Core Programs
URBAN YOUTH ~ Hartford Catholic Workers
"To construct a new society within the shell of the old"
This program consists of the Hartford Catholic Worker and its summer program, run by Christopher and Jackie Allen-Doucot. We recognize with gratitude the leadership role played by HCW in preserving the property intact in 2004, and we intend to preserve the special historic relationships of the Hartford Catholic Workers' use of Ahimsa for its summer program and as a place for respite for HCW itself.
HCW established the St. Martin de Porres Catholic Worker House on November 3, 1993. They are a community of Catholics living in the north end of Hartford, working and praying for an end to violence and poverty. HCW is not a "non-profit agency" and they do not accept government funding. Their ability to house the homeless, feed the hungry, and work with the children depends on contributions from supporters. The organization may be reached at 26 Clark Street, Hartford, CT 06120, (860) 724-7066. More information on The Hartford Catholic Worker may be found here.
This program consists of the Hartford Catholic Worker and its summer program, run by Christopher and Jackie Allen-Doucot. We recognize with gratitude the leadership role played by HCW in preserving the property intact in 2004, and we intend to preserve the special historic relationships of the Hartford Catholic Workers' use of Ahimsa for its summer program and as a place for respite for HCW itself.
HCW established the St. Martin de Porres Catholic Worker House on November 3, 1993. They are a community of Catholics living in the north end of Hartford, working and praying for an end to violence and poverty. HCW is not a "non-profit agency" and they do not accept government funding. Their ability to house the homeless, feed the hungry, and work with the children depends on contributions from supporters. The organization may be reached at 26 Clark Street, Hartford, CT 06120, (860) 724-7066. More information on The Hartford Catholic Worker may be found here.
THE CO-OPERATIVE FOR NONVIOLENT ACTION
New for 2011!
The Voluntown Peace Trust, in Voluntown, Connecticut has recently decided to create a Co-operative for Nonviolent Action to provide an opportunity for groups to work cooperatively to offer workshops, trainings, retreats and gatherings for their own groups, for co-op groups and for other interested people.
The Co-operative for Nonviolent Action (CNVA) will be made up of organizations who do a variety of social change work. Groups can work together to offer workshops and trainings. By working cooperatively we can share ideas, skills, and resources. CNVA can be a place of problem-solving and creating together, of connecting issues and shared retreats. This will increase our organizational capacity while stretching our funding as we provide popular education that leads to action for a better world.
Located on 54.75 acres in Southeastern Connecticut, the Voluntown Peace Trust is centrally located between Boston, New Haven, Hartford, Worcester and Providence. It became the home of the Community for Nonviolent Action (CNVA) in 1962. Since then it has been a center for work based in nonviolence, social and economic justice. With this history, retreat and conference facilities, wooded trails, streams and an organic garden, it is an important resource for groups working for social change.
What do we mean by “co-operative”?
A cooperative is a democratic structure based on values such as equality, honesty and social responsibility. As co-op members, we will work together to do things we can't do on our own. We are not simply a group of folks renting the facilities, but member groups developing programs that will be better done with other groups. We will meet to share our ideas and concerns, our skills and experiences, to develop ways to bring our issues together and promote cooperatively run events. Each group in the coop will be stronger when we pool our resources, especially important in these tight economic times. Individually, groups will benefit from the use of the facilities at an affordable rate, among other things.
What do we mean by “nonviolent action”?
Nonviolent action is based on Gandhi's three elements of social change:
1) personal change to find better ways of being and relating;
2) political action to challenge violent and oppressive structures; and
3) constructive programs to develop alternatives to those structures.
Many groups work on one of these elements, together we create a more holistic approach. Education and training programs can help us explore and develop the meaning of these three elements of social change for our society today and lead us to the actions that can make a difference.
We hope that this Cooperative for Nonviolent Action will enable us provide opportunities to work on the vision we share of social, economic and racial justice, peace and nonviolence, and the creation of a sustainable culture for youth and for the planet. We welcome your participation in this process.
Co-op development is in its earliest stages. Folks from at least 3 groups are organizing now to find other interested groups. Initial groups will decide on membership and benefits, and as it grows will elect a coordinating committee. The coop also chooses a representative for the Voluntown Peace Trust Board.
If you are part of a group that may be interested in joining or learning more about the Co-operative for Nonviolent Action, please contact us. If you are an individual interested in the work of CNVA and the Voluntown Peace Trust, we can send you information on the other programs and VPT membership.
For more information, contact Joanne Sheehan of the War Resisters League/New England at 860-639-8834 or email [email protected].
The Voluntown Peace Trust, in Voluntown, Connecticut has recently decided to create a Co-operative for Nonviolent Action to provide an opportunity for groups to work cooperatively to offer workshops, trainings, retreats and gatherings for their own groups, for co-op groups and for other interested people.
The Co-operative for Nonviolent Action (CNVA) will be made up of organizations who do a variety of social change work. Groups can work together to offer workshops and trainings. By working cooperatively we can share ideas, skills, and resources. CNVA can be a place of problem-solving and creating together, of connecting issues and shared retreats. This will increase our organizational capacity while stretching our funding as we provide popular education that leads to action for a better world.
Located on 54.75 acres in Southeastern Connecticut, the Voluntown Peace Trust is centrally located between Boston, New Haven, Hartford, Worcester and Providence. It became the home of the Community for Nonviolent Action (CNVA) in 1962. Since then it has been a center for work based in nonviolence, social and economic justice. With this history, retreat and conference facilities, wooded trails, streams and an organic garden, it is an important resource for groups working for social change.
What do we mean by “co-operative”?
A cooperative is a democratic structure based on values such as equality, honesty and social responsibility. As co-op members, we will work together to do things we can't do on our own. We are not simply a group of folks renting the facilities, but member groups developing programs that will be better done with other groups. We will meet to share our ideas and concerns, our skills and experiences, to develop ways to bring our issues together and promote cooperatively run events. Each group in the coop will be stronger when we pool our resources, especially important in these tight economic times. Individually, groups will benefit from the use of the facilities at an affordable rate, among other things.
What do we mean by “nonviolent action”?
Nonviolent action is based on Gandhi's three elements of social change:
1) personal change to find better ways of being and relating;
2) political action to challenge violent and oppressive structures; and
3) constructive programs to develop alternatives to those structures.
Many groups work on one of these elements, together we create a more holistic approach. Education and training programs can help us explore and develop the meaning of these three elements of social change for our society today and lead us to the actions that can make a difference.
We hope that this Cooperative for Nonviolent Action will enable us provide opportunities to work on the vision we share of social, economic and racial justice, peace and nonviolence, and the creation of a sustainable culture for youth and for the planet. We welcome your participation in this process.
Co-op development is in its earliest stages. Folks from at least 3 groups are organizing now to find other interested groups. Initial groups will decide on membership and benefits, and as it grows will elect a coordinating committee. The coop also chooses a representative for the Voluntown Peace Trust Board.
If you are part of a group that may be interested in joining or learning more about the Co-operative for Nonviolent Action, please contact us. If you are an individual interested in the work of CNVA and the Voluntown Peace Trust, we can send you information on the other programs and VPT membership.
For more information, contact Joanne Sheehan of the War Resisters League/New England at 860-639-8834 or email [email protected].
LAND STEWARDSHIP
The Land Stewardship Core Program seeks to expand from what is now the Garden Committee to a broader collection of interested individuals and organizations (for example, schools, CSAs, and other “entities” or groups). We are committed to the four principles of the Garden’s role at VPT, but realize the Garden Committee must grow in order to fulfill the following goals:
- Provide a model of how to grow organic food, while growing food for events at VPT;
- Provide a connection to the local community through the sale of produce;
- Enable organic food to reach under served communities where it is needed; and
- Provide education on how to grow organic foods.