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| 1680 - 373rd Avenue NE, Stanchfield, MN 55080
| 763-689-3540 (located 8 miles northwest of Cambridge, MN) |
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ARC Spring/Summer Newsletter: June 2006 update
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Perennials from your garden |
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A sturdy, no frills copy machine |
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A fax machine of the same genre |
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Firewood – trees or cut wood, especially oak (always!) |
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Garden chipper/shredder for kitchen compost |
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Retreat sponsors for our Gifted Retreat Scholarship program |
Thanks to generous friends who have responded to past needs: a chain saw, Kitchenaid mixer, two computers, aprons, a sewing machine, lots of wood, and many other gifts. All of them are appreciated!
Believe, and you
will see
Bloodroot is not the showiest of the spring flowers, but it is often the first to be seen. Cupped protectively within its broad leaf, the shy white flower whispers that there is more beneath the surface than one might suspect from the withered brown dregs of winter.
Faith in what lies beneath the surface is difficult, at times, but the principle never fails. All that is needed has been
provided, again and again and again.
The ground has been prepared by greater hands than ours. Harvest is already a reality, seeded but unseen, waiting only until time ripens to make its appearance.
During the past few months at ARC, we have been astonished again and again at what has come to light: in the gardens, in our lives. Rising from our perennial beds are hostas, Virginia bluebells, iris, daisies, poppies, and a host of other jewels planted by unknown friends for the delight of later guests.
And we, too, are busy working the soil, preparing for a harvest to come.
A yearning to see the future realized is part of the human condition. Yet often it is through our perusal of the past that the future becomes visible, if dimly.
In the year to come, friends of ARC are invited to share both the contemplation of the past and the excitement for what for what lies ahead. On Sunday, October 29, a Rededication Ceremony will recommit ARC to ideals that guided its first planting: action, reflection, celebration; and to values that have informed our practice: joy, simplicity, mercy. The community invites all friends of ARC to join us that day.
For this event, and for our 30th Anniversary in 2007—”the Water Year” — we are beginning to search out ARC-inspired writing, art, music; we are looking for stories of lives whose flow was altered by time spent here; we are seeking community members and friends who may have drifted away. Please help us. You, who have been part of ARC’s past, are invited to be part of the future as well.
Community remains at the heart of ARC
We are to be builders of liberating communities that free love in us and free love in others. —Elizabeth O’Connor
One thing that sets ARC apart from other retreat centers must be our resident community. Intentional community where people can live together simply, sustainably, and spiritually while practicing the ministry of hospitality has been part of the ARC vision from the very beginning, and community is still the heart of life at ARC.
In February, when long-time ARC residents Jerome Belanger and Mark Faris moved to Chicago to look after an elderly friend, the community experienced a nearly complete turnover in membership. We are happy to introduce our long-term and summer community members:
Wendy Bronson, though a Minnesota native, came to ARC last November following a 25-year stay in Louisville, Kentucky. There, while earning an M.Div. at the Presbyterian Theological Seminary, she honed her interest in “sustainability as faith practice.” Wendy has worked extensively on organic farms with the Sisters of Loretto in Kentucky, and at Rancho Ebenezer in Nicaragua, a land-revitalization project planned and carried out by Nicaraguan campesinos. She brings to ARC her life-long practice of simplicity and spirituality, and her considerable skills in bread baking, gardening and housekeeping. For six weeks this spring she was our only community member.
Fortunately, Bob Hoxie, our second community member, joined us in April. A life-long Minnesota resident, Bob has been a friend of ARC for 15 years. He designed and hand-dug our new raised-bed gardens, in three concentric arcs. Thanks to Wendy and Bob, the garden is currently populated with organic, heirloom plants. A versatile second bass with a wealth of musical experience, Bob leads the community in song and also plays hammer dulcimer. As a Quaker, he includes in his job description the task of educating the community in Quaker practice – silence has become a staple of our twice-daily community worship, to our great enrichment.
Eric Wagner, our newest community member, is living at ARC for the summer before leaving for college at the University of Wisconsin in Green Bay. Eric, who graduated from Cambridge High School in 2005, is an aficionado of great film, and also has a knack for putting on the right music at the right time, tolerantly anticipating the musical tastes of older community members. Versatility is Eric’s forte; he does everything from turning over mountains of compost to roasting mountains of granola.
Special thanks to Bev Iverson of Racine, Wisconsin, and Steve and Joan Janusz of Northfield, Minnesota, who joined the community as short-term volunteers this spring.
The community’s story would be incomplete without mention of our non-resident members: office administrator Julie Giffrow is the warm and welcoming voice you will generally encounter on the phone or via email. Julie keeps both our books and our bookings in order. Bob Carter, like Julie, lives locally and comes twice a week to keep our facility at its peak for welcoming guests. He will oversee the installation of our wheelchair accessible shower/bath/bedroom this summer. Bob also organizes our “wood days” to ensure that we all stay warm through the winter.
Director Jan Wiersma came to ARC last October from a 12-year career in parish ministry with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, serving congregations in Chicago and Indiana. (You can read more about her in the January newsletter.)
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Sacred Voice
Benefit Concert bears repeating
What is more beautiful than finely tuned voices, lifted in soaring harmonies? For the dedicated men and women of the Sacred Voice a cappella choir, intention goes beyond the sheer joy of making lovely sounds. Their music touches and stirs the spirit, and lifts the heart to contemplation of the divine.
But their intention goes further. Each year, under the leadership of musical director Tom Hale, the group puts together a cohesive program of sacred music, which they perform on behalf of local non-profit groups. In March of this year, Sacred Voice, hosted by Peace United Methodist Church in Shoreview, sang to the glory of God for the benefit of ARC.
The partnership seems a natural one: both ARC and Sacred Voice aspire to a deepened spirituality that reaches beyond the self to service of others. For both, the inward journey inspires the outward journey.
Next year, ARC will again be a beneficiary of Sacred Voice’s new concert program, Divine Expression ~ across the centuries, across the globe. The concert will be held on May 18, 2007, 7:30 p.m. at First Lutheran Church, Columbia Heights.
For information about the Sacred Voice Benefit Concerts,
visit the website at
www.sacredvoice.org.
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Friends
of ARC share histories, hopes – and great food
“It’s like having a mini-retreat,” one friend said, following a Twin Cities gathering of the ARC Community in the World. And, as is typical of ARC retreats, new and renewed connections sparkle through the conversations that happen over the leisurely potluck meal.
The most recent ACW event, held May 12 at Prospect Park United Methodist Church, drew about 30 people including Board members, volunteers, some retreatants new to ARC this year, some frequent guests, and others who had not physically been to ARC for years but who have never forgotten the time spent here. Four directors, past and present, also took part.
Nancy Victorin Vangerud, pastor of the hosting congregation and ARC director from 2003-2005, invited participants to meditate aloud on “Reflection,” the second pillar of ARC’s philosophy, and the two-hour gathering concluded with worship.
“I left feeling so peaceful and serene,” one participant said afterward; and another commented, “I need to do things like this more often.”
The next ARC Community in the World event will be held on Tuesday, September 26, from 6-8; location to be announced. Celebration is the theme!
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RETREAT OPPORTUNITIES
ARC Sponsored
Retreats
Monday—Wednesday,
August 21-23 Educators’ Retreat:
Time apart for
reflection and renewal
Begin the next academic school year with time spent apart from your busy schedule in reflection and renewal to explore your purposes in teaching. Based on the teachings of Parker Palmer in his popular book The Courage to Teach, this retreat is designed for all educators…people who teach in all contexts and at all levels.
The retreat will be facilitated by Donna McNear, Board member of ARC, and a teacher in public schools, who is a life-long learner in the art of reflective teaching. This 48-hour retreat will have a balance of time together in small and large groups and time alone. It will begin Monday, August 21st at 10:30 a.m. and end on Wednesday, August 23rd at 10:30 a.m.
Space is limited to 15 people, so register early (deadline is July 1). The cost is $160 and a deposit of $80 is required at the time of registration. Call ARC or register online at www.arcretreat.org. If you have additional questions about the content, you are welcome to contact Donna McNear at dmcnear@ecenet.com.
Friday-Sunday, October 27-29: ARC Rededication Retreat and Celebration
This weekend retreat will offer time and space for celebrating the renewal of ARC in anticipation of the 30th Anniversary “Water Year.” While registration for the retreat is limited to 20 for overnight accommodation, all friends of ARC are invited to participate in the Rededication celebration to be held on Sunday afternoon, October 29, from 2-5. Our guest of honor will be Hattie Anderson, sister of Ken Skogen, original donor of the ARC property.
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Gifted and giving: Lydia Apartments’ tenants on retreat
Fourteen current
and former residents of Lydia Apartments in Minneapolis abandoned the sights and
sounds of the city for two peaceful days at ARC this May. In most ways a typical
retreat, this particular group meant a great deal to the staff at ARC because
their presence was made possible by an
anonymous donor from Plymouth Congregational Church in partnership with the ARC
Gifted Retreat Scholarship program.
For many, a retreat weekend is a financial stretch. For others, it’s completely out of the picture. But shouldn’t the retreat experience be available to everyone, and particularly those whose lives are stressed by transition? People who have emerged from situations of domestic violence, people who are or have recently been homeless, or who are moving from street life or chemical dependency back into more settled life?
Many people think so. ARC’s Gifted Retreat program, set up to provide scholarships for people in situations like these, has been generously funded this year by numerous individual retreatants who add $5 or $10 or more to their own retreat fee, and a grant from the School Sisters of Notre Dame.
Some of the comments guests left in the room journals tell their own story best. One, who was initially dubious about the experience, wrote, “After just being here for an hour, I could feel the calm and the inner peace that the ARC brought out in me. I must say it was one of the most peaceful spiritual feelings I have ever experienced.”
Another blessed a future occupant of his room with these words: “I believe one of the most beautiful experiences a person has is sharing with another. Sit back, relax, and look, listen and feel what God has put before you. Enjoy this day, and no matter when or what point in time we both were here, we shared the beauty of the moment.”
Several of the Lydia Apartment guests were moved to contribute to the program themselves, helping fund another person’s retreat in the future. ARC deeply appreciates all the many donations, small and large, and the work of all the people that made this retreat successful. A July “Gifted Retreat” is being planned for people involved in the City House program. City House provides spiritual direction and other resources for people who are homeless or in transitional housing.
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For the personal touch: bulk mail?
Willing hands of many volunteers bring love and joy to ARC
The newsletter you hold in your hand is no sterile product of machine-driven efficiency. To reach you, it has passed through the loving hands of at least one friend of ARC. Picture a group of highly energized, capable women, mostly of retirement age, talking and laughing around a table in the Bay Room of ARC, all the while folding, labeling, and sorting according to the detailed specifications of the US Postal Service. This is bulk mail, ARC-style.
Although they come together from a range of nearby communities and congregations, we call them “the Braham ladies,” in part because they are organized by Braham native and volunteer expert Evenna Lindberg (whose husband Alver supplies much of the heavenly honey that sweetens ARC’s table). We are fortunate to rate a place on their schedule! These are professional volunteers: when they are not staffing the local thrift stores, or putting together resources for mothers in third-world countries, they are busy in their respective churches.
That you receive a newsletter at all is thanks, also, to Lois Jones, who volunteers in the ARC office every Tuesday morning. Lois keeps your name and address fresh in our electronic memory and beautifies the newsletter with her layout expertise.
In addition to adding the personal touch to our bulk mail, in this year alone, volunteers have, among other things:
Tuned pianos
Identified garden plants
Tilled new garden spaces
Hand-washed log walls
Lovingly cared for guests
Cut and hauled innumerable trees for burning
Cleaned innumerable rooms
Prepared and served innumerable meals
Washed and folded innumerable sheets and towels
Performed delicate restorative surgery on fragile aging quilts
Immeasurably cheered the resident community with their indefatigable willingness and devotion to ARC’s values, ideals and practices.
It all comes together with the help of our volunteer coordinator, Heidi Wagner. Herself a first-class ARC volunteer, Heidi lives in Cambridge, where she tutors special needs children (she especially understands autism) and leads yoga and fitness classes. Twice a week, she conducts an on-site class for the ARC community (and any guests or volunteers who care to join us) in the conjunction of the physical and spiritual. Contact her at heidiwag310@yahoo.com to volunteer for the time and task of your choice!
Why do people give so much of their precious discretionary time to ARC?
As one volunteer memorably expressed it, “When I volunteer at ARC, I feel like I’m retreating into community.” Thank you, volunteers! We’re glad you’re part of ARC.
Gardeners: ARC has been blessed with several lovely memorial gardens. This spring, two master gardeners helped us identify the plants as they appeared. Now, we are seeking 3-4 volunteers willing to work a few hours a month to help us maintain them at their beautiful best.
Woodworkers: The weather is hot and the furnace is cold, but the task of filling the woodshed continues year-round. If you love cutting, hauling, splitting and stacking wood, we’d love to have your help!
All-around helpers: As always, we welcome help with kitchen and housekeeping tasks at any time.
ARC Bread (from the ARC Cookbook)
This past February, we said a fond goodbye to ARC’s beloved baker of many years, Jerome Belanger. But the tradition of fresh homemade bread on ARC tables continues: community member Wendy Bronson has taken over bread baking. A rediscovered favorite is our multi-grain ARC bread—Wendy finds that it rises much better if you add a little yeast (omitted in the ARC cookbook version, p. 63, but added here).
1/3 c. honey 1/2 c. buckwheat
3 1/2 c. warm water 1/2 c. polenta
1/2 c. oats 3/4 c. buttermilk
7 c. bread flour 1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. rye flour 1 T. + 1 tsp. salt
1/2 c. 7-grain flour 1/2 c. cooked brown rice
3 T. yeast
Place all ingredients in mixing bowl and combine with mixer. Knead with machine mixer about eight minutes, or by hand 12-15 minutes. The finished dough should be tacky but not sticky, light golden, stretchy and elastic. Place dough in a greased bowl, cover with a damp towel and let rise in a warm place for about 1 hour, until it has doubled in size. To make three loaves of 1 1/2 pounds each, punch down the dough and cut into three pieces. Shape into loaves and place on cornmeal-covered sheet pan. Cover and let rise until double, 45 minutes to one hour. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.
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Teaching Peace: Peace and Pancakes
Anne Picard, ARC friend and former Board member, has given the world's peace-loving parents a great gift in this, her first children's book, which she also illustrated.
Herself an educator and lover of children, peace (and presumably pancakes as well), Picard provides in this fanciful story an entertaining way of understanding how conflict happens and what to do about it when it does.
"This charming tale about a dragon, a gnome, a forest full of animals, and a rather unruly giant, will entertain children of all ages, though it also has important lessons to teach us all about patience, communication, and understanding. (From the website. For more, visit www.peaceandpancakes.info.)
"joyful...simple...merciful..."
--ARC Cornerstone, 1977