*cino Work, Building, Fundraising

Will we lose our building June 15?

Last week, we announced a change in the goals for our Brick Campaign, which is an effort to raise $100,000 for *cino’s Huss Project through the sale of 1,000 bricks for $100 each.  Essentially, we’ve extended the timeline to reflect our actual progress and prioritize a critical deadline: we need to raise $50,000 by June 15 to cover the balloon payment on our mortgage.  Many generous donors have helped us reach our current status of $35,800 — amazing!  We’re well on our way, but certainly not out of the woods yet.

While the Huss Project is just part of *culture is not optional’s work, it’s a project that’s really been growing and thriving in interesting ways over since we purchased the historic Huss School in 2009.  The Huss Project sprouted out of a desire to practice — on the ground, in a place — the ideas *cino has been talking about through conferences, an online magazine and other publishing efforts since 2001.  As such, the Huss property and the surrounding community of Three Rivers, Michigan have provided fertile soil for exploring what deeply rooted values of love, compassion, justice, hospitality, imagination and peace might look like, lived out in a specific time and place.

There have been abundant joys and challenges in this journey of the past few years, and the looming June 15 mortgage deadline is certainly the challenge we are most conscious of at the moment.  But the joy is present there as well: if we reach this deadline, we will own the building outright, freeing up $500 a month to begin investing directly into infrastructure improvement and even more programming.  We hope you will join us at this critical moment in our efforts to practice resurrection in Three Rivers and beyond!

How you can pitch in:

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Building, Fundraising, Three Rivers

Double your Huss Project brick donation!

(Cross-posted from the Huss Project web site.)

Yes, you read that correctly: right now, you can double your donation dollars to the Huss Project!  We are thrilled to announce that an anonymous donor has offered to match donations between now and May 15 up to $4,500.  If we reach our goal, that’s a whopping $9,000 toward our ambitious Brick Campaign goal!

If your employer also matches gifts, your gift will be matched twice! If you have already made a gift to the Huss Project, we thank-thank-thank you and hope you will please consider an additional gift to take advantage of this amazing opportunity.

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Building, Event, Fundraising, Three Rivers

Spring Break 2013: Service and storytelling

Spring has come to Three Rivers (as indicated by the calendar, if not by the weather), and with spring came a group of students on their spring break! Last week, six students came from Calvin College in Grand Rapids, MI, to spend a week with *culture is not optional through Calvin’s Service-Learning Center (which was just recognized for their good work!). As in past years, we followed a basic rule of life, which included a work period in the morning and community exploration in the afternoons, with an hour of silence before communal dinner. Throughout the week, we focused on the rhythm of work and rest, being active and being contemplative, contained within a particular place. Staying outside of town at the Hermitage and at St. Gregory’s Abbey provided a nice change of pace for all of us.

The group made great contributions at the Huss Project, putting their muscles to work by removing drop ceiling in the old kindergarten room, pulling up carpeting in two classrooms, prepping the community garden for planting, and hauling away metal for recycling. We also helped out a friend of *cino’s at his downtown building renovation.

Afternoons found us on field trips around the Three Rivers community, meeting local business owners, artists, farmers, journalists, historians, and church leaders. More informal conversations took place across the dinner table, in the car, and on the sidewalk. The stories that were shared this past week will continue to intrigue and inspire us, whether we heard them for the first or the fiftieth time. Here at *cino, we love storytelling, and when we listen well to the people around us, we all can learn just a little more about how to tell good, true stories.

For more photos of the week, visit our Spring Break 2013 – Calvin College photo set on Flickr.

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Building, Fundraising, Three Rivers

Love the Huss Project: Give 5 minutes for $5,000!

Music, play, art, food, gardening, community fellowship, storytelling, kickball: what’s NOT to love about the Huss Project?  You can love us back right now by taking just 5 minutes to …

  1. Watch the cool 3-minute video we put together featuring Huss Project footage and the song “This House” by kindlewood (above).
  2. Vote to help us win $5,000 in a contest sponsored by the Fetzer Institute.
  3. Share this with everyone you know via Facebook, Twitter, e-mail, etc. (just click one of the icons below this post)!

This contest is part of a grant we applied for through the Fetzer Institute.  Friends of the Huss Project can vote for us to win $5,000 and a separate panel is making a selection for a grand prize of $25,000.  That could go a long way toward things like, I don’t know, running water, don’t you think?  The Huss Project has housed so much goodness already without basic infrastructure — just imagine what we can do when we’re up and running year round!  In addition to voting, you can support the Huss Project by buying a brick.

Thank you so much for your consideration and support … and keep up your own good work!

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Building, Event, People

Family Fun Nights: Ceremonial Play

This summer, *cino has been hosting Family Fun Nights every Thursday from 5-7 pm at the Huss Project in Three Rivers, Michigan. Attendance was a bit sparse the first couple of weeks, but over the past month we’ve managed to attract a fairly consistent group of folks from the neighborhood for crafts, gardening, snacks, and sports. It’s been a great addition to our weekly schedule, and (I’ve found) a time to be re-energized by the Three Rivers community.

While lots of activities take place at these events, kickball is undoubtedly the favorite–for our guests and *cino staff, alike–whether playing or watching. I’m pretty terrible at it, but every week I look forward to running our homemade carpet bases on the crunchy grass behind Huss (especially when my team conquers!). I know, I know…it’s “just a game,” but it’s slowly becoming the place where I remember how to be a kid. I like to think it means something like that for the rest of the *cino folks, too.

Of course, remembrance is a funny thing these days. As many who are reading know, *cino recently made the difficult decision of canceling Practicing Resurrection due to a lack of registered guests. We’ve scratched our heads and asked the obvious questions–did it cost too much? did we advertise enough? are others as excited about this stuff as we are?–only to find ourselves empty and waiting for answers that aren’t coming. Over the past few weeks, silent waves of disappointment and frustration have occasionally reminded us of our story, our attempt and our lack of success. Perhaps the situation isn’t as traumatic as varied vocabulary makes it sound, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t upset about this inevitable choice.

Even so, I’m equal parts reminded of *cino’s mission as an organization attempting to exhibit qualities of the coming Kingdom–ideally, a taste of what is “already, but not yet.” While part of me definitely and concretely laments our situation, the other asks: “how do we respond faithfully in this Christian community?” I don’t have all the answers, but I am hopeful that together we will continue (attempting) to foster an atmosphere of ridiculous joy because of our faith.

Indeed, the Hauerwasian ethic — “the faithfulness of doing nothing” — rings truer than ever in times like these. And while I am well aware that there is an apprehension to accept such “quietist” perspectives, particularly among those of us who desperately desire to make good culture, I still believe there is a place and time for such perspectives and reflection; perhaps, even, a place and time much like this…

¨In the wake of this story of “failure,” we’ve continued our Family Fun Nights (and lots of other events, too). Appropriately, we’ve had a lot of fun at them. We’ve made new friends and walked through misters. We’ve sat in the shade and chatted in the garden. We’ve drank from the hose and completed puzzles with missing pieces. Again, we’ve smiled, and it’s been great.
Thus, weekly we return to kickball liturgy: the joy of a game for it’s own sake, a score that never get’s counted, and a time that asks to be wasted on something as precious as childhood. Together we stand in the sun, watch in the shade, and (sometimes) feel the breeze: a whispered reminder that another story–a story of hope–continues to unfold in our midst, even in the hot heat of this extraordinary summer.

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Building, Event

Join us for the 3rd annual Huss Future Festival!

Huss Future Festival 2012 will take place on Saturday, July 21 from 9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. Stop by 1008 8th St. in Three Rivers to enjoy family friendly activities, an installation art exhibit, free coffee and live music, a bake sale and farmer’s market, handmade art and great bargains on books, DVDs, CDs and other garage sale items. Come celebrate art and friendship in our wonderful community! All proceeds from the Future Festival will benefit the renovation of the historic Huss School for a community center and an off-campus program for college students. A fish fry from noon-4:00 p.m. will benefit the annual Back to School Celebration. For more information, visit our Future Fest page.

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Building, Fundraising, Online

Culture Make Sale poetry stones travel the world!

Poetry stone
Remember the Culture Make Sale, *cino’s online sale of handmade items and personalized services? Last fall, supporters of *culture is not optional from near and far connected with each other by creating and purchasing goods and services. We made over $1500, which will help to renovate the Huss School property in Three Rivers into a community center focused on agriculture and the arts.
This “joy” stone was given as a gift to a relative of mine in the the Netherlands! It crossed the ocean and found a new home in her garden. If you would like to share any pictures or stories from the Culture Make Sale of your own, let us know.

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Building, Fundraising, Online, Organization

Report from the Culture Make Sale

An enormous “Thank you!” to all who participated in the Culture Make Sale, whether by contributing goods and offering services, purchasing others’ donations, or simply perusing the website and sharing in the event.
*culture is not optional’s network stretches across the globe, and thanks to the success of the Culture Make Sale, that web of connections is growing! Over the past two months, friends of *cino new and old, from all over, have given and received gifts of time, energy, and resources, to benefit the renovation and development of the former Huss School building into a community center in Three Rivers, Michigan. Handmade ceramics, customized love letters and website design, brilliant books and poetry, yard work, artwork, apple pies, and so much more – these are little bits of human culture that enrich our lives, and all the more so when they are shared.
Thanks to all for helping raise over $1500 for the Imagining Space at Huss School! Your continued support ensures that Huss School is on its way to becoming a place of peace, hope, and justice.
Additionally, the sale will continue soon in Three Rivers: World Fare, a fair trade store downtown, has partnered with *cino as an outlet to sell goods that give life to projects and endeavors in the local community. Be sure to stop by 37 N. Main St. in the near future and check out the many wonderful items still on sale!

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Building, Event, Fundraising, People

Report from the Future (Festival)

Huss Future Festival took place last Saturday, as 300 visitors from near and far filled the hallways with music, laughter, participation and creativity. We had a good ol’ time and raised over $600 for the Imagining Space Project at Huss, in addition to raising funds for Triple Ripple Community Gardens and the annual Back to School Celebration. See the Imagining Space blog for a full report from the festival, as well as our photos of the event. CAUTION: if you missed it, you’re going to wish you hadn’t!

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Building, Event, Workshops

*cino hosts 9 from Calvin for spring break

Our group
Our *cino spring break trip that was born last year with a small group of five Calvin College students grew to nine this year, plus our two resident volunteers, Stephanie and Emily. We really enjoyed getting to know the students who participated and getting to know our work and community better through their participation. Here’s a day-by-day synopsis to give you a glimpse of what we experienced together, in addition to our collection of photos
FRIDAY
The students arrived in downtown Three Rivers after the 80-mile trip from Grand Rapids. We got to know each other a bit better (namely: spirit animals…whatever that means!) over tea and coffee at World Fare. Rob and I also gave an overview of the geography and character of Three Rivers before we split up to spend the night at the rectory and our apartment above World Fare.
SATURDAY
After breakfast at our apartment, we headed over to tour Huss School and learn more about the work we’d be doing during the week–both the immediate tasks and how they fit into the long term vision for the school. Next, we toured the historic Silliman House and got a Three Rivers history lesson from DAR member and fountain of local history knowledge, Becky Shank. Over a delicious homemade pizza lunch at the rectory, we planned our meals for the week and made our grocery list of items that we then procured from local farmers, an Amish grocery store and, lastly, one of the local big boxes. We arrived at The Hermitage Community, our home for six nights, and were greeted with a dinner of chili and cornbread prepared by David and Naomi Wenger. The Wengers, who are co-directors of The Hermitage, led us in discussion over dinner about the qualities and purposes of a rule of life, as well as how to approach our daily period of silence during the week.
SUNDAY
The group dispersed on Sunday morning for Eucharist at St. Gregory’s Abbey, worship at Florence Church of the Brethren Mennonite and quiet time at The Hermitage. We reconvened for a lunch of various incredible soups and breads shared with Tim Raakman, a friend and *cino board member, and some of his weekend guests. Sunday afternoon was spent conversing, napping and reading and, once we were finally hungry again, we closed the day with a Middle Eastern meal.
MONDAY
Our first weekday began with breakfast and morning prayer at The Hermitage, led by the Wengers. After prayer, we packed up our lunch and headed to work at Huss School until 12:30. Our activities on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday at the school included raking, removing drop ceiling tiles and framing, re-mulching around the community garden, creating some new flower beds and paths, removing flooring and doing some general clean-up around the building. In the afternoon, we visited two farming families who live within walking distance of each other just northwest of Three Rivers. An unexpected adventure was chasing and catching the laying hens who escaped from their pen. We observed an hour of silence when we returned to The Hermitage, followed by a dinner of deliciously fresh burritos.
TUESDAY
Tuesday was similar in structure to Monday, but a few of us spent the morning at World Fare cleaning and entering data for new inventory. Our afternoon explorations included visiting three local businesses (Lowry’s Books, Love Your Mother and the Riviera Theatre) and meeting with Brenda McGowan about race and education in Three Rivers. Our hour of silence was followed by a meal of fresh bread and a roasted eggplant soup topped with yogurt, cilantro and sweet peppers.
WEDNESDAY
On Wednesday morning, we were back at the school after morning prayers and the weekly Eucharist at The Hermitage. It was a cold, rainy day, but we did manage to get some outdoor work done, including tackling the brush pile out back. In the afternoon, we talked with Pastor Bennett at New Jerusalem Baptist Church about the qualities of the neighborhood surrounding his church and Huss School. We also met with Bruce Snook of River Country Journal in the Michigan room at the Three Rivers library. Dinner was a delicious red lentil curry over rice, topped with yogurt and cilantro.
THURSDAY
After morning prayer on Thursday, we headed to the rectory where our resident community lives to do a different sort of work for the school: making items to sell in our Culture Make Sale fundraiser in July. We made soap (oatmeal almond and lemon lavender), garlands and stationery sets. In the afternoon, we continued our arts theme by visiting the wetland property of a local artist couple (founders of the Three Rivers Artist Guild), checking out the Carnegie Center for the Arts, and watching a film at the Riviera. We broke our rule a bit on Thursday to accommodate the Riviera’s “rule,” and headed back to The Hermitage later to enjoy a dinner of cabbage and noodles with freshly baked rolls and apple sauce–wonderful comfort food during a week that just got colder and colder!
FRIDAY
Friday was our day to clean up at The Hermitage and move over to St. Gregory’s Abbey. After morning prayer, we scrubbed the barn from top to bottom and also spent some time serving the retreat center in some other ways: picking up the debris from February’s ice storm, raking gravel back into the parking lot and pulling nails from old barn boards that will be recycled as picture frames. A rest time after a leisurely lunch refreshed us to finish our tasks and visit the quirky Long Lake Food and Book Shop before heading to the Abbey in time for afternoon tea. Vespers and meditation at 5:00 pm was our first glimpse of the monks’ practice of chanting the Psalms and we continued our quiet time until 6:00, as we’d done most of the week. Dinner was a stir fried amalgamation of leftover vegetables, tofu and egg in a sauce of cilantro, coconut milk, tomatoes, tamari and garlic. Because of the Feast of the Annunciation, there was no compline on Friday, but there was a baking extravaganza in the St. Denys kitchen: chocolate cake, apple crisp and raisin bread.
SATURDAY
Several participants got up for 4:00 am prayers, but only one faithful soul made it to 6:00 am. We were all up and out of the house by 8:15 am, however, for the daily Eucharist service. Afterward, most of us hopped in the van and headed out to the small country crossroads of Volinia for the annual maple festival, including an all-you-can-eat pancake breakfast. During a ride on the horse drawn wagon, we got to hear one of the students talk about his experiences helping run the maple project at the alternative school. Back at the monastery, we continued participating in the day’s prayers and writing thank you notes to those we’d visited during the week. Br. Abraham visited with us in the afternoon to talk about the Benedictine vow of stability and tell a bit of his story. Afterward, we piled all of ourselves and our stuff into the van for our last stop together: dinner at the home of our friends JD and Barb. Taking into account our vegetarians and lactose intolerant eaters, Barb created a phenomenal Middle Eastern feast with an astounding array of fresh vegetables, cheeses, dips, pastries, tarts and more. The meal, topped off by vegan chocolate cake with chocolate almond ganache and toasted coconut, was excellent and a great way to celebrate our time together.
Throughout the week, we had wonderful conversations about topics big and small, as we practiced accepting each other wherever we were in our lives and also sought to grow in our understanding of what it means to be human in this world, embedded in particular vocations and places. We spent lots of time laughing, eating, reflecting, praying, reading, working, creating and listening. And we even spent some time cutting hair.

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