented by the two “L”s that make up the “W” in the Word on the Street logo.

DeRico is a graduate of Virginia Tech (BS) and the Emory University’s Candler School of Theology (MDiv). He is currently working toward a Doctor of Ministry (DMin) degree through United Theological Seminary with a focus on Fresh Expressions of Church and church renewal.”

The Great Gathering is a celebration of community. Being that September is ‘Hunger Action Month’, this year’s Great Gathering will center on food insecurity and the role we can play in helping to end hunger.

Beginning at 11 a.m., the Reverend Charles Dirico will share his experience of community and how God is leading a movement through ‘Word on the Street’ to serve the people of Charlotte, N.C. Immediately following, we will share a meal and conversation so that we may know each other better and begin discerning how we can better serve our neighbors.