Update on Garbison Court Case

Dear Friends,

On a Thursday night in May of 2017, the police converged on Cherith Brook looking for a “spotted suspect” near our house. It included about six officers with weapons drawn and circling the house. It was very dramatic and alarming. Although the officers did not find the person they were looking for, they arrested a shower friend of ours who receives his mail here and coincidentally, had prior warrants.

A similar situation played out on Thursday night, September 21, 2017. After our regular community meal in the café, Eric and Jodi were at the house playing cards and celebrating Ana’s birthday. At around 9pm, the police beat on the door. Eric stepped out the front door to where he was surrounded by three police officers on the porch and several police officers walking around the yard.

The police officers said they were looking for one of our shower friends, who they said was needed as a witness. Eric cooperated and answered all questions regarding this person. He cooperated by calmly stating that yes, we knew this person and that no, he did not live at this address.

As this was happening, Henri came home from high school robotics practice in his truck. As Henri pulled into the driveway, a cop emerged from behind the back fence. The cop approached the vehicle, pointing a flashlight and gun at Henri.

After watching from the window, Jodi came out on the porch. Things got loud and confusing. After demanding to know why the officer was detaining Henri and why they were including him in their investigation, Eric and Jodi tried to get a closer view.

Both were arrested without explanation. In the process, Jodi was slammed to the ground by an officer. The officers would not give them a clear reason for why they were being detained and arrested. They spent the next 24 hours in jail. Both were charged with two counts of resisting arrest.

We had some form of law enforcement here four times in six months in 2017. This includes officers coming into Jodi and Eric’s home through an unlocked back door without permission and searching their upstairs apartment. Not all the incidences are related, but half of them were negative. The cumulative experience has left an impression.

We are letting you know about this for a couple reasons. Besides the obvious need for support and care, this draws attention to the pattern of extreme police presence and aggressive response in our community. We know new officers are trained in the Northeast, making these situations more common and often more emotionally and physically charged than might be otherwise. We understand that this is not new to those in poor communities and communities of color.

We have lived here over 10 years and the intensity of it is new for us. It has caused us to worry more about our safety as well as the treatment of our friends and guests. As a community we have met with lawyers to advise us about our rights in these situations and to help us establish a script. We have also created new protocol for responding to different scenarios and in both public and personal spaces.

Eric and Jodi were not willing plead out and will be going to trial on Friday, March 2 at 1:30pm. Many of you have asked how you can help and/or offer support. We welcome anyone who could be present at court for support and witness that day.

Eric and Jodi also met with Internal Affairs to file a formal complaint on two of the incidents with the Police Department. It was a long morning of interviews that included the entire family.

We ask for special prayers for Jodi, as she has been alone in several of the recent experiences. She is still working through the experience of being slammed to the ground. Continue to pray for any in our neighborhood who have experienced this situation without the support, social collateral, and financial means to do something about it.

We have been thinking much lately of the words of French pastor, Andre Trocme, who wrote, “The duty of Christians is to resist the violence directed at our consciences with the weapons of the Spirit. We appeal to all our brothers and sisters in Christ to refuse to cooperate with violence … To love, to forgive, to show kindness to our enemies, that is our duty. But we must do our duty without conceding defeat, without servility, without cowardice."

Now that we are past the initial shock, our prayer is to move forward with this kind of conviction as we stand with resolve in God's work of hospitality.

Please continue to pray for us.

Peace,

Cherith Brook Community

Peace within Conflict

An Advent Reflection from Jodi Garbison

I shy away from writing opportunities even if I think I might have something to offer. I’m not sure why.

“I have lots of experience to draw from,” I tell myself. I’ve lived in community for 14 years. What could provide more opportunity to work through conflict than living and sharing all things in common with 10 other people? We have offered hospitality to homeless friends for 14 years. What could provide more opportunity to work through conflict than walking with people who have many unmet needs?

While these experiences over the years have certainly informed how I work through conflict, this Advent scripture passage offers a different perspective.

Romans 12:12-14: Be happy in your hope, stand your ground when you’re in trouble, and devote yourselves to prayer. Contribute to the needs of God’s people, and welcome strangers into your home. Bless people who harass you – bless and don’t curse them.

Because of situations beyond my control, this has been one of the darker seasons of my life. Peace has felt elusive and fleeting. Peace has felt groundless and unsure. Seeking peace has felt much like trying to grasp disappearing vapor or the discouraging, fruitless efforts to remember the details of a recent dream. As I reflected on this scripture, I realized that the focus is less about where I experience conflict and more about where (and when) I experience peace. I read this passage differently this
year.

When we gather each morning for prayer, I experience peace. I experience the joy that comes in journeying with community members who pray together. Community that believes in the power of being still before God in prayer gives peace that has strong footing.

When we open our doors each day, I experience the presence and welcome of those—some strangers, some friends—who come to Cherith Brook for clothing, showers, and food. I experience the peace of God in contributing to the needs of God’s people. I am able to be happy in my hope, stand my ground in trouble, and remember that I am not alone.

In these rhythms of prayer and engaged hospitality, rather than feeling unmoored, I am grounded and held strong. This is where (and when) I experience peace in times of uncertainty, times of conflict. To combat the darkness, peace comes through offering and receiving welcome. It comes when we remember our interconnectedness. Peace comes from being happy in our hope to encounter Christ who comes in the guise of our guests. We live each day, all year, in the season of Advent—anticipating the Coming of Christ, the Prince of Peace.

Creating God, break open our hearts, so that we may be ready to welcome you, the Prince of Peace.

Amen.

Summer/Advent 2017 Newspaper Hot Off the Press

Our Summer/Advent 2017 issue of the Cherith Brook newspaper is out now!

This special ten year anniversary edition of the Cherith Brook Catholic Worker Newspaper includes a timeline of special events and photos from 2007 to 2017. It also features an article by Eric Garbison and poems by Jared, Jennifer, and NaNa. An updated needs list is on page 7.

You can view our newspaper embeded below or view and download a copy of the newspaper on a separate page by clicking here.

If you're on our postal mailing list, you should recieve a paper copy soon. If you're not on our mailing list and wantus to send you a copy, click here to subscribe to our mailings.

Cherith Brook Catholic Worker - Summer/Advent Newspaper 2017 by Cherith Brook Catholic Worker on Scribd

We will be CLOSED for 2 weeks starting June 30th.  Join us again when we reopen on July 17th!

Come join PeaceWorks for their annual Memorial Day walk/ride/die-in.  We do a 10-mile walk/ride from the old nuclear weapons parts plant to the new one.  It's a chance to call for a world free from all nuclear weapons! Our program and die-in focuses on the many deaths related to contaminants from the making of parts for nuclear weapons at Bannister Federal Complex.  We'd love to have you join us for the 10 mile walk, last mile of the walk or for the program/die-in at the end.
Here's a schedule of what the day will look like.  Call/email with questions...

7:45 am    Park on Lydia (1 block east of Troost, just south of Bannister)
8 am        Meet 1 block E of Lydia on Bannister
8:15 am    Begin walk/ride
11 am or so     Meet at Prospect and Mo. Hwy. 150, begin last mile of walk
Noon or so        Meet at 14510 Botts Rd., north of Mo. Hwy. 150, for program and die-in. One of our speakers and die-in participants will be para-teacher Debbie Penniston, whose husband died 8 1/2 years ago from brain cancer after working decades at the old site at BFC for making parts for nuclear weapons. 

In June we will be starting a book study on Invisible Man. Got the Whole World Watching. We'll meet Tuesdays at 11:30am for lunch and discussion. Let us know if you're interested in joining us and we will get you more details.

On Saturday, May 13th from 9am to 12:30pm,  we will be having our monthly Second Saturday Work Day.   We will put you to work sorting clothes, cooking lunch, deep cleaning, doing maintenance, gardening, ect. Afterward, we will enjoy table fellowship together. Please RSVP as soon as possible so we can plan projects.  You can call (816) 241-8047 or email at cherithbrookkcmo@gmail.com.  We are located at 3226 E. 12th St. in KCMO