Browse Interviews

Maria Smith recollects her early life growing up in Jefferson City, Missouri, attending Catholic schools and later studying Political Science in college. Smith decided to go to law school soon after, later reconnecting with her faith. Smith highlights the need to find community in her life, which eventually led her to Cleveland’s Near West Side. Smith and her husband were involved in the Witness for Peace where they lived and worked in Nicaragua during the Contra War. They would eventually live…

Near West Side resident Jim Schlecht recollects his arrival to the Near West Side in the summer of 1972. Schlecht highlights how his faith has shaped who he is today. This interview focuses on Schlecht’s involvement in the Thomas Merton Community along with Cleveland’s Catholic Worker Community. Schlecht recollects his experience working with children and adults with special needs. He later shares how he provided transitional housing while raising a family in the community. Schlecht for many…

Kristina Walter, an art educator, recollects her early life and how her faith has shaped her experience living in the greater Cleveland area. Walter notes the importance of religion and social justice throughout her education, which led her to join Cleveland's Catholic Worker Movement.

Megan Wilson-Reitz recollects her early life growing up in a diverse community which steered her towards a life of faith and social justice. Wilson-Reitz shares her involvement with community organizing in the Cleveland Nonviolence Network, the Cleveland Catholic Worker, and then her role as a board member for the Ohio City Near West Development Corporation.

Duane Drotar shares his experience growing up in the Buckeye-Woodland neighborhood, then living on the Near West Side for many years. Drotar highlights how the Near West Side was an example of "richness" in terms of offering a setting for being in community with people of diverse backgrounds. Drotar's background in psychology and theology has shaped his role as an outreach worker in various agencies and community non-profits throughout the years in the Cleveland area. He discusses his choice to…