Ahoy Kate Schulte!
When were you a part of L’Arche Chicago?
I was about to graduate college and was thinking about going to med school, at the time I was interested in taking a break and having a year of service. Someone from Catholic Volunteers in Florida called me and told me about L’Arche. I am not Catholic, and I had no interest in living in Florida, but after talking with Catholic Volunteers I said yes and moved to L’Arche Jacksonville.
After my time in L’Arche Jacksonville, I was apart of L’Arche Chicago from 2014-2016 and was the Peace House Coordinator, I lived with Elisha, Noah, Jean, Mike, Rebecca and David.
What was a favorite memory you have from your time living in L’Arche?
I loved celebrating Shabbat with Elisha every week when living at Peace House. I loved loved loved learning about other cultures and religions. Living with people from Italy and Germany and then also having other religious traditions, it was really beautiful.
There is also this memory that I have with Jean. There was one morning where I was freaking out and couldn’t find my wallet anywhere. Jean could tell that I was really stressed out, so she went into her room and brought out all of her money so I could take the train that morning. While I did not accept her money, it was a really sweet gesture that showed me how I was cared for by the core members and community.
What are you up to now?
When I left L’Arche Chicago, I became a volunteer assistant in Bangladesh for 2 years. After that I took a break from L’Arche and joined a Catholic Worker community in Kansas City and worked with low-income families, advocating for disability services.
Currently, I am still involved in the Catholic Worker community as well as another group called Westport Showers, that provides resources for those experiencing houselessness.
I live in Kansas City with my partner and together we are apart of Jerusalem Farm, a small intentional community where we have weekly “Soup Soul and Song” nights.
I’m still involved with L’Arche and serve as the envoy to Bangladesh. What this means is that I work with L’Arche International and support the L’Arche Community in Bangladesh.
What’s something that you learned from L’Arche and have carried with you?
I remember when I was living in L’Arche Jacksonville, I was preparing for the MCAT and studying all the time. I came back one night and was really upset. At the time there was this guy who was living there with me, who was preparing to be a monk and always saying wise stuff. He asked me, “Kate, why do you want to be a doctor?” I responded and said, “Because I want to help people.” He replied, “Don’t you see Kate you’re already a healer.” His words have stuck with me. L’Arche has helped me learn that where you are is enough. Simple things like eating meals together and getting to work on time is enough.