Look in Our Mirror
150 is short for 150 Cherry St. It's an address that represents a place - a place in downtown Burlington, VT.
And we think there is something significant about place. Place can be home. Place can house community and facilitate friendships. Place can define or enhance or inspire beautiful experiences. Place is not insignificant; place is essential.
From the beginning, the founders of 150 envisioned a place that would facilitate a number of unique activities, all focused on serving Burlington and the world through community initiatives, creative compassion, and spiritual renewal. Here's how that breaks down:
Community Intiatives
Maybe the most amazing thing about 150 is not what it is but where it is - right in the heart of downtown Burlington. Burlington is a beautiful city (we think it's the best in the world), home to natural wonders like a green mountain skyline and the "great" Lake Champlain. It is also the biggest city in Vermont, and a hotbed of culture and community activity. Burlington is a college town, too; UVM and over 13,000 college students make it a young and vibrant place to live and work.
But it is also a city full of need. In fact, we believe that this makes Burlington even more beautiful. The city is home to Vermont's largest Refugee Resettlement Program and an ever-growing homeless population. As a result, Burlington is also home to many quality community-based programs and agencies that seek to serve folks in tough situations.
And 150 aims to join in that effort with creativity and passion. As you peruse the site, you will see that we have initiatives specifically focused on our city and its people, initiatives like The Barista, The Banquet, Live @ New Moon, and Tree House Arts. These initiatives bring out the uniqueness of our place: The Barista, The Banquet, and Live all happen in our unique New Moon Cafe venue on the first floor; and Tree House Arts is a gorgeous youth art space on the second floor.
Through these initiatives and these spaces we want to care for and serve our wonderful neighbors who happen to be homeless or at-risk.
Creative Compassion
As 150 engages needs in Burlington, we also want to have a view towards the world. The question is, How can 150 serve in a global sense?
We see this happening mainly through the arts, and we call it creative compassion. New Moon is a key part of our global focus; art shown in the Cafe and other events held there will support a variety of causes connected to poverty, clean water, and human trafficking. And Live @ New Moon, our ongoing music series, will also highlight these global needs.
Beyond the Cafe, stay tuned for a design/clothing initiative to fight trafficking, already in the works for Fall 2010.
Spiritual Renewal
The founding of 150 was inspired by faith, and this place will always be one where spiritual renewal is made available to anyone who desires it.
At 150, prayer is like a foundation for the other activities that happen in our place, and a prayer room is located right in the basement level of the building. The prayer room is available to anyone who wants to take part, and there are scheduled meetings that take place there, as well.
While prayer is foundational to the community and compassion activities, there is no religious content to those activities. At 150, spiritual renewal through prayer is always available, but never required.
To get a fuller picture of what's happening at our place called 150, check out Our Mission. Then, meet Our Team. And for ongoing updates, be sure to subscribe to Our Blog.
