Summer Sweetness
We launched our Gofundme around my birthday in early August and have been totally blown away by folks’ generosity towards the space. And so we found ourselves immediately thrown into the beautiful chaos of furnishing the Montpelier Atrium with literal furniture and work for the kids. Here is the more specific update on what your precious financial and material gifts have provided for these children.
With our first influx of funds, I was able to get some of the more complicated handcrafted pieces. This included hand-cut wooden signs for La Fettucia (a Level II work we haven’t assembled yet), a hand-made cabinet with spacers and wooden books for the Books of the Bible work, and our Liturgical Calendar for Level I!
We put our Liturgical Calendar to use right away, painting it, crafting the control chart for them to follow as they learn the parts of the cycle, and printing the extension work they can do to make their own if they want to continue to contemplate it. This is a beloved work to the kids, with lots of moving pieces, and a great one to be immersed in as we think about the life of Jesus and contemplate significant events of his life through our seasonal remembrances.
I also was able to get the final necessities for our altar work: a hand-made ambo/lectern from The Catechist’s Husband (our wonderful go-to for atrium items) with wooden lectionary and Roman missal. With these things, I was able to put that whole work together using donated items, including the Sacristy cabinet itself from a generous local church who were passing it on! It underwent some deep cleaning and refurbishing and is now happily seated in a special corner of our atrium. There, the children love to handle these beautiful items as they set the altar and think about the special meal we are invited to in the Eucharist, and the One who invites us to that meal.
Most recently, I took some time to assemble many of the works that feature the gestures traditionally performed over the items of the altar as the Eucharist is prepared and consecrated in a corporate worship setting. These works are (appropriately!) called the Gesture Works and include the Lavabo, Preparation of the Chalice, and Offering. I still need to add the Epiclesis, Passing of the Peace, and Sign of the Cross. I love to present these works: they always surprise me with their profound simplicity, often opened anew for me through the discerning hearts of the children.
With the diligent help of two co-laborers in particular, we were able to fully compile the Geography work this summer—a sweet and comprehensive way of getting to know the land where Jesus feet walked when he was on Earth. The Level I children start with learning the regions of Israel with the topographical map and puzzle map (locally hand-made for our space!). They combine this with exposure to the three main cities of Jesus’ time on Earth, symbolized by a star, cross, and flame (Bethlehem, Jerusalem, Nazareth).
As they continue their curiosity and increase their knowledge, they move to imitating the map with tracing and pasting, then move to more deeply investigate Israel through the Cities pin map and the Mountains, Deserts & Waterways pin map. These works engage and excite our kids and we’re so pleased to be able to so fully offer these materials.
The last thing that has been the focus of our funds, time, and energy is particularly special. All the work in the atrium is so rich and loved, but the Parable of the Good Shepherd is central to especially the Level I works. Thanks to local artisans, ours was ready to enjoy for the first Sunday of Level I in September. It is precious to have it in the space and the children gravitate towards it with magnetic force. We pray that it will be a place where their deep, unconditional loved-ness will be internalized more and more with each use.
Most of the works include control charts (often laminated), tracing packets, scripture booklets, and extension work including handouts and collage pieces, so the Gofundme monies we have received have also gone to things like lamination, glue, card stock, construction paper, paint, sharpies, poster board, labels, and various other office-supplies.
We also have a healthy collection of Practical Life works that our Level I children are getting well acquainted with on Sunday afternoons, and a tracing station and honored prayer table corner where we often begin and end our time together to sing songs and share prayers.
I offer this update to share the joy of what our combined gifts of money, materials, time, prayer, and work are building in this unassuming corner of the world. The speed at which we have raised the funds and materials to do what we have already done has been stunning. With at least one material-making night a month, and work going on in the in-between, we are finishing the works we’ve already purchased materials for (The Books of the Bible, La Fettucia, and the Unity Strip—but more on those later!).
We are also gearing up for Advent, coming in just a short month and a half, and are praying for the funds and opportunity to purchase what is necessary to make the dioramas and figures for the Infancy Narratives. These are very tactile and highly anticipated works that physically place the children in the story of Jesus as he enters our World on his great mission of love. We hope to see these on our shelves by the beginning of November. If you were planning to give and haven’t, or want to give more, please visit our Gofundme or contact me directly at lauraellenfissel@gmail.com.
Thank you for your support and attention. We are grateful for all of our partners in this work and are excited to share the joy of the journey together as we watch these children’s lives impacted by our profoundly beautiful, attentive God through the Montpelier Atrium.
