New Hospitality House Opens in Lansford, PA

Hello everyone!

My name is Ericka Williams-Rodriguez. With the help of friends and family, I have purchased a former Catholic Church and school in Lansford, Pennsylvania. What a crazy thing to do, right? My hopes are that we will do with these buildings what was supposed to be done with them: we will serve the community and the poor here.

The Church left lots of things here we can use, like a copy machine, and some very beautiful religious items, like this cross imbedded with coal from the coal mines here in Carbon County, Pennsylvania. We plan to display these items, and the many old pictures that were also left behind, in an exhibit dedicated to the coal miners that had their wages garnished to build the former St. Michael's the Archangel Roman Catholic Church. 

My dream is to turn the rectory into a House of Hospitality, a place where we can practice the Corporal Works of Mercy, which are to feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, shelter the homeless, clothe the naked, visit the sick, visit the imprisoned, and bury the dead:

I hope and pray that a tight-knit, egalitarian, intentional community will develop here. There is so much space to do good works in. I have dreams of a yoga studio, daycare, library, greenhouse, transitional housing, and more! I would love to take these buildings off the grid as an example of environmental sustainability.

We will be posting a lot in the coming days about different projects related to the starting of our community, activism we are involved in, recipes relating to what we cook here at the Dorothy Day House, and more. We hope you enjoy! Please reach out to us at 908-357-8858 or Dorothydaycarboncounty@gmail.com to donate or get involved!

Here is a picture of our small group of volunteers.: