Current JSC Corps Member Macie Bridge writes to introduce our newest partner organization, L’Arche North Carolina:
I am so excited to have the chance to share about L’Arche North Carolina: my partner organization for this service year, and a brand new partner for JSC!
L’Arche is an international nonprofit formed of independent communities where people with and without intellectual and/or developmental disabilities share life and friendships together. The first L’Arche community was founded in 1964 in Trosly, France. There are now over 150 communities worldwide, located across 38 countries. Folks in the Triangle have been praying for and discerning the development of a L’Arche community here for over 10 years, making it extra exciting that L’Arche North Carolina is currently in the “project” phase. This means we are quickly moving towards finding the first L’Arche home in the area, and are actively working to put down roots and build community.
This year I will be working alongside L’Arche NC’s wonderful Executive Director, Laura Steed Lorino, serving as Events & Communications Coordinator. As such, my time will be spent helping to plan events (mainly virtual, for now), managing social media, reimagining our website, and generally helping to share the story of L’Arche NC.
Each month, L’Arche NC will be hosting a few virtual events that all are welcome to join. One of our regular events is “Y’All Belong Here,” an inclusive prayer space in collaboration with L’Arche Atlanta, hosted on the third Wednesday of every month. I had the joy of attending last week, and it was such a heartwarming, reflective space: a much appreciated spiritual “reset” mid-week. Our other events will vary from month to month; in the coming weeks we have a book discussion of Henri Nouwen’s Adam, and a trivia night planned. In the future, our hope is to begin hosting social gatherings to explore accessible locations around the Triangle together.
I feel so blessed to have the chance to serve with L’Arche; as the work I’m doing this year is “behind the scenes”, in preparation for the first house, it feels incredibly meaningful to contribute to something that will hopefully long outlast myself.
If you’re interested in learning more about L’Arche NC, you can check out the website here, and subscribe to the newsletter for updates and events.