Wind Through the Pines
Spartan Housing2022Cooperative
1 EsterLee
Letter from an Alum: A Reflection On Hedrick House …….………14
Contents
Wind Through the Pines continued to be a phrase loved by Jim Jones, our first Executive Secretary and co founder of the SHC. It christened a cooperative conference in 1977, and a credit union based in Austin, TX while Jones was the General Manager at ICC Austin. When the SHC started building its own alumni program in 2014, Wind through the Pines seemed an apt name for a newsletter. There's a magic in invoking the rustling of leaves in a forest. Since the last issue of this newsletter in 2020, the co ops have changed their name formally to Spartan Housing Cooperative and said goodbye to longtime staff members Mike McCurdy and Nola Warner. We also had former Presidents Jimmy Coyer (Apollo 2017, Harambee 2020) and Marty Sloan (Bower 2014 2016, Beal 2016 2018) return to the SHC as professional staff. Jimmy currently serves as our AP Clerk, while Marty is the new Member Services Coordinator. Many routine committee operations went online, and members sheltered within houses in the first year of the COVID meant we were left with a skeleton crew to operate the SHC. This to in person meetings and a new cooperative next to Bower House, extending our reach into East Lansing. least, we hired an AmeriCorps VISTA to further develop our alumni network publication is to reconnect with our alumni. Alumni Coordinator
The Wind Through the Pines is an annual publication of the Spartan Housing Cooperative primarily for former members and friends. Reaching out Branches ….………..4 East Lansing Pride ……………….8 Farewell to Nola and Mike………10 Alumni Spotlight ………………..11 Umoja AmadeusHouseFarm
As you read this publication, a few of you will recognize the name: Wind Through the Pines. This is the name of the newsletter that Hedrick House mailed to its alumni that were conscripted into WWII. This became a Hedrick tradition and the newsletter was a regular publication until 1971, shortly after the incorporation of the SHC.
Reaching Out Branches: SHC & 131 Whitehills
Emily Tyler, GRACC General Manager (Toad Lane/Vesta 2017-2021)
Co ops exist to fill people’s needs. The need that Spartan Housing Cooperative (F.K.A. MSU Student Housing Corporation) has been addressing for over 50 years now is affordable, community oriented and resident controlled housing. With room to grow since 1971, SHC has its sights set on just that: growing. Because of the co op’s mission of providing affordable housing, there is a clear interest in expansion of the co op, to strive toward providing for more people’s needs. Perhaps the biggest difference between co op housing and any ol’ rental is that the residents are directly involved in the operations of the co op. This ranges from mowing the lawn and mopping the floor, to having the opportunity to influence and vote on big decisions that affect the whole co op and its future. SHC members had a huge role in the progress of pursuing 131 Whitehills as the next up addition to the SHC. In a co op, your individual voice as a member really does make a 131difference.Whitehills, also known as Left Bower, stands on the gentle slope of Whitehills Drive, neighboring Haven House and the East Lansing Post Office. It’s a red brick building that matches Bower, the SHC house just beside it. SHC has attempted to acquire this property in the past, even back to the ’70s. In May 2022, the previous owner of 131, Hans Larsen, passed away, and the house went on the market. As of August 2022, Jim Jones is the current owner. 2
For those who don’t recognize the name from SHC history, Jim was a founding member and the first staff person of the nascent East Lansing co op. Over the course of his life he’s been engaged with housing co ops in various locations and capacities, including the Inter Cooperative Council of Austin, TX; ditto Ann Arbor, MI; North American Students of Cooperation (NASCO); and the Grand Rapids Alliance of Cooperative Communities. Expertly experienced in co op housing organizations and development, Jim purchased 131 with the intention to sell the house to the SHC in order for the co op to expand.
Importantly, the Board of Directors, composed of one member from each of our 17 houses, received regular updates through the management report at their meetings; this allowed Board directors to become versed in the project’s details and able to share back to their
Whenhousemates.Iwas Vice President of Education, I placed priority on the Pine Press, SHC’s DIY member generated monthly publication, ensuring that it was distributed both digitally and in hard copy to all members. The Pine Press was another important vehicle for getting the 131 word out to the member owners of the co op, who ultimately would make the decision on whether to exercise the option to purchase the building, through member referendum and Board approval. Over the course of my time as VPE, several articles about 131 Whitehills were printed, ranging in topic from community design to the financial side of things. I mention community design, and I want to expand on that. From 2020 to 2021, the SHC had an AmeriCorps VISTA serving with us through Ingham County: Casey Paskus (Vesta 2016 2018, Bower 2020 2021) lived in Bower house during her year of service, and she worked to facilitate the generation of ideas and gather input from her housemates about how the 131 Whitehills acquisition could impact life at Bower. With papers and markers for everyone, Casey guided an activity whereby the Bower members imagined and sketched how the two houses could coexist as co op neighbors.
A variety of methods were used to inform and involve membership about 131 Whitehills
I want to make mention of another co oper who championed member information regarding 131: Erik Berg of Orion served as SHC President during the time leading up to and following the member referendum and Board approval, and he did a lot of legwork to spread the word and educate against myths and misunderstandings around the 131 project. Before he was president, he served on the Board, and made a compelling presentation to his own housemates at Orion about 131 Whitehills, answering questions that folks had and sharing facts about the potential property acquisition. Erik also sat for interviews with me for outreach materials I was writing, not only the Pine Press articles but also a pamphlet that clearly and simply answered commonly asked 3
As our readers know, cooperation takes many hands, and there has been a true group effort in the community process of informing SHC membership about the potential property acquisition and involving the members in decision making around the pursuit of adding the building to the SHC.
questions about 131 and what expansion would mean and do for the co op. In June of 2021, every member of the SHC received a referendum ballot to vote on the property acquisition, as required by SHC bylaws. Once that passed 104 27, it was up to the Board of Directors to officially approve the Option to Purchase, an agreement with Jim to buy the property. Member information didn’t stop after the vote; following the referendum, Erik wrote an article for the Pine Press directly responding to comments that were made in the ballot comments section. Now we’re midway through 2022, with progress under way on the building.
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mustWemustincreaseourmembershipawarenessandunderstandingofthecooperativemovementofwhichtheyareapart,andbegintoprovidemoreservices,eitherdirectlyorindirectlyforourmembership.Wealsoincreaseourinvolvementwiththecommunityofwhichweareapart,andtakeanactivepartinmoldingthefutureofourEastLansingenvironment.Andeventually,Ibelieve,wemustcometogripswiththeideathatwearedifferent,weareanalternativeeconomicsystem,andthatcoopsmaybetheonlyrealhopeoftheconsumertogaincontrolofhisorherowndestiny.
Jim Jones, June 1973 to the SHC Board of Directors.
At this point there is demo and renovation taking place at 131, and our contractors and maintenance folks have been chugging away at transforming the property into a co op able space. Jim still owns the property; ownership of 131 will later transfer to the SHC. Cooperative housing is truly a group effort, and the SHC’s pursuit of 131 Whitehills is a shining example of this. Right around the corner is a bump up in the number of cooperatively owned beds available to the East Lansing community. We couldn’t have gotten to where we are now without the efforts of our members.
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Design
Mockup of one of the proposed designs for 131 Whitehills, envisioning a connecting structure between the building and Bower House.
Impromptu sketch of a proposed design, a building between Bower and 131 Whitehills Feedback Meeting at Bower House
“I had several [SHC] members come up to me and say it was the best Pride they’ve ever been to.” Does this mark the start of an East Lansing tradition? Sky definitely thinks so, and hopes for a bigger and better Pride next year, acknowledging that the short time frame meant that they had to manage the vision to what was accomplishable in a month. A parade down Albert Street, perhaps, along with an organized afterparty for the event organizers and co op members, is likely to be on the agenda for the 2023 Pride Festival.
June 25th, 2022, marked the date of East Lansing’s 1st Annual Pride Festival, held in downtown East Lansing in the closed off section of Albert Street that the city has charmingly nicknamed “Albert El Fresco”. With hundreds of people showing off rainbow outfits and excited to celebrate Pride in their local community, the mood was Thisfestive.event was the brainchild of current Vice President of Membership, Sky Stillwell. While there are multiple Pride events throughout the month of July that same weekend, Michigan Pride was a rally held in front of the Capitol Building in Lansing, while another festival was held in the REO Town neighborhood, also in Lansing. Lansing Pride, presumably to escape scheduling conflicts with these events, is often held in August none of them have been East Lansing focused or celebratory in the way that Sky hoped for. The cooperatives act as safe welcoming environments for LGBTQ identifying people, so with the existing options lacking, Sky envisioned creating a festival for queer folks in the community to have some light hearted fun. A quick email to the city in May resulted in an ad hoc committee of SHC members and city staff dedicated to hosting the city’s own Pride event. Over the course of the next month, the planning committee teamed up with Albert Street businesses to offer Pride Festival deals attendees were able to take advantage of discounts at the Jolly Pumpkin and Dublin Square Pub. EVE (End Violent Encounters) and LAAN (Lansing Area AIDS Network) showed up as outreach and event partners. A drag queen showcase capped off the event with performances from up and coming queens Raggedie Jane, Crystal d’Light, and Anjelah MemberRachèt.Services Coordinator Marty Sloan, who assisted with the planning of East Lansing Pride, described the event as a success.
SHC Hosts First East Lansing Pride Festival 6
(From left) Raggedie Jane, Anjela Rachèt, Crystal D'Light, city employee Lizzie Fredrick, Marty Sloan, Clay Griffith (Phoenix), Sky Stillwell (Orion), Anna Parcells (Raft Hill)
Anjela Rachèt performs in downtown East Lansing square President Clay Griffith dances with another festival goer 7
Mike McCurdy, Nola & Lobelia, holly Sparks, MC Rothbun, Dan Tooman, Marty Sloan
When I first moved into the SHC in 2014, the MSC position was in flux people would often be hired and then leave the job within a year. In her six years with the SHC, Nola brought to the position a sense of stability, as well as passion for details, and a warm personality. As a member, Nola was a trusted resource whenever I needed help with conflict resolution. Now that I have stepped into the MSC role, I often ask myself “What would Nola do?” when dealing with difficult situations. I know that I have some big shoes to fill. She helped, inspired, and supported a multitude of members throughout her time, and I hope to do so as well.
From saving and restoring big blue, Howland House, to drying countless basements and securing many safe roofs, putting Apollo on foundation saving metal beams, a whole face and body lift for David Bowie Memorial Coop [Elsworth House], restoring Rivendell, to the prominent woodwork across nearly every house, Mike McCurdy has left a lasting and inspiring legacy for the Spartan Housing Cooperative. Member driven service and a legacy of 10+ years left in passing inspections, providing safe and affordable housing for cooperative communities in greater Lansing, and inspiring member driven homeownership projects.
Mike's Legacy
Marty Sloan, Member Services Coordinator
Farewell to Longtime Staff Nola and Mike Marshall Clabeaux, Rivendell
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Mike McCurdy with Rivendell members (c. 2002)
Our alumni have been busy! This issue of Wind Through the Pines hopes to spotlight some of our former members who are trying to create change in the world, one project at a time.
Amadeus Cooperative Farm is a project of former co op members that has been years in the making. As childhood friends, Danielle Miles (Miles Davis 2012 2015) and Jaynee Hartland talked about sharing a house in the future. Over time, the dream grew and morphed into a house that included a garden, and probably some backyard animals, and would be called Amadeus House. After a while, Amadeus shifted closer to the concept of a community farm. They also recruited other folks along the way Paul Helling (Miles Davis 2013 2014), Kelsey Burrus (Bower 2014 2017), Joe Zamboldi, and AJ Mulder are other people that are now part of the project. After moving to Washington state for a job post graduation, Danielle (and crew) bought a house that would become the site for what is now Amadeus Farm. Sitting on less than a half acre of land, Amadeus Farm is a project in sustainable agriculture that (for now) produces microgreens, mushrooms, duck and quail eggs, goat milk, and apples. They sell made goods like apple juice and dog treats at the local farmer's market. While conventional farms focus on producing one or few crops en masse, Amadeus Farm Amadeus Farm Brings Co-op Gumption to Agriculture
AlumniSpotlight
Goats of Amadeus Farm9
wants to create an ecosystem wherein different aspects of the farm complement each other, and every crop and animal on the farm is thoughtfully introduced into the system. It’s visible in the way that the farm ducks produce nitrogen rich fertilizer for the crops that in turn help feed the animals on the farm. The ducks themselves also eat pests that commonly plague apple trees. Mustard greens grow quickly enough that they can feed the goats, and produce enough of a harvest for the farmers market. The farm has been an ongoing learning experience for everyone. With backgrounds in biology, wildlife management, and computer science, the group has enough peripheral knowledge to resolve issues that have come up in their journey. Even so, operating a farm is new territory for everyone. Before Amadeus Farm, Joe’s experience
Dog treat made from goat milk
Oyster mushrooms growing in a makeshift cultivation kit Ducks feeding on native grasses on the farmstead 10
The group is constantly exploring and testing ways to scale the farm and having fun in the meantime. Physical expansion is one of the first priorities, and a bigger land plot would allow Amadeus to become more self sufficient as a business, instead of depending so much on funding from its founders. Additional space would then allow the farm to get experimental and cultivate Washington native plants to introduce to local consumers.
managing compost at Bower House was the bulk of his training. Now he networks with USDA employees and is researching industrial composting methods, which he calls an ”eye opening experience”. AJ recalled some of the mistakes made in his attempts building egg incubators for the quails. “We all have backgrounds that contribute... I studied biology.... but there's a difference between a theoretical understanding of the nutrient flows and like actually getting your quail eggs to hatch. Like the first time we tried to raise quail there was a higher mortality rate. But our second time hatching quail eggs, we did a lot better.”
What’s on the horizon for Amadeus Farm?
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“I've lived in Liberia, in France, in Israel, Palestine… homelessness existed everywhere. And so I was very interested in what we are doing about homelessness, because the majority of refugees in camps don't really have their own homes. And as I started looking into kind of Western dynamics around housing, I realized that a lot of what we're doing with shelters are very reminiscent of refugee camps.” Her time in the cooperatives, as well as the hostels in which she spent time overseas while working with refugees, influenced her vision of how Umoja House operates people live communally in houses according to shared “house rules”, and participate in events that foster cultural appreciation like reading groups and international film screenings. Unlike a cooperative, however, Umoja House focuses less on ideals of collective ownership and economic participation, and more on providing short term support for people who need a leg up. Thus, amenities like a hired cleaning service removes some of the emotional burden off someone who is otherwise strained by their responsibilities.
SHC Alumna Brings Cooperation to Eastside Nestled in a family dominated neighborhood in the Eastside of Lansing are three houses collectively known as Umoja House (Umoja means “unity” in Swahili), a community organization dedicated to fighting the local housing crisis by providing transitional housing with a communal feel. All are welcomed Umoja House has served migrant workers, visiting MSU scholars, traveling artists, formerly houseless persons, and survivors of domestic violence.
Events are open to the public, and foster connections between residents, artists, and other interested parties. Through this, Charla hopes to push back against Lansing’s reputation as a high crime impoverished neighborhood.
Umoja House started as the pet project of co op alum Charla Burnett (Raft Hill 2010 2011, Vesta 2012 2013) when she returned to Lansing after years working with refugees and displaced people overseas, in order to start a family. Through a fortuitous turn of events, Charla recruited an investor to purchase the first house in Lansing. Charla’s own desires to continue work in assisting refugees resulted in the creation of a community house. She quickly acquired two more houses to expand the housing capacity.
Rent collected from residents is enough to cover the mortgages and subsidize a few spaces set aside for people going through financial instability. Umoja House works with organizations like the Spartan Housing Cooperative and the Community Mental Health Authority to accept referred individuals that would be underserved in a traditional shelter. As an experiment in radical hospitality, Umoja brings community to a city that has been hit by rising unemployment and housing unaffordability. Lansing residents can easily point to the houses, especially as they’re the most colorful on the block.
House meetings were informal but purposeful. Meals were almost military style in their preparation and delivery, but care was taken to achieve a reasonable nutritional balance and palate pleasing menu. Teaching and sharing were direct but never judgmental. The goal was always to ensure quality and comfort without resorting to outside expertise. We ranged in age from early 30’s to high teens. We prided ourselves in an open membership policy and the house’s close proximity to campus served us well. Single bedroom accommodations were rare due to the economic necessity of doubling up, but this did not hinder recruitment. In fact, the availability of single bedroom space for higher seniority members was an inducement for longevity that contributed to operational stability. As a social science major focused on such heady topics as the “logic of collective action,” being able to observe and experience group management brought to life the admonition of German philosopher Hans that “we do not understand the world when we are pondering over its problems, but when we are doing the world’s work.” I became a co Rochdale Principles, but by achieving at home what others hoped to read about in class. I made friends, and I made friends move to the co meal for forty people and to explain corporate bylaws to several hundred. I will never have that much fun again.
Letter from the Past: Reflecting on Hedrick House John Szczubelek (Hedrick 1981 1983)
My first year at MSU included living at Wonders and Campbell Halls. Looking back, mandatory university housing was probably the best arrangement for an 18 year old whose only preparation for college was getting a diploma. Emerging from dorm life I knew the population density was not for me, but I had no sense of other options and was limited to word of mouth. I visited Hedrick House Co op in September of 1980 and was immediately welcomed by an air of casual openness. I could sense that instead of the environment of conformity enforced by dorm life, the co op had one focused on the pride filled rewards of daily teamwork, however mundane and humble their manifestations. Hedrick bore the trappings of a 60’s era communal hippy pad in its elaborate, trippy wall art, but beneath those salutations to a passing era was a solid social and organizational structure that had been lovingly preserved.
I echo the sentiments of many when I say, brimming with gratitude for the servant leaders with whom I lived, that Hedrick House and SHC were the most important part of my undergraduate education. I am pleased to know that the cooperative tradition of giving oneself for the benefit of the group endures, and rewards those sensible enough to seek it. 12
Hedrick House group photo (1982); John Szczubelek in first row, second from left
John Szczubelek is a former Assistant Attorney General and civil rights lawyer based out of East Lansing, and Executive President of MSUSHC from 1981 to 1983.
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We love to hear from our alumni! If you have stories you want to share, or you want to talk to someone at the SHC, email alumnicoordinator@spartan.coop 14
Thank you to all the former SHC members who have contributed to the alumni program the last few months through either monetary donations or labor! This issue of Wind Through the Pines wouldn't exist without your help.
Ajamu JohnClaudiaDillahuntBeaudryEmilyTylerSzczubelekJamesCanupCharlaBurnettLeeBrenner
Syd Burke Susan RebeccaJimBrownleeJonesSaundersAnthonyGraccaDanielleMilesKelseyBurrus
