User:KevinOfMinnesota/Sacred Paths Center

Sacred Paths Center  is a Paganistan community center. It is currently the only full-time non-profit Pagan community center in the United States.

Pre-History of the SPC
Evenstar Books opened in October 1979 in South Minneapolis by Loui Pieper. This metaphysical bookstore moved several timesin Saint Paul. In 1991 Loui Pieper founded the Evenstar School of Sacred Paths. In October 1992 it received federal recognition as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational organization. This is credited as the direct predecessor of the Sacred Paths Center.

In January 1995, Teisha and Paul Magee started Coffee Cauldron, a monthly gathering of Pagans, which has since grown to twice a month. Other attempts at creating a sustainable local Pagan community center had failed. Coffee Cauldron was created as part of the effort to build a cohesive community capable of sustaining a community center.

In 2004, Loui Pieper sold Evenstar to Gillian Osborn and Teisha Magee. In January 2009, the decision was made to close Evenstar. The official last day of Evenstar was January 24, 2009.

History at the SPC
Teisha and Paul Magee began soliciting membership in the new community center, and raised enough money to sign a lease.

Anything left from Evenstar’s going-out-of-business sale (including display cases, shelving units, and everything else associated with the store) was moved across the alley to this new location to create the SPC’s gift shop. Rooms were also erected to create a healing center within the SPC.

The Sacred Paths Center opened for business Friday February 13, 2009 with Teisha Magee as the center's director and founder. The official Grand opening was Friday March 13, 2009.

Sunday, April 5, 2009, Loui Pieper died. There has been a shrine to her at the Sacred Paths Center ever since.

Local Elder, Ken Ra, suffered kidney failure, which lead to him also suffering financial problems. Saturday April 4, 2009 a fundraiser was held for him at the SPC. This was a mass coming together of community members to support one of its own.

August 1, 2009, the Minnesota Church of Wicca and the Wiccan Church of Minnesota held a joint ritual at the SPC. This two groups had split 20 years earlier in a schism which was the subject of scholarly study. Earlier in 2009 both groups were holding meetings in different parts of the SPC, and decided that the time had come for them to come back together for a public ritual. All involved credit the SPC as being essential to this reunion.

In August 2009, The Sacred Paths Center had a financial crisis. The income was not enough to pay the bills and the center was in danger of closing. The community came together with a huge fundraiser on August 24  which raised enough funds to get the center out of financial trouble. Community members also came forward with the leadership necessary to ensure that the Sacred Paths Center has a much more sustainable financial policy.

Gatherings
The Sacred Paths Center has hosted a large variety of gatherings. Listed here are some of the more significant

Every Monday from 6-7pm, the SPC hosts a community potluck where people bring food and sit around eating together.

Every Thursday from 7-9pm, the SPC hosts the Mentoring Elders program, which encourages an ongoing discussion about the appropriate place for elders in a maturing Pagan community.

Following their annual meeting, the SPC has created a tradition of having a Bread & Brew contest. Community members are invited to create their best bread and alcoholic beverages and compete to discover whose is the best.

The Wiccan Church of Minnesota regularly holds its meetings, classes, rituals  and a psychic fair at the SPC.

The Group Seeker Meet & Greet allowed groups and those seeking groups to come together and mingle.

The SPC hosted a Goddess art exhibit

The SPC has hosted many concerts from artists such as Celia, Sharon Knight, S.J. Tucker, and Ruth Barrett

The SPC was one of the sites for the Minnesotta Fringe Festival

The SPC also hosts a memorial ancestor shrine,  and a lending library

Funding the SPC
The Sacred Paths Center maintains four main sources of funding. Each of these is examined by the financial officer to ensure that the amounts charged are competitive for the market and enough to sustain the SPC. This diversification has helped the SPC create a stable financial foundation for long term sustainability despite the center opening in the middle of a recession.
 * Membership
 * Gift Shop
 * Space Rental
 * Healing Center

Another indirect aspect of funding is the use of volunteers to offset the need for paid staff, thus lowering the operations budget. The SPC has many loyal volunteers, and volunteer coordinator.