Catholic Workers hang out shingle at new Albany site

Recently, the Albany Diocese became home to a Catholic Worker house, located across the street from the diocesan Pastoral Center in Albany.

In two months, "Emmaus House" will open its doors to provide temporarily homeless families with food, shelter, opportunities for spiritual growth and a chance to get back on their feet again.

Couple's commitment

Husband-and-wife founders Fred Boehrer and Diana Conroy came to the Diocese from Syracuse with their three-month-old son, Fred Jr., hoping to live out the Catholic Worker philosophy of voluntary poverty and non-violence through their work at Emmaus House.

The couple had been introduced to the Catholic Worker (CW) movement several years ago through a local bookstore that sold CW literature and through lay volunteering in Chicago. Later, Mr. Boehrer chose to focus his doctoral program on the CW movement.

"We've been committed to living out our faith, doing peace and justice work, and trying to live out a simple lifestyle," Mr. Boehrer told The Evangelist. Mrs. Conroy added, "We've always dreamed of one day opening a Catholic Worker house."

Coming to Albany

When the couple inquired about beginning such a house in Albany, Mr. Boehrer said, interest was high. "We got a flood of letters, telephone calls, donations from all sorts of folks throughout upstate New York," he noted.

While each CW house is slightly different, in general, Catholic Workers live in solidarity with the poor, do not receive salaries or accept government or corporate aid, and subsist on personal donations. They practice pacifism, publish newsletters to share their views and are activists for peace.

Training program

Since there is no "how-to" manual for starting a CW house, Mr. Boehrer and Mrs. Conroy visited houses all over the northeast and midwest to learn how they were run before attempting to create their own model.

One house in Chicago, they learned, focuses solely on those who are HIV-positive; another home offered a soup kitchen, but did not host families who needed a place to stay.

In addition, most Catholic Workers do not have young children. The couple researched several young families involved in the CW movement to learn how to live a simple lifestyle while raising an infant.

Plans for house

Emmaus House, they decided, would provide shelter for temporarily homeless families (not individuals). Mr. Boehrer, who will soon receive his doctorate, hopes to find a part-time teaching position to provide some income for the family while still having time to work with guests.

In order to live below a taxable level, Mrs. Conroy said, the family will depend on "a bit of outside work, a lot of prayers and, hopefully, a lot of donations."

The couple is renting the two-storey house where Emmaus residents will live from the Albany Diocese. The upper floor will be their private quarters, while the first-floor kitchen and dining room will be shared with residents. Three bedrooms will be available for guest families.

Room by room

Besides themselves, the couple estimates that two families a time can live in the house. Food and laundry facilities will be included. A prayer-space will also be offered, as well as weekly discussions on social justice issues.

However, "there won't be any proselytizing going on," said the two founders. "We don't care what people's background is. We're not here to save people; we're just here to provide a home for people on their journey."

Details, such as the maximum-allowed length of a stay at Emmaus House, are still being worked out. "The last thing we want to do is turn this into an institution," Mrs. Conroy stated.

Her husband added, "We want this to be a homey place, so that children will feel welcomed here."

Connections

The couple hope to receive referrals of possible residents from diocesan agencies, although the CW movement is a "grassroots effort," not officially affiliated with the Diocese.

"We want to really be connected with people in the community" as well, said Mr. Boehrer, "so that if someone was to call us up and refer an individual to us and we were unable to help them, we'd like to show them other options where they could go."

As such, the pair are now meeting with representatives of diocesan and secular agencies in the Capital District, "getting the word out" about their efforts. They hope to be settled in and have the home open to residents after the holidays.

Looking for support

Donations of financial support and furniture have ensured that Emmaus House will open in the near future. But more help is necessary to keep its doors open to those in need.

"The model we're using here is antithetical to the traditional social work model," Mr. Boehrer noted. "We're not receiving a salary for this, or going home after working an eight-hour shift. We're not going to receive any governmental funding. If people want to support us, we welcome people personally, as opposed to institutional support."

(To contact Emmaus House, write to: Emmaus House, Albany Catholic Worker, 35 N. Main St., Albany, NY 12203; or call 482-4966.) [[In-content Ad]]