We need your help!

Dear friends of Cherith Brook Catholic Worker,

This fall marks 16 years of a life of hospitality, communal living, activism, homesteading and prayer. We have tended this mustard seed and watched God grow it into a ministry of presence, a small sanctuary of peace in a hostile world. We’ve strived to create a space where people on the margins and people of privilege can, together, reclaim their humanity. “I feel like a human being again,” is one of the most common refrains when folks leave a hot shower, fresh and clean. We still believe that if we welcome people - no matter what race or creed, class, gender or sexual orientation - we will find ourselves “entertaining angels” (Hebrews 13:2). We still believe if we share all things in common, we will be united, black, brown and white together and our leadership will reflect the multiracial and multiethnic community we live in (Acts 4:32). We still believe that if we stand behind the marginalized in their struggles for justice, we will all experience liberation (Luke 4:18). We still believe that if we risk loving our enemies, like Jesus taught (Matthew 5:44), we will all be transformed and experience a little heaven on earth.

We are humbled to be witnesses of these truths, and often in spite of ourselves. There is not a week goes by that I do not think of Paul’s words, “We have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.” Truly God has provided exactly what we’ve needed when we’ve needed it: Food for meals, clothing for our closet, coffee for cold mornings, water for showers, volunteers to garden or repair a fence, clean toilets, cook a meal, wash dishes, beekeep, mop the floors, transport guests to protests, sort food and clothing donations, launder clothes, clean a wound, and money to keep the lights on...the list goes on! So many community members and volunteers have graced this place. Each person has been absolutely essential to put love into practice.

We rarely asked for money directly (I can only think of three times: Once for the downpayment on the buildings, once to pay off the loan and once for the storefront roof). During these years our only “marketing tool” has been practicing the works of mercy, experiments in gospel nonviolence, solidarity in the streets and stories of healing and wholeness that follow. Volunteers have spent countless hours finding the joy of giving their time and themselves for free.Those who have lived here have worked without a salary, living at a personal sacrifice. Now we are asking the same from you, to give joyfully, freely and at a personal sacrifice.

So, this will be our fourth request. We need $150,000 to rehab the front of our building. Our plan is very practical: to reinstall storefront windows and doors, improve handicap access, add an awning, brick restoration and structural reinforcements. This will make Cherith Brook more welcoming, more environmentally sustainable and more beautiful!

To date we have raised $49,350.25! We have recruited a volunteer team of architects, a construction manager and structural engineer. It is a committed group and they encourage us. We hope to raise the rest of the money by the end of winter so we can begin construction. Please help us accomplish this goal. 

Let us know if you’d like more details or have people in your sphere of influence that we should contact. We are enthusiastic to speak at group meetings, churches or organizations. Please call Eric Garbison at (816) 241-8047 for scheduling. 

Checks can be made to “Cherith Brook Catholic Worker” please put “storefront project” in the memo and mail to 3308 E. 12th St. Kansas City, MO. 64127. Pay with paypal by going to your account and sending to cherithbrookkcmo@gmail.com

In Christ,

Ray Callahan,Tammy Brown, Jodi & Eric Garbison, Luis Lara, Christopher Stohrer & Lois Swimmer - The Elder’s Circle

Garrett Brown, Nick Pickrell, Rebecca Lindley, Kelly Hannerhoff - Cherith Brook Trustees.

Jerry Penland - project manager