ESL Kickoff!

I've long since run out of fingers and toes to count our blessings on.

Our first ESL session was a blast. It did not just go well--it was actually beautiful.

There were about 10-12 students from all different countries. One man walked two miles in the rain to attend class. There were also seven tutors and helpers from Trinity Lutheran Seminary, Ohio Dominican University and the Catholic Worker.

We started off working with the students one-on-one to asses their language level. The tutors and students both jumped in eagerly, and there was much conversation and laughter in the room. At the end, Bev taught a short lesson to the whole group. She did a great job, and her lesson was fun and engaging. I learned a lot by watching Pastor Ruth and Bev, as they have considerable experience teaching English.

People got up and talked about where they were from and mentioned some points about their country of origin. Students were from the Dominican Republic, Mexico, El Salvador, Peru and Venezuela. A consistent theme is that many miss their homeland, and some came out of very tragic circumstances. They are also proud of their homelands have a rich culture to share (and hopefully recipes, too!)

We are trying to figure out the best way for tutors to be involved. We will see how it evolves. It may be best to have tutors work with students before or after class or schedule different times to get together. Students are at such different language levels. We have already scheduled some Sunday night tutoring, as weekdays are not very good for a lot of people who work late.

Students were very gracious and offered to help us in other activities. Some volunteered to help when we have an Open House after the Spanish masses. Another man offered to help us if we ever need painting or other work around the house.

Yard Work and Gardening!

Austin and I were able to join members of the St. James the Less parish for their annual yard clean-up event on the day before Easter. I got my tired winter muscles moving again, and it felt great being outside and working. We weeded, raked, picked up litter and delivered endless loads of mulch.

The crew worked around the rectory, church and in the courtyard. The also wound their way around and did some significant work at the Catholic Worker. They trimmed shrubs, weeded and mulched in front of our place. They deserve quite a bit of gratitude for this all this hard work!

Even though the crew wore me out entirely, I was able to trek off afterwards and finally broke ground in our new garden! The parish is going to let us use one of the baseball diamonds in the fields off Huy Road. I dug up some soil samples to be sent off for testing. I also was able to start our much-needed compost pile. No longer will we need to have buckets of compost sitting on the counter top, because they can go right in the ground whenever we want to empty them!

We will have a meeting on Wednesday, April 15th at 7:00 pm for anyone who is interested in joining us in our gardening efforts. It would be wonderful if this garden turned into a true community affair. Neighbors, parishioners and Catholic Workers welcome to participate. At the very least, we’d love a moderate garden to grow produce for our ministries, the St. Vincent de Paul food pantry as well as for neighbors or anyone who helps in the garden. If there is lot of interest, we could have a larger garden.

Also: We will gladly take your kitchen compost! Save your vegetable peels, fruit cores, used coffee grounds (filters and all), tea bags and eggshells. Just store them in a container with a lid and drop it off anytime. Please don’t include meat, bones or any cooked foods, as they tend to attract pests. This link from the EPA has lists of what to include and not to include at the bottom.

ESL Program Starting, Volunteers Needed!

We were talking about the possibility of an English as a Second Language program at a meeting a couple of weeks ago. Fr. Pat has said this is an important ministry, and I have run across many folks who have expressed a desire to help. The only problem was that it was intimidating to start a bran new program. If only someone could just get the ball rolling, we thought, that would give us the opportunity to get established and go from there.

Like it says in scripture, ask and you shall receive.

Within a day of that meeting, we received contact from Bev, a woman who used to run the ESL program at St. James the Less. She wanted to start it up again, but needed a place to hold classes and could certainly use volunteers to assist. She may have to leave at the end of August, but in the meantime she can facilitate the program and get us up and running. Bev was involved in our group in the beginning and has been a big help at Grace Place Catholic Worker in Cincinnati.

Here are the specifics:

There will be intermediate and beginners level classes on Tuesday and Thursday evenings between 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm. We are looking for people to be classroom teachers, one-on-one tutors, or occasional conversation partners (as well as students!) Tutors would have the option of scheduling a convenient time to meet with their student outside of regular class time.

The program kicks off on April 14th and 16th with "assessment sessions." Volunteers are needed to help determine the language skills of the students so they can be placed in the appropriate classes. No training is needed for this. Regular classes will begin the following week.

If you are interested, please call Frank at 614-267-3322 or email here. This a great opportunity not only to teach English, but also to practice Spanish and for cultural exchange. Spanish language skills are useful (especially for the beginners class), but not required.

The Dominican Learning Center provides a one-day training for tutors. It is from 9:00 am until 12:00 noon on May 9th and June 13th. You can begin volunteering before taking the class. Let us know if you want to take the class, as we have to schedule in advance.

There is the possibility of offering some Spanish classes as a cultural exchange, as well.

For conversation partners, all the students need is someone willing to talk at their own pace and to be patient while they try out their language skills. It is good while learning a language to get used to hearing different styles of speaking from different individuals. There are plenty of opportunities for interactive conversations, such as going through a kitchen and pointing out all the items and (the church sanctuary would also be a good place for that).

* * *

The mission of the Catholic Worker is the works of mercy. How is teaching English related to the works of mercy? It is another way to feed people. Instead of just giving people food directly, we are helping them develop the language skills that will enable them to feed themselves over the course of their lives, as well as communicate with more people. This is also a great opportunity to provide hospitality and a warm welcome to a segment of the population that is often very isolated.

Retreats: Full Speed Ahead

Our place is working out to be very nice for retreats and workshops. This past Saturday, we hosted a ministry group that had an all-day event with workshops, prayer, meals and breakout sessions. It went very smoothly, and we got a lot of positive feedback. A couple of us were on hand to help facilitate the process by washing dishes, cleaning, arranging furniture and providing general hospitality.

The group moved from the large dining room and into the living room and chapel for various sessions throughout the day. For breaks, it was a lovely sunny afternoon so some folks went out into the church's courtyard and others found space in the parlor rooms or elsewhere.

There were nearly 35-40 people in the building for most of the day. People said that it was comfortable and there didn't seem to be any issues with space. This is good news, because we were previously unsure about what size group we could handle. We had to be creative with space to accommodate everybody, but we were able to do it without sacrificing quality. We probably don't want to have groups larger than 50.

We learned a lot from this event. There is a lot of work to be done the day before the group arrives. It is also important to have at least 2 Catholic Workers on hand at all times to help with clean-up and hosting.

There is another ministry group scheduled in a couple of weeks, and this one is also looking to be a large group and a number of the participants will be staying overnight for a 2-day event. We are looking forward to it!

Wish List for Upcoming Retreat

We have been working to get the house ready for an upcoming retreat for a ministry group. This will be our first overnight event that will accommodate a significant number of people--up to 15 overnight guests!

Austin has done some major cleaning. Pat and Erin assembled beds and rearranged furniture. Erin is also our Feng Shui expert. She put together the following:

There are a few items we need to be ready for the upcoming retreats. We don't necessarily need new items--gently used is just fine.

List of Items Needed for Retreat:

• 10 washcloths
• 8 Hand towels
• 10 bath towels
• 1 Bathmat
• 3 Twin Sheet sets
• 1 Full Size Comforter
• 1 Floor Rug (small)

Also: We can use a couple more beds, especially double-sized beds. Small dressers, trunks and bookcases would also be well utilized.

Legal Clinic: Good News

The following is by community member Pat:

We had a great turnout for the Second Hispanic Legal Clinic last night. Amy (the lawyer) saw 9 individuals and families and stayed until almost 9:30 consulting with each. We had a number of volunteers come to help out, which was very helpful. The St. Vincent de Paul Society provided a large number of donated Cheryl's cookies and we had plenty of beverages. Next month, we would like to offer more food and snacks, as some people waited over 2 hours to be seen.

Angela from the Diocesan Latino Ministry Office (who co-sponsors this event) was consulting with families and helping to direct people. Fr. Pat stopped in and stayed for a while. He provided Spanish words for signs for both the Catholic Worker and the Food Pantry (the latter is a term which strangely does not translate easily into Spanish). We are looking for ways to direct people to the right door and have proper signs in place. We had to help all the first guests to find us, as some were walking around the parish complex looking for the Clinic.

Bev was on hand to distribute flyers for the English as a Second Language program that is starting up. She has taught ESL at St. James the Less before, and the new program will be at the Catholic Worker. More information will be coming about that shortly, as we are forming a volunteer program with tutors, class teacher and conversation partners!

Does Anyone Have a Truck or Van?

Special Request: Does anyone out there have a truck or large van? There are a couple of beds earmarked for the Catholic Worker. The hard part is getting them to our place!

Our goal is to have the beds ready to use before April 17th. On that weekend, we are hosting a large retreat group and will need every bed we can get. As of right now, several of our bedrooms are unfurnished so we can always use a few more beds or bedroom furniture.

Please email me here or call us at the house at 614-267-3322. We have plenty of people to carry the beds, we just need access to a vehicle!

The Promise of Spring

Praise be to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit (and John the maintenance man): The furnace is scheduled to be switched off for the summer!

We have really been enjoying these spring-like days and not just for the sunshine and nice weather. The real reason to be joyful for spring is that it keeps our radiators cold at home.

We just got through some fiercely cold months and have the gas bills to prove it. These old style boilers are very different than most household heating systems--they generate a lot of heat just by being turned on. Thermostats are down below 60 degrees but still we are in short sleeves. However, in the deep freeze of winter we are hoping that keeping the thermostats down that far will make a difference next year.

That's all behind us for at least the next several months. Having low expenses for the summer will give us a chance to breathe so we can build up our community with more live-in volunteers and by spreading the word to build up donations. It is normal in a Catholic Worker community for donations to be used just for the utilities and house payments, since the house itself is a means of ministry. However, our goal is to handle that solely through the individuals who live here, so that donations can go to special projects and more directly to outreach ministries. We just need time to let the Lord build that.

* * *

There is a community meeting & potluck at 12:00 noon this Saturday, March 28th. We will be discussing the progress on our ministry work and looking for help in discerning where we should be focusing our attention. We will also be planning the upcoming naming & dedication ceremony.

There is a cleanup before that at 10:00 am in preparation for an upcoming retreat that we are hosting and people are welcome to volunteer for that, as well!

Hope to see you there on Saturday!

Community Meeting & Clean-Up Day!

The Catholic Worker is starting to hum with a schedule of retreats and workshops.

In mid-April, one ministry group will bring over 40 participants for a weekend retreat, including as many as 15 people staying overnight from out of town! That is probably the maximum amount our building can handle. We may need other community members to offer hospitality to some of these people in case the CW house fills up--please let us know if you would have space in your homes for that.

Clean-up & Preparation

This Saturday, March 28th, at 10:00 am, we will be getting the rooms ready for the upcoming retreatants. The Dominican sisters left the place in tip-top shape, but the bedrooms will need a dusting after sitting empty for so many months. Beds will be assembled and furniture distributed between the empty rooms. Volunteers are needed for this, so please consider spending time with us on Saturday morning this week!

After the cleanup, we'll have a potluck lunch and a larger Catholic Worker community meeting. We will discuss naming the house, ministry opportunities for our community and our upcoming May 1st Dedication.

You are welcome to attend all or part of these activities. Please join us!

God's Economy and Well Wishes for Dale

Our community member Dale just recently moved out. He is on a mission to develop an outpost for his Jerusalem monastic community and is looking to begin that at Holy Family parish on the near west side. There is also the possibility of starting up an addiction-related intentional community there. We wish him the best!

Note: His Lenten prayer services on Thursday evenings at St. James the Less will still continue.

* * *

Dale likes to drink a lot of milk. It was customary to have a few gallons stockpiled in the fridge each week. With him gone, it is amazing how slowly the milk levels have been falling. There was this one full gallon in particular that was just zooming toward its expiration date and there was just no way we were even going to come close to touching it. I put the word out and asked around.

So I was cooking yesterday and someone came to the door asking about the St. Vincent de Paul food pantry. He came to the wrong door or else I never would have known he was there. I told him the pantry was probably closed, but I would try to help him. It turns out that Jake and Harry had stayed late and had items ready for him. I heard the man ask if they had any powdered milk (I supposed powered is usually what they carry in most pantries). He was thankful for his groceries, but mentioned milk a couple of times.

At the time my brain didn't exactly put it all together. I had forgotten about the extra milk jug we had. As he was leaving, he seemed to linger around just a little bit--perhaps just long enough to make the connection. I remembered the milk and handed him the jug as he was headed toward the car. He was quite happy.

It's a simple story perhaps, but I believe it illustrates God's economy. This is how it works: You sit around wondering what you are going to do with all this milk, and soon enough someone comes to your door asking for milk. You wonder how everyone is going to be fed, and when it's all said and done there are actually leftovers. This is why Dorothy Day entitled her book about the Catholic Worker movement "Loaves & Fishes." She no doubt saw multitudes fed every day, starting out with just a few scant items, just like in the Gospel stories.

There is another economy that Wall Street executives may never know about but in which your local food pantry may thrive. Items are shared, people are fed, things shuffle around between groups. The right items seem to arrive at the right times. Miracles happen every day.

This is why we don't charge for our services. When we host retreats and workshops, we are open to donations but we don't make them a requirement for services rendered. We try to minimize the connection between their involvement with our community and a payment. The Lord works it out. Putting a price tag on those services is like saying we don't trust the Lord, like somehow we have to control the process in order to get our needs met.

Not charging allows struggling groups to get by with less and offers wealthier groups the chance to give more. People can give--or not give--however they are inspired. It allows the personal relationship to come first without being dictated by business terms. I can actually feel the change in energy that happens once money becomes an expectation in the relationship--it is like a wall goes up between me and the other person. The Catholic Worker value of personalism challenges us to always put people before money, relationship before things and trust before fear.

St. Vincent de Paul in the House!

If you haven't been down to check out the St. Vincent de Paul food pantry, you need to stop on by!

They have just finished relocating from the basement of the rectory to the basement of the Catholic Worker. They will have much more space and our two groups will be able to do so much more together by being in such close proximity.

For the last several weeks, the group has been working hard preparing the space. They took out loads of items to be thrown out. They installed shelves, a door buzzer, a light and had a fax line put in. The did numerous other repairs. There was plenty of cleaning and painting as prior flooding left mildew on the walls and floors. On Saturday, the move was finalized as students from De Sales High School helped them bring over all the food items.



The Catholic Worker is happy to welcome our new neighbors to the building, and we hope there is much we can do together! We will be on site to help out, especially if volunteers are low for any reason. We are also looking to provide complimentary services--after they give out food pantry items, we may invite the guests up for a meal or healthy snacks.


Here is their new office!

Pictures of Jake, Pat, Bob and everyone else in the gang will be here soon, but I need to catch them on a day when they are not up to their elbows in sawdust and bleach (which is not very often!) They are a very hard working bunch.



Today, March 16th, is the first day the pantry will be operating from their new location! Please join me in welcoming them, and stop on by to visit sometime.

Update: Friday's Prayer Cancelled for Focolare Mass

We will be attending a special event this Friday, March 13th. There is a special mass at 7:00 pm at the Newman Center at 64 W. Lane Ave. This mass is a memorial for the founder of the Focolare Movement, Chiara Lubich, who passed away one year ago.

As a result, we will not have our regular prayer service at the Catholic Worker house this week. However, everyone is invited to join us for an evening of prayer and fellowship at this event.

The Focolare have a special charism of Christian unity. They live in intentional communities all over the world and are a witness to love and unity. There is a community right here in Columbus, and we met them a few weeks ago. There is probably a lot that our two communities can do together!

Please join us for this event! Come to the Catholic Worker house at 6:30 and we can travel together or else just meet us at the Newman Center!

Prayer Updates

Dale is leading a prayer service every Thursday evening during Lent at St. James the Less. It begins at 7:00 pm and lasts roughly 20-40 minutes. This is in the church sanctuary, not the Catholic Worker. He will be alternating between a Taize format and compline every other week.

Home Economics

We've been looking for ways to save money and cut our expenses! Our core group of volunteers (including those who live here) are some of the more frugal and home economically-minded people you will meet. Still, there is plenty to learn, as this is an area that needs contact attention to stay on top of things.

Groceries

Friends of mine will tell you that I have a passion for eating as cheaply as possible, while also staying healthy and organic. Living at the Catholic Worker gives me the chance to take advantage of bulk prices, and I am excited. I made an appearance at GFS for the first time today. There is one right up the road on Cleveland Avenue. Check out some of these deals:

• 8 lbs of apples for $5.49
• 25 lbs of whole grain, brown rice for just under $17
  

Can we really eat this much rice? With the number of vegetarians and veggie-friendly eaters around, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how much beans & rice we can go through. Guess what's for dinner?

10 lbs of potatoes are just over $3 at GFS. As you may know, you can get this price on sale at Kroger’s right now, but it is good to know there is a place to get this price on a regular basis. I also got a number of brown napkins--cheap and more environmentally responsible than bleached, white ones. Last week, Cheryl got the fixin’s for a number of large pasta dinners for around $25 at GFS.

Beans are a different story. Bulk organic beans at the Clintonville Community Market are just 20 cents per pound more than the best price I found elsewhere. Considering the benefits of organics as well as the savings in plastic packaging waste, this is well worth it. We’d rather support the co-op, anyway.

Light Bulbs

It occurred to me the other day that 14 individual bulbs turn on every time we flip the switch in the main dining room! The size and scope of this building is definitely something new to get used to. As a result, we rarely spend time there by ourselves.

I’ve become aware of this because we are in the midst of a light bulb-counting project at the house. One generous donor has offered to drop off some fluorescent bulbs. These will keep our electric bill down and help us be as green as we can be.

Gas Bills

We keep lowering the heat in the house, but we can probably stand to crank it down even more. Put a couple of warm bodies in this building and it can get downright stuffy real quick!

Our gas bills are extraordinarily high. A typical monthly winter bill is around $1800! However, we’ve calculated that it is best not to go onto the yearly budget plan until late summer. If we can muscle our way through a couple of high bills this winter, we’ll have very small payments throughout the spring and summer. When next winter starts knocking at the door, we can avoid the huge bills by starting the yearly plan which will give us the same amount to pay each month of the year.

Retreat, Respite and Renewal

So what do you do with a 20-bedroom facility?

Our Catholic Worker is ideal for individual and group retreats. Good meeting space is hard to find in this town. Many groups simply cannot afford it, or even if they can, places often book up months in advance.

Our home is warm and lovely. Kids love it. We have an almost ideal set-up: Large dining room and kitchen. Cozy living room. Smaller parlor rooms with doors for privacy. There is also a wonderful chapel.

We have around 12 rooms available for overnight stay. This will vary, depending on how many live-in volunteers we have. We use some of the bedrooms for an office, storage and other uses, but they could be re-configured if needed. Most of the rooms have beds already set up, but we are getting some more donations and will have a "bed set-up party" in the near future.

How much are we going to charge?

We operate in God's economy: We don't charge. We'll let the Lord sort that out. We want to make sure cost is not a barrier, as many wonderful ministry groups out there are struggling financially and our mission, after all, is hospitality.

So far there has been strong interest. We have been approached by different parishes to host meetings as well as from a prison ministry group.

Poustinia

At any time, individuals can stop over for respite. We like the idea of a poustinia, which is a tradition in the Russian Orthodox Church. This is a place people can go to in order to be alone with God. If you need to just get away and spend an afternoon or a weekend alone with God, we are more than happy to make our space available for you. Dorothy Day used to go on a retreat where she had nothing but a Bible, some bread and a lot of time alone with God. Probably the one thing lacking in a city such as ours is a quiet place to go to get away from it all. Just call ahead and we'd be glad to welcome you in!