Stanley Rother Catholic Worker

01/13/2022

12/10/2021

Dear friends: On the Second Sunday of , I'm delighted to share with you a brand new image, thanks to the artist:

"Dorothy Day and The Holy Family of the Streets,"
by Kelly Latimore.

“What we would like to do is change the world--make it a little simpler for people to feed, clothe, and shelter themselves as God intended them to do. And, by fighting for better conditions, by crying out unceasingly for the rights of the workers, the poor, of the destitute--the rights of the worthy and the unworthy poor, in other words--we can, to a certain extent, change the world; we can work for the oasis, the little cell of joy and peace in a harried world. We can throw our pebble in the pond and be confident that its ever widening circle will reach around the world. We repeat, there is nothing we can do but love, and, dear God, please enlarge our hearts to love each other, to love our neighbor, to love our enemy as our friend.” ― Dorothy Day

This Advent let us remember the poor, the sick, the dying, the grieving, the unemployed, those unable to pay rent this week, the homeless, those persecuted simply because of their race, gender, sexual orientation, creed, or nationality, the unjustly imprisoned, the refugee, and the immigrant. To dismiss the image of God in anyone is a complete denial of the incarnation.

More information about the icon here: https://kellylatimoreicons.com/

11/07/2021

Dorothy's cause is being submitted to the Vatican next month!

10/20/2021

https://www.indcatholicnews.com/news/43267

In a video message to the Fourth World Meeting of Popular Movements on Saturday, Pope Francis called for a universal basic income, education, and healthcare, a shorter working day, and praised the protest movement that followed the murder of George Floyd. He urged participants to dream ...

08/04/2021

Stanley Rother Catholic Worker group has made the sad but right decision to close Kraston House. Our last guest moved into his new apartment this past weekend.

In the last three and a half years, we have housed thirty people, male and female, black and white, Catholic and non-Catholic (and anti-Catholic).

Everyone had a story. Some of them were even true. One man said he used to play music with Leon Russell (he did). Another regularly served Mass for a cardinal in Rome (also true). One woman said she was in witness protection (she was not). Still another claimed he used to be Scottie Pippen’s personal auto detailer (maybe?). Our guests were humanity at its best and worst, sometimes on the same day. They were Christ.

There are too many people to thank: our donors, regular and one-time volunteers, the priests who said Mass (especially Fr. Sean and Fr. Jack, who were both good sports when Charles accidentally booked them both for the same day), our guests themselves. We especially want to thank Amanda Colby, who let us use her house in her late husband’s honor. We are sure Kraston is happy with how she has used their home.

Above all, we want to thank God, who challenged nine or ten people to open a homeless shelter in east midtown Tulsa. And somehow it worked.

This evening several Workers gathered with a couple of former guests to eat and be grateful. Our group is staying together! Pray for us as we discern what next step the Holy Spirit has in mind for us.

(Pictured: Two tired but happy Catholic Workers)

07/18/2021

🆘 The evolving crisis at Vista Shadow Mountain necessitates a broader community response, friends. We have a great team of professionals at Housing Solutions Tulsa working around the clock to assist each of the 100 households that must move out by Wednesday, July 21. They are raising funds to get folks into hotels, move and store their belongings and then work 1:1 to apply for new rentals. Once those are available they will move them into their new homes.

Joey Reyes and his wife Lyndsey are the founders of James Mission and have gone above and beyond to not only collect and distribute boxes, suitcases and packing supplies but Joey has also been at VSM every day physically moving folks out with their mission’s box truck. This man works fulltime, is a parent and spouse also running a nonprofit and serving on the Union School Board. He has not hesitated to step up and work hard for our neighbors. He has shown up every day to help one after another get moved out.

And then there’s Linda Grant who has been on the phones and doors at VSM, assuring our most vulnerable neighbors there that help is on the way and that they will not be forgotten and left behind.

➡️ And now, we need YOU. This handful of dedicated folks cannot do all of this on their own.

⚠️ We have several senior citizens that physically cannot pack their belongings. We have residents who just got out of the hospital and are recovering from major surgery. We need volunteers to come help pack up their homes. And we need more financial contributions as well as in-kind donations of boxes, suitcases and packing supplies:

http://www.jamesmission.org/phone/donate.html

https://www.housingsolutionstulsa.org/donate/

To those of you who have already pitched in to help, thank you.

There’s so much more need that our community — especially here in South Tulsa — has resources to provide but that have not yet been activated around our neighbors at 6000 S. Memorial. What can your business or faith community do to help these folks?

Now is the time to lend a hand, can we count on you?

📌 If you, your faith group, business or civic org has resources, especially financial support and people power, please let me know so I can connect you to these folks in need.

✅ Volunteers who can help tomorrow, July 18, please meet us as VSM at 1 pm. Look for James Mission’s blue easy up tent. We will send folks to help pack up households and others to assist James Mission with moving those who are ready to go out to their new places.

Thank you: [email protected]

07/15/2021

Useful Tulsa link. “Our outreach team is here to help! If you see someone who might be experiencing homelessness and in need of assistance, simply fill out the form below and we will get someone out to check on them. If this is an emergency situation, please call 911.”

Submit this form to request assistance for someone who is experiencing homelessness. In case of emergency, please call 911.

07/05/2021

Please read and see if you can help. A link to more information is in the comments.

📣 The residents of Vista Shadow Mountain Apartments who must move out this week are going to need community assistance.

UPDATE 07/06: James Mission is partnering with us to collect donated moving supplies and get them to the tenants who need them:

▪️We need suitcases and duffle bags donated to help folks pack up for hotel stays.
▪️We need moving boxes, packing tape and markers to help folks pack up their belongings.

☑️ Trinity Episcopal Church is coordinating the Blessing Bags for those who are going into hotels (a gallon ziplock bag with essentials such as travel sized hygiene items and snacks). Please reach our to their Director of Operations Hannah Middlebrook to assist with that effort.

If you can offer help with tge following, please email my office or contact Housing Solutions Tulsa:
▪️We need trucks and volunteers to help those who have secured new housing to be able to move into it right away.
▪️We may need temporary pet foster homes for those residents who have pets but no immediate place to take them as they move out.

If you, your company, church or civic organization is willing and able to help, please email my office: [email protected] and put VSM Volunteer Assistance in the subject line. Thank you!

💸 Monetary donations to assist with this situation can be made to any of the nonprofit agencies partnering with us on this effort: Housing Solutions Tulsa, James Mission, and Volunteers of America Oklahoma. Thank you!

✅ Next Saturday, July 10, from 9 am to 12 pm we will hold a pop up resource clinic for these residents at Volunteers of America Oklahoma located at 9605 E 61st St. Any residents needing free rental assistance, aide with applications for new housing, help with moving costs, hotel night stays, etc. can come see the team. We have a shuttle service available for those needing transportation to/from 61st and Memorial. Please contact Housing Solutions for more information or to request add: https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=81fzpM3xlE-xi7i-w_t7GxpR5PK7-ptArl4zo_Ahs4dURUI3WkFMWTJKOURFVDhRU0hUTEI5RUlNUi4u

https://www.housingsolutionstulsa.org

https://www.tulsaltrc.org

03/28/2021

Palm Sunday at Kraston House.

03/25/2021

Deacon Charles speaks about our work on the Glory Be podcast with the Church of St. Mary.

"I had been ordained one day when I was holding my six-month-old while I was praying Vespers. I am participating in the heavenly liturgy, offering intercessi...

03/23/2021

Few problems are simultaneously so distressing and so addressable.