MELANIE LAHR 

    Melanie Kathryn Lahr was born to working Catholics in St. Cloud, Minnesota. She attended private Catholic school from preschool to eighth grade. When she was young she wanted to be an Egyptologist. She has since realized her true vocation is not uncovering the corpses of ancient monarchs. Melanie went to college at St. Cloud State University where she became embroiled in student activism. One year she decided to go on an alternative Spring break service trip. She had several choices of places to go, one of which was the Dorothy Day Catholic Worker in Washington DC. Her first choice fell through and so she decided to go to DC, though she knew nothing of the Worker movement. This CW house made a huge impression on her. In all her years of religious education she had never met Catholics like these before. She was particularly impressed by their devotion to activism and resistance. It would be the first of four trips. On her last trip a Worker told her that as much as they appreciated having her around she might look into communities closer to St. Cloud, specifically Loaves and Fishes in Duluth. A couple years later, feeling unsatisfied with the life she led in St. Cloud, she decided to visit the Loaves and Fishes community. It seemed a good fit so she packed up and moved to Duluth.

    Melanie finds spiritual sustenance in Quaker meetings. She considers the non-structured, non-hierarchical environment and the egalitarian philosophy of the Quakers closer to her vision of the divine than anything she has experience in the Catholic Church. Melanie’s interests include knitting, sewing, and fermenting things. When she leaves the Worker, Melanie hopes to get into construction. She would like to make kooky houses out of bales of straw with living roofs. She says her time at the Worker has been of great value in that it has given her the chance to live with and meet people who ordinarily would not be in her social circles (both guests and fellow workers). - David Moulton

|day in the life of a catholic worker|

 MICHAEL LATSCH

    Michael Latsch was born in the early months of the Reagan presidency, as Friedman's monetary policy theory was losing credibility apace with the dollar. He emerged from the womb on the west shore of Lake Michigan, just north of the mouth of the Milwaukee river. Educated in succession by the state, the Jesuits, and lapsed Methodists he was awarded a B.A. in Anthropology  and History. Well equipped to study dead people who wrote stuff and dead people who didn't, he embarked on a career of alternating winters in Catholic Worker houses and summers on an archeology project in Belize. After one winter working with migrants at Casa Juan Diego, the Houston CW, he switched up north to Loaves and Fishes, the Duluth CW. Now residing on the north shore of Lake Superior, several miles east of the mouth of the St. Louis river, his main interests are the Christian spiritual basis of hospitality, documentary video production, and organic farming-a field into which he will be transitioning soon. He is a community member at Loaves and Fishes, a working and board member of Positively 3rd St. Bakery, and a member of the mystical body of Christ.  - Michael Latsch  

|day in the life of a catholic worker|

DAVID MOULTON

    When David attended high school in Duluth, he became concerned about problems in the world, especially the critical problems of war and militarism. He read writings by Noam Chomsky and wanted to be part of a movement for social change and to liberate the human race. He thought the writings and examples of the Berrigans were admirable.

    When going to college, initially he was excited about being a student activist. Yet he sensed that something was missing. He volunteered occasionally at the Des Moines Catholic Worker and was moved by hearing Carla Dawson give overviews about their work. She spoke about the Berrigans, going to prison for social change, not accepting government help, and helping those on the bottom of society.

    During spring break, David thought about the coming summer and met folks from the Duluth Catholic Worker and considered being part of the summer internship program. After speaking with Michael Latsch, David applied for the program which he believed would be a way to live out resistance to American imperialism.

    David was accepted as a summer intern and lived and worked at the Dorothy Day House and Olive Branch House. He believed it was a good experience as he was surrounded by interesting people such as Michael Walli, Bob Tavani, and Joel Kilgour. Although David went back to college that fall, he felt campus life was too hedonistic, and he chose to take a semester off. He was not sure if he would be up to the responsibilities of living at the Duluth Catholic Worker, but he tried it. He perceived life at the community in the fall to be more mellow, with less people, and he extended his service little bits at a time.

    After a year, David says the community is a good place to get a broader education by living here. He believes we all have more to learn in order to give. The interactions with guests and community members provide a wide range of learning experiences. David is a people person who is especially gifted with enjoying the service of providing hospitality for people in need and helping to build and develop community. - Greg Obed

|day in the life of a catholic worker |

MICHELE NAAR-OBED

In 1991, Michele Naar was working as a pathologist assistant in Baltimore.  Financially and professionally secure for the first time in her adult life, nevertheless she felt a need to take a public stand as her country prepared for yet another war.  Michele knew of the horrors of war through her father who had served in Korea and various friends who were veterans of Vietnam.  The day after the bombing of Iraq started she committed her first act of civil disobedience by accompanying others to pour blood, sand, and oil on a National Guard Armory.  It was the beginning of a new path in her life.

            Michele continued to get arrested for peace actions over the next year, maybe a dozen times.  The most she ever served was five days.  She began contemplating a plowshares action, a more serious action that could result in months or even years of prison time.  She realized such an action would require her to quit her job and give up her apartment and most of her material possessions. She had become acquainted with the people of Jonah House, the resistance community founded by Philip Berrigan and Elizabeth McAlister in the mid-1970s.  She found their vision of nonviolent disarmament fit with hers and she became a community member in 1992.  She began to plan for a plowshares witness and also started dating Greg Boertje, another community member.  Greg and Michele were married in 1993, just a few weeks before they both took part in the Good News Plowshares.

            Greg and Michele both wanted to take a new name when they married.  A friend suggested “Obed,” a Hebrew word meaning “servant,” with allusions to the suffering servant of Isaiah.  Greg and Michele were married at Jonah House.  During their wedding they vowed to support each other in their resistance work.  In 1994, Greg and Michele gave their community and their world the gift of their daughter Rachel.  Raising Rachel was very much an effort of the community, especially during the a year and a half when Michele was in prison for her second plowshares action. 

            In 2002, for a variety of reasons, the Obed family moved to Duluth, Minnesota, and became members of Loaves and Fishes.  In addition to hospitality and resistance, Michele also became involved with the Christian Peacemakers Team.  She went on her first delegation to Iraq in 2003, before the war began.  She is currently on her fifth trip (to read more, click the link before).  Michele finds the climate of Duluth conducive to many of her hobbies.  She loves snow and ice-skating.  In the summer she is a big enthusiast of swimming in Lake Superior.  She also enjoys camping and gardening. - David Moulton

www.duluthcpt.net |

GREG BOERTJE-OBED

    Greg’s road to the Catholic Worker started in the military when he began reading the writings of Dorothy Day and Dan Berrigan.  He recalls being amazed to find this literature in the public library because “if taken seriously you would change your whole life.”  After hearing Dan Berrigan speak of the simplicity of life and the resistance work being done by the Catholic Workers of the East coast, Greg moved to Jonah House in 1984, where he lived for 17 years.  He and Michele were married in 1993.

    In 2002 Greg and Michele felt lead by the spirit to move into Loaves and Fishes where they would be closer to Greg’s family and do resistance work in a new land.  In previous years they had visited and built relationships with the community which eased the transition. 

    Greg’s main focus right now is practicing the works of mercy.  His life is a series of small acts done with great love.  He believes it is also necessary to challenge the structures of injustice in our world and has participated in plowshares and other direct actions.  Both the works of mercy and resistance are leadings of the Spirit.

    Greg is very good at building monstrous mobiles of recycled consumer goods.  These hang from the Russian olive tree in the front yard of the Olive Branch.  They are the first line of defense against the neighborhood gray squirrels that come to empty the bird feeders.  Greg loves to spend time communing with nature.  He finds Duluth to be a great spot to learn from a beautiful ecosystem. 

    Michele and Greg have raised their daughter Rachel in community.  It has been a positive experience.  They seek to live the Gospel vision of family where all are children of God.  - Greg Schultz

  GREG SCHULTZ

    Gregory Scott Schultz was born in Gainesville, Florida on the 11th of September in the year 1986.  He spent ten years in Florida.  He also lived in Alabama for a while but his family ended up in Owatonna, Minnesota.  If one wanted to sum up Greg’s childhood in one word, that word would be “swinging.”  He also wanted to be a fighter pilot when he was young.  He still loves swinging, but, fortunately, does not want to shoot guns from planes anymore. 

    Greg’s family didn’t really have any religious affiliation when he was young.  But when he was in junior high he began doing youth ministry work with a Baptist parish and got his parents involved as well.  He did this for several years, but halfway through high school began to feel like the spiritual life there was not fulfilling for him, so he began searching.  One day he ended up at a small apartment where Shane Claiborne, author of Irresistible Revolution, was speaking.  The Simple Way, the community Shane spoke about, intrigued him.  He thought of visiting Simple Way, but decided to check out communities closer to home.  Shane mentioned the Catholic Worker in his book so Greg found Loaves and Fishes on the web and came to intern during the summer of 2006 and then went back to the Cities to continue his studies at Century College.  He returned to Loaves and Fishes for June 2007.  He went home for a couple weeks, called and said he wanted to come back.  He quit his job, packed up and moved into Dorothy Day.Greg spends much of his time in the basement of Dorothy Day (now called “The Bike Cave”) where he repairs and builds bikes.  He likes challenges on wheels- he built a tall bike (two bike frames on top of each other) and recently purchased a unicycle.  He says he wants to be a clown someday.  If Greg is not around a cycle he is usually at the playground swinging.  His favorite thing about Loaves and Fishes is how easy it is to integrate people’s skills and passions into the work of the community. - Melanie Lahr

 day in the life of a Catholic Worker

 MICHAEL WALLI

    Michael Walli was born in Menominee, Michigan.  He grew up on a farm in Menominee county.  As a young man he enlisted in the military for three years.  He served out his time and completed two tours in Vietnam but did not see combat.  He recalls having been “stunningly ignorant” of world issues during his time in the army. After leaving the army he worked a series of odd jobs for most of the 1970s, which led him to travel widely in the United States.  In ’78 he had a religious experience in which he felt born again to Christ and the Catholic Church.  He went to Chicago where he became a live-in volunteer at a Franciscan soup kitchen.  He would eventually become a brother of the third Franciscan order for laypeople.

    During the eighties, Michael volunteered at various Franciscan charities in Chicago.  He became increasingly aware of issues of peace and justice, particularly the turmoil in Central America at this time.  In April of ’87 he got a free bus ticket to Washington, DC, to protest US policies such as support for Apartheid in South Africa and the Contras in Nicaragua.  He was arrested, along with 500 others, for blocking the entrance to the CIA central office in Langley, Virginia.  After this action, he became acquainted with Dorothy Day Catholic Worker in DC and many of the Catholic Workers and resisters on the East Coast. He entered the CW movement, which , aside from occasional sabbaticals, he has not left to this day.

    Michael first came to Duluth in 1972 as a merchant marine.  In 2000 he was back in Duluth again for work.  He happened to run into an old comrade from the DC Worker who was now living at Loaves and Fishes.  Before this he did not even know Duluth had a Catholic Worker.  Since then he has been at Loaves and Fishes on again and off again, staying for months at a time.  In 2006 he participated with Greg Obed in the Weapons of Mass Destruction Here plowshares.  He had been an admirer of plowshares actions for more than a decade, but this was the first time he has participate in one. - David Moulton