Casey returns to lead Tech’s BCM
COOKEVILLE — Wade Casey is a math and science guy.
He likes to know how things work and has a special interest in airplanes and spacecraft. It’s in his genes — his dad, grandfather, and several uncles were all mechanically minded.
Naturally, the Chattanooga native majored in Mechanical Engineering at Tennessee Tech where he graduated in 2005.
But even as he pursued engineering, something else was stirring.
“There were struggles to know what the Lord was leading me to,” said Casey. “The call to ministry was a long and gradual journey. I felt a pull to some kind of ministry in high school, but I wasn’t sure what that meant.”
Casey worked in engineering for several years after graduation, but his experiences at Tech’s Baptist Collegiate Ministry, summer missions, and local church involvement continued to draw him toward full-time ministry. He eventually left his engineering career, enrolled at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, and earned his Master of Divinity.
“I knew that my life was to be spent serving in the church and ministry rather than sitting behind an engineering desk,” he said.
After seminary, Casey served as an interim youth minister in southeast Texas. Then he received an unexpected call.
“I got a call one evening, seemingly out of nowhere, from the North American Mission Board asking if I would want to serve in Hawaii,” he recalled. “That’s a pretty hard opportunity to turn down.”
Casey served as a NAMB missionary at the University of Hawaii at Hilo, one of the most ethnically diverse campuses in the country, for two years. While beautiful, the environment presented real challenges.
“Hawaii is a very difficult place to live and minister,” he said. “It was very isolated, expensive, and spiritually hard.”
When he arrived in Hilo, the BCM ministry there needed to be rebuilt. Casey assembled a new student leadership team, re-established church connections, and built out a ministry program from the ground up.
“The Lord did a great work in those two years and the BCM ministry continues to flourish there today. I’m grateful for my time on the Big Island,” Casey said.
From Hawaii, Casey moved back to Chattanooga, where he served on a church staff as an associate pastor, overseeing adult discipleship, administration, and teaching ministries.
“I’ve been a student, a director, a BCM board chair, and a local church partner in BCM ministry,” he said. “All those experiences highlight a different aspect of campus ministry.”
Now he is back on the campus where it all started, and he said the feeling is a little surreal.
“I am amazed that the Lord brought me back to Tech,” Casey said. “As the Lord used my campus minister, Dr. Joe Wiles, and other people to shape and form me in this place, I pray that He will use me to develop this new generation of students to follow and pursue Christ above all.”
Casey describes BCM in three parts: a place, a people, a ministry.
“BCM is a place where students can hang out during the day, eat lunch, play games, and connect with others,” he said. “It is a community of Christians where you can connect with fellow believers in small group Bible study, intramural sports, weekly meals, and other events.”
Beyond community, BCM also equips students to engage in mission through evangelism, service projects, and mission trips.
Central to Casey’s vision is the relationship between BCM and local churches. He is quick to note that BCM is not a substitute for church membership.
“BCM is an extension of the local church,” he said. “BCM can serve as a proving ground for students to develop their spiritual gifts, to learn about missions and evangelism, and to exercise leadership skills that will prove valuable for their life in the local church once they graduate.”
He would love to see that partnership deepen, specifically through local families practicing hospitality by welcoming students into their homes, established adults taking on formal discipleship roles with students, and joint church-BCM mission trips during college breaks.
“My heart is for discipleship,” he said. “I desire for students to grow in their faith, to know Christ and His word, and to see them serve their campus and their church. Raising up students to own their faith and then go on to help others follow Jesus will be my focus.”
Casey has a word of encouragement for those students who may be walking onto campus for the first time and wondering where they belong.
“Embrace the initial awkwardness and seek out a group of believers to connect with,” he said. “Two of my friends didn’t venture out of their dorms their freshman year and didn’t connect to BCM until their second year. They regret missing out on a whole year — 25% of their college years — of friendship and community. They would both encourage students to not be like them.”
As director, Casey’s goal is to make sure BCM is as transformative for the next generation as it was for him.
“It changed my life,” he said, “and I know it will change other students who find the BCM.”
Casey and his wife Kimberly are approaching their 10th wedding anniversary this summer. They have three children: Eloise, Audrey, and William.
In his free time, he enjoys hiking, running, reading, and playing with his kids. B&R