The InterFaith Center invites the entire Geneseo community to come and celebrate the 50th anniversary. The events will include spiritual services as well as honoring people who have served the center (courtesy of Kathleen Jones).
The InterFaith Center is getting ready to celebrate 50 years of service to the Geneseo campus and community. The center offers students, staff and community members a place to come together to worship, learn and interact with people from all different kinds of backgrounds and faiths.
The InterFaith Center opened its doors on Franklin Street in 1969, offering a place for students to go that was closer to campus while still abiding by New York State’s rule that organized worship was not permitted on public college campuses.
In the early days, there were 10 faith groups using the center for their various programs and services. Today, there are three resident groups who utilize the space; the Newman Catholic Campus Ministry, Hillel at Geneseo and the Wesley Foundation.
As the Vietnam War continued into the 1970s, the InterFaith Center extended its hours to accommodate programs discussing the war’s impact. Religious leaders at the center also made themselves available to students and faculty for longer hours to council anyone struggling with the effects of the war.
The 1980s was a time of growth for the center, adding new programs and leadership positions to the organization. As the center celebrated its 25th anniversary in 1994, despite success in virtually every other area, financial problems were beginning to appear. Various fundraising events proved beneficial, allowing the center to make repairs both inside and outside, as well as update the kitchen in 2009.
In the last decade, the InterFaith Center has been partnering more and more with the college and wider community, adding more new programs and further updating the facility. The center invites students in to help during Knights Day of Service and works with the Geneseo Interfaith Service Project to host yearly dinner forums.
For the past nine years, retired communication disorders and sciences professor Kathleen Jones has served as the chair of the InterFaith Center. Along with the board and the resident student groups, she has put together a week-long celebration for the center’s 50 year anniversary.
To kick off the week, the Rochester-based Turkish Cultural Center will host a program and meal at the center on Monday Oct. 21 and on Tuesday, students can participate in Buddhist meditation. Wednesday will bring performances from the Gospel Choir on the quad during the day and the Central Presbyterian Bell Choir at the InterFaith Center in the evening.
Wednesday evening also presents the first annual William E. Derby InterFaith Center of Geneseo Lecture, with director of Catholic Campus Ministry Mike Sauter giving a speech entitled “The Burned-over District: Upstate N.Y. as the Center of the United States’ Religious Past, and Future!”
“[The Burned-over District] refers to this part of Western New York in the 1800s … we had a lot of spiritualists. It grew to be a place that people just became very intrigued with,” according to Jones. “’Burned-over’ means the burning passion of religion and the spirit. It’s an intriguing historical piece.”
On Thursday Oct. 24, there will be a reception honoring Father Thomas Statt and former Assistant Vice President for Human Resources Donald Lackey, who both made invaluable contributions to the InterFaith Center over the years. The celebration week will conclude on Friday with a call to prayer at the Gazebo, led by an imam from Rochester and the Muslim Student Association, as well as Shabbat with Hillel at the center.
“We wanted to make sure we’re living up to calling ourselves, as we have for years, the Interfaith Center,” Jones said of the week’s wide range of faith-related programs and events.
The InterFaith Center, mere minutes from campus, is dedicated to fostering and supporting the religious and spiritual development of students and other members of the Geneseo community. While there are currently only three resident groups, all faiths are welcome as the center encourages the community to increase their understanding and appreciation of the beliefs and values of others.
With the 50th anniversary celebration coming up in less than two weeks, it’s a great opportunity to visit the InterFaith Center and explore all of the programs and services they have to offer.