Community Corner

Webster United Church of Christ Hosts Art Exhibit, Concert to Benefit Washtenaw County Homeless

Saturday's concert will help purchase supplies for Camp Take Notice, a tent city in Scio Township.

WEBSTER TOWNSHIP — With more than 1,800 residents living in poverty in Washtenaw County, the congregation at is hoping a public art display will draw attention to the plight of homelessness in Michigan.

The church will host a traveling multimedia art exhibit and a concert Saturday to raise funds for Camp Take Notice, a tent community in Scio Township.

"Like all mainstream Protestant churches, we are losing membership, and we've been giving some serious thought about ways to let people know we're here and that we're involved in the community," event coordinator Judy Bemis said. "This show came together as a way of helping out our neighbors. As a church, we have a long history of reaching out to those in need."

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The "Letters Home" exhibit, which opens Saturday in the church, will feature photos of homeless residents across Michigan and items — including an actual cardboard box home — that Ann Arbor resident Susan Clinthorne has collected from homeless individuals for the past five years.

Clinthorne and her sister, Sally Thielen, have been collecting items — often paying for them — from homeless individuals in Michigan, New York and other parts of the country.

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"The exhibit is very touching," Bemis said. "Visually, it has a great impact addressing the issue of homelessness in our country."

Saturday's concert will be held at 7 p.m. in the church sanctuary. The first half of the show will feature the Eastern Michigan Jazz Combo under the leadership of Mark Pappas, with special guest soloists Cherryl Vanderhoof (flute) and Anne Crawford (violin). Vanderhoof and Crawford will also perform with Ann Arbor jazz vocalist Kathy Moore. The concert is free, but donations will be accepted for Camp Take Notice.

Moore, an award-winning vocalist, told Heritage Newspapers that she was happy to perform at the concert.

"I’ve read about both the powerful strengths and the understandable plight of people in the homeless ‘village’ camping out, and now in the cold. I’ve wanted to do something — bingo, here it is," she said.

Bemis said all money raised at the concert will be donated to Camp Take Notice.

"The money will be used to purchase flashlights, tents, propane for heaters, sleeping bags and other essentials for living outdoors," she said.

“Letters Home” will be open to the public from noon-8:30 p.m. Wednesdays and Sundays through March 17.


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