Category: Human Interest

Heartland Spiritual Alliance President – Interview

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I talked to sitting Heartland Spiritual Alliance President Angela Krout at Heartland Pagan Festival near Kansas City, Mo.  She was re-elected in April but has resigned for family reasons, pending the outcome of a special election.

What moved you to take the president’s role?

I’ve been a HSA (Heartland Spiritual Alliance) member for twelve years. I was treasurer last year when our then president stepped down for personal reasons. Myself and a couple others decided to run, and since we had an alternate candidate for treasurer I thought, “Why not me, Why not now?”

Do you have a new vision for the organization?
There is always room for improvement and growth. Some of it can be difficult to deal with, difficult to change. I would like to see HSA be not just a Midwestern voice, but an international voice in the Pagan community. Something that you will see and hear about all over the world.  We are no longer just a local community, we are a global community, and HSA needs to branch out and do that.

Can you share some of the problems you have encountered leading the organization and putting on a festival?
Personal accountability, that needs to start with someone. With me the buck stops with me, my personal accountability and responsibility. I know as Pagans we are supposed to ‘go with the flow’, but there is a certain time when you have to treat it like business, because that is exactly what it is. It can’t be a loose y goose y, very free flowing thing, a festival has to be run like a business. The more accountability we have, the more we will have organizations that run better.

Transparency is huge. From every dollar we take at the gate, to every dollar we disburse, it has been our goal the last few years to become more transparent, to have more layers of protection and accountability.

We have a great PR team this year, and they have been promoting us well. At this point we are still small enough, and even though we get national and international speakers that come in, people still see us as a regional festival, and we are not.  Next year we have Janet Farrar and Gavin Bone as speakers. They actually contacted us and wanted to appear. That blew my mind, so awesome. I am so excited about it.

Several ‘old timers’ here have stepped back and new folks are joining. Is that an obstacle or an asset?
It can be both. Those of us that have been in the trenches for so long can be resistant to change. Personally for me, change is growth and growth is life. A lot of people don’t realize it is the life blood of the organization. We can not have the same people year after year. We become too entrenched, to comfortable with the same set of standards when the rest of the world is growing. It could limit us to stay where we are, and get stagnant.

HSA President Angela Krout

What does the direction of the new leadership look like?
Yet to be determined. I plan to stay with HSA and support whoever is elected. At some point when my personal life is not taking over, I may run for President again.

Nels Linde

Walker Church: A Community Commons

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By Susu Jeffrey

Walker Community United Methodist Church in south Minneapolis was a true “commons” for all kinds of progressive groups. The church built in 1910, at 16th Avenue South and 31st Street East (near Lake and Bloomington), was a “total loss” from Sunday evening’s fire.
(Please see the Star Tribune for a photos)
Either a lightning strike or arson is the probable cause. Five firefighters were hospitalized. Captain Kathrynne Baumtrog remains in the hospital. Bulldozers razed the remaining walls on Monday. Amazingly the altar box survived as did the LGBT flag and ALL ARE WELCOME sign in the front yard.

KFAI Community radio began broadcasting from Walker. I hosted a poetry show in the belfry in the 1980s and remember climbing and climbing up to the hot in summer—cold in winter cramped, cheery studio.

In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre also started out of Walker. HOBT holds (what we think is) the largest Pagan gathering in the U.S. on the first Sunday in May. May Day in the Park is the annual parade down Bloomington Avenue and ceremony in Powderhorn Park with multi-thousands of people celebrating spring.

Walker provided space to progressive groups including Communities United Against Police Brutality, Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee, the Welfare Rights Committee, and Occupy. A Latin American woman considered “illegal” actually lived at the church for a time. Last year the church approved a statement embracing same-sex marriage.

Countless benefit performances were held in the Walker sanctuary including Stop the Hwy 55 Reroute. In fact their minister provided expert testimony at the trial of 34 people arrested at The Four Trees Spiritual Encampment in December 1999. When asked if springs could be considered “sacred” Pastor Roger Lynn affirmed that concept and told the court, “There are springs all over the Bible.”

Walker Church did not limit its largess to social justice. Beyond Christian faith and values the church welcomed Pagan groups for seasonal rituals. The church was fully insured and the spirit of Walker, with 150 church members and hundreds of thousands of community members survives.

*** Editor’s note:

There will be a funeral for the Walker Community Church Building tonight (Monday June 4th)  at 3104 31st Street East in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Service will begin  at 8:30 PM. Feel free to bring an offering to place upon the ruins. Please join us.

 

MAY DAY! The Belated Heart of the Beast Parade

The Heart of The Beast May Day Parade took place last Sunday. It had been delayed from last weeks traditional date because of flooding in Powderhorn Park. Many wondered if attendance would be down because of the date change. Fantastic weather and a dedicated audience brought out the masses! Each year the costumes, puppets, floats, and performers get more creative. This years parade was worth the wait!  If you missed it, enjoy the slide show.

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After the obituary, a post-mortem on Sacred Paths Center

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“At 6:25 pm (April 25th) the Executive Director dissolved the board of directors,” reads the last entry in the minutes of the final board meeting of Sacred Paths Center, a Pagan community center in Minnesota. A few days later, on Beltane, Executive Director Teisha Magee sent out an email saying the center closes May 31st.

“Why is Sacred Paths Center closing?” is a question asked by Twin Cities Pagans after reading the announcement.  That question is quickly followed by, “What can we learn from their experience?” by Pagan organizations such as Solar Cross Temple in San Francisco and the Open Hearth Foundation community center in Washington DC.  PNC-Minnesota spoke with past and present Sacred Paths Center (SPC) board members, volunteers, and their last financial auditor, looked over financial records and minutes of board meetings, and interviewed Teisha Magee to answer those questions.

Sacred Paths Center cc wikipedia

In short, most everyone interviewed says the center’s Director and Board were not functional, the finances were in disarray, the building was too expensive, and the resulting drop in income after  two years of  road construction right outside their door didn’t help matters.

Despite that, they are united in saying the center almost made it due to the efforts of the Director, Board, volunteers and the most importantly, the community support.  According to the  U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics only 66% of new businesses make it past two years and only 44% celebrate their fourth anniversary.  Sacred Paths Center made it three years and three months.

What Happened?

The public perception of Sacred Paths Center is that it is a non-profit community center with a board.  And normally with something like that the director would report to the board and the board would have something to do with the operation of the center and would have fiduciary responsibilities.  That’s not the case.  – Ciaran Benson, former SPC board member and current volunteer

What happened, the successes and the failures, are of prime concern to Sean Bennett, Vice Chair of the Open Hearth Foundation.  Four months ago they opened a community center and he says his board has been following news of Sacred Paths Center closely. “Even though the center in Minnesota has a different environment and a different dynamic there are lessons we could learn.”  He says they were concerned and disappointed to hear of SPC’s closing, “We wanted to see it succeed.  We want to know more about what happened and we will gather together as a board and see what lessons we can learn.”

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Sacred Paths Center to Close: An Obituary for our Community Center

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On May 2, 2012, Teisha Magee, Executive Director and founder of the Sacred Paths Center announced, “After much heartache, soul-searching and tears, it has become clear that Sacred Paths Center cannot continue. Our expenses are too high in this location and we are just not getting enough money coming through the door. All of our resources are tapped, and our volunteers are worn out. By the end of May 2012, we will be closing the doors. We don’t know the exact date yet.”

The SPC has been significant to many in the community. It provided a convenient entry place for those new to the community who wanted to learn about community resources, it provided meeting space for many groups, it had a shrine for departed loved ones, it had a lending library, and it provided the focus that our community had something truly special and rare.

SPC Board Member Mary Oczak said, “I believe it filled a need and performed a valuable function by hosting spiritual and secular events and public rituals and providing informative classes on a variety of subjects. The library, retail shop and ancestor shrine were positive assets to the community.”

SPC Board Member Lola said, “The significance of having the SPC has been huge for me, giving me a social space that also carried the joyous yet solemness of a spiritual space. I hope that there will continue to be a level of SPC to continue, perhaps online.”

In an official statement released by the entire board of directors, it says, “There is a need for a nature-based community center in the Twin Cities.  We believe it can be a sustainable endeavor with the right planning, the right space, and the right people. Community members did come forward in epic ways over the last three years to support the center by giving their money, time, input, and spiritual resources.  SPC operated solely on hundreds of volunteer hours put in by the Executive Director, the Board, and many dedicated volunteers.   We are eternally grateful for this community’s passion.”

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