We – Peg Gefell and Paul Frazier – have been here in Arkport for 7 years. Peg, a chef by trade, prepared meals at St. Joe’s Catholic Worker in Rochester, NY, for several years. Her catering space became a small-scale bakery, “Bread for All,” employing men and women from the St. Joe’s community in a self-help, small-scale bakery.

Paul lived at Slocum House, a Catholic Worker house in Syracuse for nearly 20 years, working part-time with Jail Ministry, editing their newsletter and helping with the training of visitor-advocates. He had the unique opportunity to work alongside Farmer John during the first years of the Catholic Worker farm that transitioned from Tivoli to Marlboro.

Here in beautiful Allegany County we bake bread for a community meal program and teach participants how to prepare their own meals. We stay active with the upstate New York anti-drone protest efforts in Syracuse, NY, and are able to house asylum seekers upon their release from the Batavia Detention Center. We have vegetable and herb gardens, grow a lot of garlic, and share our resources.

Our large homestead has made it possible for us to host a number of weekends.

Gifts from friends have added a hundred or more books to our growing library that features works by and about Dorothy Day, the Berrignas, Thich Nhat Hanh, social justice and civil rights.

Our days here combine working outside in the gardens, daily meditation and reading time, enjoying the countryside, and integrating our homestead garden efforts with works of justice.

We welcome those who need a break – a rest – from the stresses and strains of life. Come for a day, a weekend, a week – there’s plenty of space, great meals, and a peaceful and quiet country setting.

Arkport Catholic Worker Homestead
8614 Brown Rd
Arkport NY 14807

Phone: 607-295-7279 (landline)

Contacts: Peg Gefell and Paul Frazier

Email: arkportcatholicworker@gmail.com

A home for farm workers.

Consider contacting the Arkport Catholic Worker Homestead to volunteer your time or to participate in their community life.