We feel a deep connection to the people of Campus House at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana. Pastors, staff, members and attenders have poured out their love on us since we stepped into the church when we were discovering Purdue for our son Ethan back in 2016. That first meeting was within the walls of their older building… a “mushroom-like” place in the heart of Purdue.

Located in the heart of Purdue’s campus, Campus House is a Jesus-centered, non-denominational church community being formed together in His ways for the sake of the campus, the city, and the world. For over 50 years, our heart has been to reach Purdue’s campus and Greater Lafayette with the love of Jesus, to encourage and equip disciples who make disciples, and to be a sending base for mission and ministry throughout the world. God has brought a unique mix of undergraduate and graduate students, young professionals, families, and retirees into our community, so whatever your life stage, you belong here. We’d love for this to be your church home on campus.

Campus House Website: Who We Are

When Ethan became a student at Purdue in the Fall of 2018, he jumped into life on campus and with the Campus House community. We are so grateful for everyone whom welcomed him and walked alongside him with the rest of the student population in the four years of his undergraduate degree. He had returned to the community of Campus House the day he passed away. It was a beautiful day, challenging each other to live for the Lord in bible study and the care of the men in his life at Joshua House.

This community has honored our son and his commitment to follow Jesus even now in these days without him. Campus House hosted a Game Night on June 7th, 2023 for our JolteOn Memorial Game Days and brought together friends to remember the joy of his life in games. They touched our hearts incredibly by dedicating Classroom 1 in honor of Ethan’s impact.

Here are the words from the Campus House pastoral staff on the plaque in honor of Ethan’s life…

“Ethan graduated from Purdue in May 2022 with a Bachelor of Science in Materials Engineering. He loved Star Wars and video games, cheese and sushi, and was known around campus as the “roller-blading guy”, a nod to his passion for the game of hockey.

Ethan was part of a core group of students who saw us through the COVID-19 pandemic, including our year in “exile” in a temporary leased space as we tore down our previous building–remembered as “the mushroom” for its odd shape–and built this one. Ethan was a teacher and a learner, brilliant and brutally honest, an intense yet wonderfully hospitable kind of leader who loved Jesus and desperately wanted others to know the grace he had experienced. He wrote this in his notes one Sunday: “What you put at the center of your life affects what is at the center of the lives of those close to you”. For Ethan, that was undoubtedly Jesus.

He was excited about what God was doing in and through the Campus House community and, upon graduation, Ethan accepted a local job offer so that he could continue to participate in what Jesus was building here. Tragically, he died the week he was to begin this new chapter in his story. When Ethan put his faith and ultimate hope in Jesus, he was banking everything on the reality of the resurrection. The hope that he had is the hope that doesn’t disappoint, that can’t be cut short. It isn’t wishful thinking, but rather a living hope, the deep reality of life in Christ. As we gather in this space, we remember Ethan’s unshakeable hope in Christ and deep love for our community, and we honor all that God did in and through his time with us.”

We are forever grateful for Jesus’ work through Campus House.