Our Dwell participants traveled to Tennessee to participate in a vocational discernment weekend retreat. They were joined by the participants in the Nashville Epiphany Project.
It was a beautiful weekend, especially compared to the snow storm that happened last year! You can find pictures of the retreat on our Facebook Fan page.
Wednesday
Christmas time in the city
Our Dwell houses gathered for a joint Christmas party. You can see a few of the pictures on the Facebook page. Good conversations and good times.
Atlanta's Public Housing
Atlanta has played a leading role in the changes nationwide in the public housing arena. Atlanta was the first city to tear down all of its public housing and replace it with mixed income housing. There has been a lot of debate about how effective these changes have been. Here is a link to an interesting article on Atlanta's Housing Authority, and the ways they are hoping to transform the culture of public housing in Atlanta. http://city-journal.org/2010/20_4_atlanta-public-housing.html.
~Jannan Thomas, DOOR Atlanta City Director
Shared Economics
Joyce Hollyday comments: “I have tried, in this stage of my life as in every other, to ask this one question: What does being faithful to Jesus and the demands of the Gospel require of me in this moment? Of all the aspects of life this question entails, none is more confusing than my relationship with money."
I asked the Dwellers to reflect on how money has played a role in the Dwell community. Our Dwell houses share a common grocery budget and many are on a very tight personal budget. Shared economics, especially when scarcity is a concern, brings challenges and opportunities to life in community. Below is a reflection by Sonia, one of our Capitol View community members.
~Jannan Thomas, DOOR Atlanta City Director
"Living in community this year has forced me to be aware of nearly every cent I spend and I am encouraged to save money via avenues I have never ventured on before living in this year's Dwell Community. I moved into the Capitol View Dwell Community to a house with all the fixings! I brought my bedding and clothes, but everything else here is for me to use during the year. Having the house furnished relieved me from the burden of finding and purchasing furniture and cookware.
Currently, the six of us each contribute a monthly amount of $80 into the “money pot” for our food budget. Before community living, I remember paying nearly $80 a week to feed myself when I lived alone in an apartment! We spend $120 dollars per week which mainly goes to prepare the dinners that we cook for each other. Sometimes we have gone over the $120 limit in a week of shopping, but this week, for instance, we were $30 below the limit giving us extra money to splurge on ice cream!
Funds toward house maintenance is another area we address in the community. Today, for instance, the HVAC maintenance came and noticed that our filters needed to be changed. So, at our Dwell night tonight, I will propose that we purchase new air filters. We, as a community, will then agree upon where the money will come from—either our food budget, our retreat money, or straight out of our pockets as an extra financial contribution to the house. So far, during this Dwell year, we have decided to use our food budget to purchase cleaning supplies and toilet paper.
We plan to go on three retreats during the Dwell year and there is a separate budget that is alloted to us for such expenses. However, by planning to be very cost efficient on the retreats, we have had enough money to get chickens—yes urban chickens! We are building a chicken coop in our back yard and will hopefully see fresh eggs by April. Planning to purchase chickens was a extensive process, but by the time we have eggs, we will not only be able to self-sustain ourselves, but also provide eggs to our friends and neighbors (and maybe even for a small fee, so that we can make some money for the Dwell Community).
When it comes to expenses, living in the community is sometimes no different than living in an apartment. Our utilities, trash pick-up, house alarm system, and extermination expenses are all taken care of by DOOR. We all pay monthly rent, but the sources and amounts of income do vary from community dweller to community dweller.
We always use the discount card at the grocery store. We tend to steer away from the brand name products and look for the discounted food items on the “manager's special”shelf—things I rarely did when I lived alone and bought food for myself. Within the community, I have not felt hindered to stay faithful to the gospel with the issue of money. And, when others in my community need financial assistance, we as a community agree to make sure that everyone is comfortable and not financially suffering. Personally, living in a community with a shared expenses has opened my eyes more fully to the understanding of hospitality and sharing. "
~Sonya, Dwell community member in Capitol View house
I asked the Dwellers to reflect on how money has played a role in the Dwell community. Our Dwell houses share a common grocery budget and many are on a very tight personal budget. Shared economics, especially when scarcity is a concern, brings challenges and opportunities to life in community. Below is a reflection by Sonia, one of our Capitol View community members.
~Jannan Thomas, DOOR Atlanta City Director
"Living in community this year has forced me to be aware of nearly every cent I spend and I am encouraged to save money via avenues I have never ventured on before living in this year's Dwell Community. I moved into the Capitol View Dwell Community to a house with all the fixings! I brought my bedding and clothes, but everything else here is for me to use during the year. Having the house furnished relieved me from the burden of finding and purchasing furniture and cookware.
Currently, the six of us each contribute a monthly amount of $80 into the “money pot” for our food budget. Before community living, I remember paying nearly $80 a week to feed myself when I lived alone in an apartment! We spend $120 dollars per week which mainly goes to prepare the dinners that we cook for each other. Sometimes we have gone over the $120 limit in a week of shopping, but this week, for instance, we were $30 below the limit giving us extra money to splurge on ice cream!
Funds toward house maintenance is another area we address in the community. Today, for instance, the HVAC maintenance came and noticed that our filters needed to be changed. So, at our Dwell night tonight, I will propose that we purchase new air filters. We, as a community, will then agree upon where the money will come from—either our food budget, our retreat money, or straight out of our pockets as an extra financial contribution to the house. So far, during this Dwell year, we have decided to use our food budget to purchase cleaning supplies and toilet paper.
We plan to go on three retreats during the Dwell year and there is a separate budget that is alloted to us for such expenses. However, by planning to be very cost efficient on the retreats, we have had enough money to get chickens—yes urban chickens! We are building a chicken coop in our back yard and will hopefully see fresh eggs by April. Planning to purchase chickens was a extensive process, but by the time we have eggs, we will not only be able to self-sustain ourselves, but also provide eggs to our friends and neighbors (and maybe even for a small fee, so that we can make some money for the Dwell Community).
When it comes to expenses, living in the community is sometimes no different than living in an apartment. Our utilities, trash pick-up, house alarm system, and extermination expenses are all taken care of by DOOR. We all pay monthly rent, but the sources and amounts of income do vary from community dweller to community dweller.
We always use the discount card at the grocery store. We tend to steer away from the brand name products and look for the discounted food items on the “manager's special”shelf—things I rarely did when I lived alone and bought food for myself. Within the community, I have not felt hindered to stay faithful to the gospel with the issue of money. And, when others in my community need financial assistance, we as a community agree to make sure that everyone is comfortable and not financially suffering. Personally, living in a community with a shared expenses has opened my eyes more fully to the understanding of hospitality and sharing. "
~Sonya, Dwell community member in Capitol View house
The Chickens are coming...
The chickens are coming to the Capitol View Dwell house. This week 26 chickens will arrive by the United States Postal Service to begin their new life in intentional Christian community. The Capitol View Dwellers have been busy preparing a new room for the chickens. It is a spacious coop in the backyard, with plenty of open space for the chickens to frolic. The yard is a perfect place for the new members of the community. It is filled with small rocks and is rather shaded, so no pesky grass or vegetables can grow in that area. It is just wide open play space for the chicks. These chickens are not just for show; they are contributing members of the household. They will provide local, sustainably produced eggs for the house to eat and even some extra to sell or give away to neighbors. They will provide organic fertilizer for the community garden plots the house maintains, further allowing the members who are on a tight budget to stretch their food budgets by growing their own vegetables. We are so excited to welcome these new residents of our Dwell community and look forward to the learning opportunities they will provide. Welcome Chickens…we’re so glad you’re part of the community. ~Jannan Thomas, DOOR Atlanta City Director
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)