The Gator Wesley Foundation’s campus pastor believes it was a BB shot from a passing vehicle that shattered its glass door Wednesday night.
The majority of the United Methodist campus ministry was upstairs worshipping when the left door of the first-floor entryway had a quarter-inch hole punched into its upper right corner, leaving a web of cracks across the pane.
Early childhood education senior Emily Minter was studying alone in the lobby when she heard the thwack behind her.
“It sounded like when someone jerks on the door when it’s locked,” the 21-year-old said.
When she turned around, Minter noticed the cracked glass. She could hear it splitting as she approached.
“One crack would go, then it just kept cracking,” she said.
Minter fetched former staff member Jessica Jollie, a 21-year-old sociology senior. Jollie ran upstairs to find the pastor, who then called the police.
Narcie Jeter, 32, the executive director and campus pastor, said there were no security cameras.
Jollie said she didn’t think it was intentional toward the church. Because the door remained intact, she wasn’t too worried about security.
“If someone wanted to get in here, there wasn’t much stopping them,” she said. “It was just a little girl down here by herself.”
Pam Petersen, the ministry’s 58-year-old office manager, said she spoke with multiple companies on Thursday about replacing the door.
The damages were originally estimated by the ministry at about $2,000. A police report put the amount to be about $500.
“We budget for maintenance, but it would have been wonderful to use that money for the ministry, student outreach or a mission trip,” Jeter said. “We just want to make sure the students are as safe as possible.”
Contact Alex Catalano at acatalano@alligator.org.
