The Patch is a household made up largely of 20-somethings, mainly Fellowship
apprentices and practicing members. The vision for our household grew out of a
group of apprentices who, after their formal internships ended, wanted to stay
around the community and grow more committed and interdependent. We are a
mixed-gender household with our own small group, business meetings, and
spiritual practices.
In addition to these, we also feel a strong commitment to sustainable
environmental and economic choices. In the summer we keep a garden which
provides greens, tomatoes, squash, potatoes, carrots, herbs, and numerous other
vegetables, and we participate in the Community Supported Agriculture program
with Plow Creek Farm. Some of this bounty makes the immediate transition from
soil to table, while the rest we blanch, freeze, dry, or can for the
winter.
We have a very large dining room table which is often filled with friends,
neighbors and visitors. We also have a very large microwave, a fledgling
mushroom garden, three compost bins, and a cat named Neeps.
We work and volunteer in the Reba
Place community and in the larger Evanston community. Among the eight of
us there are: Reba Place Fellowship apprentices; administrative assistants to
Reba Place Fellowship and Church; Recyclery (Reba's used bike co-operative)
employees; and a RebaPlaceChurch
youth leader. Some of us also help with neighborhood compost pick-up, the
Pick (Reba's free store) organization, Evanston's
homeless shelter, and church and fellowship leadership.
The Patch is an often-silly bunch of 'young people.' The inevitable
conflicts that arise between us are often offset by the odd, impromptu game of
Rook, baking extravaganza, sewing circle, or worship time. We're
sometimes painfully aware of our failures in loving each other, welcoming the
stranger and serving each other and our community. But with God's grace we keep
trying.
