Fwd: Updates for September Sugar Creek Midwest CW gathering

[Catholic Worker]

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Catholic Worker School <catholicwo...@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, Aug 28, 2025 at 11:33 AM
Subject: Updates for September Sugar Creek Midwest CW gathering
To: Catholic Worker <catholicw...@gmail.com>

Hey all,

Several updates as well as info below I had sent out last month. 

*Please RSVP to me at catholicwo...@gmail.com

*We need people to take on leadership for all three meals on Saturday as well as Sunday breakfast.

*We need 5-8 volunteers to stay until about 11:30 Sunday morning to help with the final clean-up. 

*Steve Jacobs from Columbia, MO CW will do a concert on the Friday night, 8pm at the gathering from his new album, "Songs for Catholic Workers." "I figure I've had to suffer for my art," he tells me, "Now it's your turn." 

*Couple things from Mustard Seed in Ames: Mustard Seed Community Farm is hosting a craft retreat September 15th-21st! We would love to have you join us after Sugar Creek for some or all of the week! Please fill out this form: CRAFT RETREAT INTEREST or email Outreach.m...@gmail.com if interested! Mustard Seed is bring hand-carved stamps and fabric ink for printing! Bring your own fabric items/clothing and make a cool piece of wearable art with a radical message! 

Sugar Creek Catholic Worker Gathering

September 11-14th, 2025

Saints Mary and Joseph Catholic Church 

3218 110th St. - Preston, Iowa 52069

It's getting close to Sugar Creek time, folks! Take a look at details below - I'd love to be inundated with volunteers for cooking meals (Sat. breakfast through Sunday breakfast for roughly 75 people), Sunday CW liturgy planning, variety show mc! 

Also be in touch if you'd like to reserve one of the few, precious (and tiny) private rooms. 

A few notes before Maria's Sugar Creek orientation below:

-The house at Sugar Creek is wheel chair accessible. 

-For those interested in Mass at the adjacent church, it's happening at 8am that Sunday.

-We need $800 to cover costs. Anything we raise beyond that will go towards Honor Native Land Fund. 

For people who haven't been before, I copied and pasted the below from Maria Bergh:

-You can get to Sugar Creek as early as Thursday, but most people show up on Friday and there are no group meals provided until Friday supper. 

-The only food and drinks we have while we're there is what we bring. Don't depend on someone else to bring you food outside of planned meals -- this is a great chance to empty your cupboards of all the stuff that hasn't been eaten in the last six months. Likewise, this is an event with alcohol, if you want to drink, consider making a contribution. 

-It's customary for large-ish CW contingents to support Saturday/Sunday meals. That means bringing the ingredients and prepping, cooking, serving the meal. It is customary to accommodate vegetarian, vegan, and GF options. There may be extra ingredients around to use from farms or other donations, but no promises. BYO spices, oils, some even BYO sharp knives, but most basic equipment is provided. Other CWs usually pitch in to support the dishwashing to lighten the load. 

-Agenda: Friday night is informal fun / campfire, Saturday morning is introductions, agenda setting, and then 3 round table sessions, usually with 3-4 options of round tables during each session. One of the round table sessions occurs concurrent with a soccer game. After dinner is a skit / talent show. Be prepared. Sunday morning breakfast, worship, clean up & departures.

-Accommodations: there are limited indoor restrooms including tiny showers, a CW-esque kitchen, several bunk rooms (bring your own linens, pillows), a field for tents, and port a potties. There are a couple private rooms, priority for families with kids.

-Rules: don't sleep in the cemetery, no pets.

-Pack it out: all the extra food / compost / trash / recycling needs to go somewhere. Usually nearby farms take the compost, but if you have room in your car for a bag of trash or recycling, please help the cause. Usually you can also easily score a sandwich and / or snack (or more valuable things like a jar of honey or pickles) for the ride home as you help clean up the kitchen.

Peace,

Eric Anglada - St. Isidore Catholic Worker Farm 

608.568.3630 (landline) 

catholicwo...@gmail.com