We still have 2025 group week openings - especially during the spring college weeks. Check out our calendarand contact Steve atvolunteer@bethlehemfarm.net for more information.
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Become A Caretaker
Did you know that one year as an AmeriCorps Volunteer = a $7,395 Education Award to pay for past/future expenses at an accredited institution AND one year of free tuition at a WV public university? And guess what? These benefits are available to Bethlehem Farm Caretakers! If you feel a call to live out the Cornerstones in an intentional community on a hilltop Farm in Appalachia, please consider applying to be a Caretaker!
In reflecting on the Baptism of Jesus, I think Tish Harrison Warren says it best: “It’s remarkable that when the Father declares at Jesus’ baptism, ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,’ Jesus hasn’t done much of anything that many would find impressive.”
If Jesus had a LinkedIn account at this point in his life, it wouldn’t be anything special. He hadn’t cured any lepers or given the Sermon on the Mount. And yet God the Father delights in Jesus, calls him beloved – and not because of anything He has done. This Gospel is a good reminder that like Christ, we too are beloved because of who we are, not what we do.
For a couple of years, I lived as a Caretaker at Bethlehem Farm in West Virginia. Bethlehem Farm is a special place where I feel loved for who I am. My resume doesn’t matter to the community at Bethlehem Farm. I know I am not alone in this feeling of belovedness at the farm. For a number of weeks throughout the year, Bethlehem Farm hosts high school and college groups for week-long service-retreat experiences. Many of the students who would spend time with us were very “good” at school…valedictorians, honors students, and leaders on campus. But doing farm chores or building a wheelchair ramp for an elderly couple were outside of their skillset. Sometimes you could feel the frustration of a successful college student as they tried to use a drill for the first time in their life. But then you’d soon see something else: the volunteer would experience, maybe for the first time in a long time, the feeling of not being judged on how successful they were at something, but just feeling beloved by the intentional community that the farm fosters. Here is a place where you are beloved simply because of who you are. How refreshing to be loved just as you are! It is no wonder that many of these volunteers returned during their summer breaks to be a part of the community for a longer period of time.
And so questions remain – How can we see ourselves as God sees us, beloved, even when we are tempted to judge ourselves on achievements and popularity? And how can we build the beloved community?
Learn more about the Bethlehem Farm Board members here!
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A Word from Our Board Chair
By Kathryn, Board Member
My two children and I arrived at Bethlehem Farm for Family Week 2012 as strangers to the Farm. Like everyone, we were welcomed with a hug and quickly learned the quirks & routine. Hooked, we became summer “regulars.” Yearly visits were not enough for me, so I joined the Board to feel and be connected year ‘round to Bethlehem Farm.
Initially, I was simply seeking a service opportunity for Claire & Sebastian. We found so much more at Bethlehem Farm. Silly me…I had interpreted the references to “transformation” quite literally. It applied to the home repair program, right? Transforming a sagging porch or a leaky roof? Of course, Bethlehem Farm transformed us. Like so many volunteers before and after us, we learned, lived, and loved the four cornerstones of prayer, community, service and simplicity.
God’s presence was apparent in both the peace and the hectic pace of Family Week at the Farm. The serene mountain vista (best viewed from the hammocks) reminded us of the imperative to care for God’s creation. The ever-patient, tireless Caretakers modeled simplicity and lived the mission by teaching service – carpentry, gardening, animal chores. The community grew throughout Family week as we met homeowners and feasted with local Farm friends on community night.
We returned home from that first Family Week with a new, lasting understanding of living intentionally and sustainably. I am ever grateful to the Farm for providing an experience to grow, learn and serve on its wholly holy ground.
As you reflect on recent and distant past Farm experiences, I hope you have equally fond memories. If you feel called, I invite you todonate today to Bethlehem Farm, so that more people can have similarly transformative experiences at this place we call home.
As Board Chair, I THANK YOU for your prayers, service and financial support. You are an integral part of our mission, and we are truly grateful.
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Caretaker at the Campfire by Lucas, Volunteer
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Excerpts from “The Summer I was Fed”
By Alfred, Summer Servant
The Garden:
On my first full day at the Farm, Eric taught me to harvest tomatoes, squash, beans, and peppers. He was leaving for vacation in two days, and it was going to be my responsibility to harvest the garden produce and water the plants in the green houses while he was away. He was undisturbed that I had never done this before in my life. As I did these tasks, I grew in recognition of the symbiosis that was happening. As I sustained the lives of the plants, they sustained mine – every morning harvesting, every evening watering. They enjoyed my presence; I enjoyed their substance. It was as if Jesus, incarnate God, in union with all of nature, was saying “this is my body.” My awareness of the interconnectedness of all things grew such that when Casey remarked that the grapes were “grateful” to be picked and not shrivel in the sun, I let out a laugh, but I believed her.
I harvested, washed, and then helped cook the produce. The entirety of my labor was dedicated to sustaining a cycle of nourishment. It felt right. It was hard work! Sometimes it was slow work, but it was always good work. There is a deep beauty in centering life and labor around food. At the farm, rainwater is saved for irrigation, food scraps and donkey waste are composted. Fruit seeds are saved, meat is treasured, and fruits are preserved. Everything is connected, and that oneness forms part of the mystique of the place.
The Community:
The best conversations I had were either around food or about food. In the garden while weeding asparagus beds, Julius and I talked about egalitarianism in the church, the seeming incompatibility of young romance and a demanding career, creation care, and the complexity of consumption practices on the Farm. While grocery shopping, Molly and I discussed the fragmentation of identity in the social media age. These are two examples from a much larger set. Food supplied the means for authentic bonding, nature supplied the setting, and the Holy Spirit provided the peace. The community that gathered around food at the Farm invited me to present myself as true, unaccomplished, and vulnerable. I did not always present as such, but I tried. Even when I failed, I treated myself with grace, as it was the way folks at the Farm treated me.
As I head home, there are still so many reflections to excavate and share, so much growing is still to happen. But tonight, I will make dinner with tomatoes and squash that I harvested from the garden. I am reemerging into some uncertainty in my life, but I know that at least, tonight, dinner will be good.
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Living Simplicity
By Anna, Caretaker
This winter I’ve been staying warm by leaning into one of my favorite hobbies: Quilting! Creating a quilt from old fabrics and clothing is one of my favorite activities, a labor of love and creativity. It reminds me of the importance of beauty, of simplicity, and that the best things in life are handmade or homegrown. These are pictures of one of the quilts I finished in 2024 and one that is in progress.
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Chris and Colin, volunteers from Georgetown Prep, created a short video to give you a glimpse their experience at Bethlehem Farm
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Birthday Benefit By Casey, Caretaker
On the eve of Bethlehem Farm’s official 20th birthday, past and current Caretakers, Summer Servants, and Farm friends and family gathered at St. Elizabeth Seton Church, in Carmel, Indiana for this year’s Winter Benefit. The night was a great success with about 110 people in attendance. Unofficial returns indicate that we raised about $22,000 at the event. Happy Birthday, Bethlehem Farm!
“Praise be to you my Lord!” Father Andrew Morand opened us with a benediction inspired by the Canticle of the Creatures. We heard highlights from the past year from Eric Fitts and several testimonies. Retreat Participant Cassie Echelmeier, shared stories of people who transformed her while at Bethlehem Farm. The Ross Family, then reflected on the Cornerstones and Jenny Hagenauer shared about the growth she saw in the students she chaperoned. Caretaker Jarrett shared a video he created about recent home repair projects.
The night concluded with pulling raffle tickets (mysteriously, all three Fitts kids won something) and closing auction tables (there were some awesome items, like a pen and ink map drawn by recent Summer Servant, Helena Kaelin!) Attendants left with arms full of quilts, pottery, and paintings; bellies full of pulled pork, mac and cheese, and apple pie; and hearts full with the joy of being part of this amazing mission. Special thanks to the Caretakers as well as the Benefit Committee members, Lauren LaCoy, Brenna Davis, Kera McNelis, Steve Morrill, Tim Shovlin, Arielle Chard, Richard Storey, and MC McDonald. Extra special thanks to Kim Foote, mother of Kera McNelis, for all of her help during, before, and after the event.
Director’s Corner: 20th Anniversary, State of the Farm
By Eric, Director
20th Anniversary Theme:
In the Book of Exodus, we read about Moses’ encounter with God in the burning bush. When Moses notices the glorious sight of the burning bush, it grabs Moses’ attention, and God calls out to Moses by name. Moses replies: “Here I am.” God says, “Remove the sandals from your feet. For the place on which you are standing is holy ground.”God identifies himself to Moses and goes on to describe what is important to God and how Moses can respond. God says, “I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings,and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians…The cry of the Israelites has now come to me; I have also seen how the Egyptians oppress them. So come, I will send you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.”But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”He said, “I will be with you; and this shall be the sign for you that it is I who sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God on this mountain.”
This passage from Exodus reminds us that even in our everyday life, whether it is leading a flock, planting seeds, or sending an email, that we need to pay attention and allow ourselves to be drawn in by the glory of God, that God calls us and knows us by name, that our response is important (“Here I am”), and that you might possibly be standing on holy ground. This passage reminds us that God is active: ‘I have observed the misery, I have heard their cry, I know their sufferings, I have come to deliver, I have seen their oppression.’ And sometimes there we are with God saying “yeah, God, isn’t that terrible? Someone should do something?” Somehow, it always seems to come as a surprise when God responds, “I have an idea– I will send you” And our response is often that of Moses: “Who am I?” “Surely you can find someone more qualified than someone who has been tending sheep for the past 40 years in the wilderness”. And God assures us “I will be with you.”
We’ve chosen 20 Years of Holy Ground as our theme for our 20th anniversary to recall together those people and places over the past 20 years of Bethlehem Farm where we have experienced holy ground– in the experiences of glory; in being called by name; in the simple “Here I am” that has led each Caretaker, Service-Retreat Participant, Summer Servant, Board Member, or Donor to join this mission; in the presence of a God who observes, hears, knows, and comes to the aid of the poor; in the thrill of being sent on a mission; in the doubt that we can heal this wounded world as God’s messenger; and we have experienced holy ground in God’s assurance ‘I will be with you and I will give you signs of my love and support’.
20 Years. To echo Psalm 126 from the 2nd Sunday of Advent: The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy. When I look back 20 years, there are so many experiences of holy ground that flood into my mind and fill me with joy:
I think of the humble beginning of a mid-week conversation around a dinner table at Nazareth Farm
One of the first things we did was form a Board to do the work of bringing a community to life. When I think of holy ground, I think of over 50 people who have given their evenings and weekends to serving on the Board.
With Molly having left after four years this past June and our 50th Caretaker, Jarrett, having joined us this past April, when I think of holy ground, I think of all 50 Caretakers and their gifts, their selfless sharing, their creativity, and their love.
This year we hired Tiffany Anderson as a Home School Teacher, with other Admin and Farm duties. Her path to finding us and what she has meant to our family and Farm certainly speaks to holy ground.
Marcus, our professional salaried Construction Manager, who works with Anna to lead our Repairing Homes, Renewing Communities program, is often the one to remind us of the holy ground of the family we are working with or of the holy ground of each person’s special gifts they bring to this community.
23 Summer Servants served a total of 79 weeks this past summer, enriching our mission and life in as many ways. We never take for granted the holy ground we walk on when someone gifts 2 or 3 or 12 weeks of their summer and to think back on over 250 people who have shared to that degree is humbling.
Over 6,000 week-long service-retreat participants have joined us on 273 service-retreat weeks in these 20 years, amplifying our efforts on the Farm and out in the community, then seeding this lifestyle to the world—beginning in March 2005 with 25 students from St. Joe’s of Philly back-to-back with 35 students from Indiana University’s St Paul Newmann Center the next week. Many of us know the holy ground in the prayer and view from Bill Mann Hill, stunning sunrises and sunsets, fireflies, constellation tours, kneading bread, music on community night, a conversation with a homeowner, celebrating Eucharist, Shared Prayer, foot washing, conversations in the truck or into the night, bucket showers, good tired and honest sweat, first time cooking, first time building, first time splitting wood, first time experiencing God…
When someone approaches you and admits: “We used to be able to maintain our home, but then my husband passed away and now I’m on a fixed income around $1,000/month, and I need your help to build a wheelchair ramp, to replace these drafty windows or to stop these leaks in my roof”… that ground is holy. When no one will come to help, but some 16-year-old high school students and your new friends from Bethlehem Farm, that ground is holy. When you have a new pride in your home now that it reflects your dignity as a child of God, then that is holy ground. In 20 years, nearly 1,000 people have benefitted from our home repair program, which has invested over $700,000 in materials and contributed over $10,000,000 in donated labor.
This year, we recall especially:
Helping Marcus, a single dad with an autistic son, to rehab his trailer, which had no electric, no running water, and an unsafe exit.
Working with Bonnie, a home health aide, to install a new metal roof on her leaky home, a project for which she had been saving up for some time, and in her favorite shade of blue.
Working alongside Kenny, whose roof was collapsing and whose porch was a hazard.
Holy ground.
It has been a blessing to share this journey with you. As St. Paul wrote: “I pray always with joy in my every prayer for all of you, /because of your partnership for the gospel from the first day until now./I am confident of this,/that the one who began a good work in you/will continue to complete it /until the day of Christ Jesus.” One of my favorite things about this work is how hopeful I feel about our world after hearing the stories of what Bethlehem Farm has meant to so many, Psalm 126 says…”Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with rejoicing” so please check out the reflections and videos shared at our recent benefit, soak in the hope, and be inspired, as we celebrate 20 Years of Holy Ground.
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Monthly Giving: Spread the love out all year long
Monthly giving is an easy way to support the Farm each month, without having to plan for a large annual donation. If you are interested in joining the Monthly Giving Circle at Bethlehem Farm, then
Some monthly donors set up an auto-monthly bill pay to Bethlehem Farm in their online checking (we can share our bank acct info to set up an electronic transfer OR send it tocaretakers@bethlehemfarm.netor to “Bethlehem Farm, PO BOX 415, TALCOTT, WV24981.”)
OR
Write a check monthly and mail it in to the above address
Monthly donors give between $5 and $1,000 each month. In FY2024, the monthly giving circle contributed over $59,000, an important portion of overall giving.
We are in critical need of monthly donors at this time, since we lost six monthly donors in 2024 and overall monthly giving revenue is down for the second straight year, while the need for low-income home repair in our area and material prices remain high.
I’ll give one example of a family who needs your help:
Allison is living on the farm she grew up on, now raising her own daughter there. Her roof has literal holes in it that are tarped over. It will be a total roof replacement down to the decking. Meanwhile, the ceiling is falling through, which not only makes it near impossible to keep the house warm enough in winter, but also reduces indoor air quality due to the mold from the dampness and the dust from the attic. With your help, we can provide Allison and her daughter a safer, drier, warmer, and healthier home that better reflects their dignity as children of God.
Can you step up? We have a goal of adding ten monthly donors this month.Make a monthly pledge!
Why would you choose to be a monthly donor?
Some reasons that our donors choose to give monthly:
We decided that we needed to prioritize our faith not only in our time and actions, but also in our budget
Each time we visit Bethlehem Farm and see the life-changing work that is going on there, we are inspired to give a donation
This way our gift is an expense that is already factored into our spending, and prioritized above those extra dinners, cups of coffee and other luxuries
We can't be at Bethlehem Farm participating in the mission daily, but we can live out our vocation in our own lives while still supporting and being a part of the work of Bethlehem Farm through our consistent giving
Giving this way makes it easy for me to not forget
Our sense of continued connection to our special experience at Bethlehem Farm and our desire to assist in affording the opportunity of that experience to others. The work done at the Farm is true evangelization.
Because I believe the farm is an apostolic community, living out the gospel message, as authentically as possible
Because we feel that Bethlehem Farm is an authentic way to propagate the gospel and because we have seen just how far they can stretch resources towards living the gospel. $100 at Bethlehem Farm seems to go SO much further than we'd be able to stretch it ourselves.
I understand how real and alive the Spirit is working in the community
Because of the speech Eric gives at the end of each group week about the importance of tithing and how he and Colleen started this practice as newly-wed grad students making next to nothing. And the Farm touched me so deeply in so many ways, and was such a huge part of my life discernment, that I want to make sure I am doing my part to help it continue to exist.
I see how the experience of the Farm continues to affect and form my students into active, passionate, and engaged citizens and activists
Because I believe in the mission. As a volunteer, I fell in love with the community and as a Summer Servant, I was challenged in my faith. The decisions I make today - as a Catholic and as a teacher - are influenced by the Gospel cornerstones I learned to live at Bethlehem Farm.
As a way to tend to my spiritual garden, which does not get enough attention otherwise.
It’s a monthly checkup of sorts for us to see how weare living the cornerstones where we live.Additionally we feel its very important for the Caretakers to knowthey are not alone in their work, that they have partners in theirmission that they can count on each and every month to help supportthem, even in a small way.
Your monthly commitment assures us that we will have the resources we need to hire staff, make promises to low-income families, and undertake sustainable upgrades around the Farm and out in the community. We’ll keep you posted each month on recent happenings and we can share prayer intentions with each other.
Special thanks to the 73 members of our Monthly Giving Circle:
Anonymous (3), Carrie & Andrew Archual, Jim & Chris Artmayer, Chris Bellairs, Audrey Bishop, Josh Bleisch, Theresa Bottei, Claire & Pat Brady, Laura Buck & Nicki Brooks, Jay Carney, Aaron & Catie Costello, Claire Crafts, Doug Demeo, Peter & Mary Denio, Liz Drapa, Brent & Amanda Fernandez, Alice Foreman, Mary Gault, Bob Gill, Adam & Kendra Goudreau, Andy Goyer, Al and Hallie Guiseppe, Hayley & Andrew Harmon, Zach & Carley Haselhorst, Luke & Jillian Hoefer, Brian & Coleen Hufnagle, In Memory of Gary Karasinski, Jarusha & Dustin Kimble, Michael & Rachel Kraus, Katelyn (Wolf) Kudla, Lauren LaCoy, Tricia Lally, Pat Lampton, Alex Lazzara, Bruce & Ann Lemna, Tori Llorens, Mariana Lo, Phil & Carol Anne Mahoney, Christina Mayhew, Mary Clare Mazzocchi, Patrick & Marie McKenna, Scott & Kera McNelis, Bryan & Christina Melcher, Sean & Katherine Mitchell, Caitlin & Aaron Morneau, Jennie & Mike Motto Mesterharm, Raine Nimmer, Regina O’Connor, Shannon O’Toole, Ingrid & William Paige, Lisa Patterson, Emma Qualy-Pearson, Andy Rebollar & Andi Grandy, Jane Richter, Liz Riedel, Sarah & Tom Rooney, Dan & Ann Ruggaber, Sharyl & Joe Rust, Margaret & Mike Ruzycki, Mary Beth Berkley & David Salinas, Tim & Alyssa Shovlin, Rosanne & Tim Shovlin, Rachelle & Ariell Simon, Marc Slain, Amy & De Spurlock, Gemma Stanton, Peter Steiner, Marcelene Sutter, Jake & Alicen Teitgen, Kara Timmons, Oscar & Patrice Valenzuela, Nick Vergatos, Mary Williams, Benote Wimp, and Anna Wright-Ebbers
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