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Ecuador Pilgrimage
St. Augustine’s took our first Alternative Spring Break trip to Ecuador in 1998 and opened a school named Escuela Anne Stevens in the town of San Eduardo in 1999. Since then, we have financed the operations of the school through sponsorships and continue to make an annual trip every spring to help with capital improvement projects and operation of a medical clinic. We’ll return during Vanderbilt's spring break, February 28 - March 8, 2009.
For more information, contact Allen Karns or click here to view the Ecuador page.
Escuela Anne Stevens
We sponsor a school in San Eduardo, Ecuador
named in honor of Becca's mother, Anne Stevens. The school was founded
when the first group from St. A's went to San Eduardo in 1998
and started with one teacher and 10 students. The school now employs 6
full time teachers with 110 students grades K-7, is accredited by the
government, and recently added a computer lab for teachers and students to use and learn about technology.
Click here to learn more about how to sponsor a student at Escuela Anne Stevens in San Eduardo, Ecuador or contact Melissa Wert.
Magdalene
Founded by The Rev. Becca Stevens in 1996, Magdalene provides sanctuary, along with an array of support services and educational opportunities, for women who have a significant history of prostitution and chemical dependency. Developed primarily as a safe house for prostitutes, Magdalene’s residential program provides long-term and secure housing as a haven from the social and economic factors that drive women to prostitution.
In addition to providing transitional housing and meals for up to two years, Magdalene services include: chemical dependency treatment; technical training, job skill programs and tuition assistance; legal support and intervention; medical and dental assistance; transportation; and life skill building, e.g. money management, health and wellness, spiritual retreats.
Magdalene opened its first house in August of 1997 with volunteers from St. Augustine's chapel and invited five women to come and participate in the program. Our second house opened in April of 1998 and our third house opened in the summer of 2000. Our fourth house, Sanctuary, located on the corner of Booker and Lena, was dedicated on Oct. 15, 2004. A fifth house was added for recent graduates to share upon completing their stay at Magdalene. We currently serve more than twenty-eight women in our houses as well as serve numerous women as affiliates. More information about Magdalene is available at www.thistlefarms.org.
There are many ways to get involved to support Magdalene – from providing transportation and tutoring to helping out at a Community Work Day. For more information, contact Stacye Wilson at magdalenelist@aol.com.
Thistle Farms
Named for the wildflower that grows on the road Nashville prostitutes frequent, Thistle Farms is a creative, profitable and sustainable workplace for residents and friends of Magdalene House, a non-for-profit program dedicated to women with a criminal history of prostitution and drug abuse.
Launched in January 2001, Thistle Farms creates products – balm, candles, sachets – as well as a market for selling those products. All proceeds from Thistle Farms go to continuing support for Magdalene’s houses and residents, as well as for outreach to women who are in jail or still on the streets.
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