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This poem was dedicated to Agape by Rich Bachtold, a revered member of Agape’s Mission Council, who introduced and hosted an annual Arts and Poetry Night at Agape. Rich dedicated over 20 years of his life to Agape and assisted in planting Agape’s first garden with raised beds, earning him the title of Raised Bed Revolutionary and was member of Agape’s first Mission Council which began in 1989. His memory endures.

 

1974: Pursuing the Dream of Intentional Community

Suzanne and Brayton meet and begin a journey into alternative lifestyle, attending peace gatherings and pursuing the dream of intentional community.  They became attenders at Friends Meeting in Cambridge for four years. 

1978
Inspired by the lives of Philip Berrigan and Liz McAlister since the 60’s, Suzanne and Brayton attend a conference at the Rowe Camp and Conference Center in Western, MA where they meet Liz and Phil in person for the first time. The meeting, together with a growing friendship with Charlie McCarthy, inspired Suzanne and Brayton to pursue a life of radical Christian nonviolence. 
1979

Suzanne while teaching at Simmons College, invites Philip Berrigan, Tony Mullaney of the Milwaukee 18,

and Denise Levertov to a Teach-In attended by over 400 people

Suzanne and Brayton meet Paul Hood and Mamoru Kato of the Peace Pagoda.

Ailanthus, a faith-based and resistance community rooted in Christian Nonviolence, ecumenical,

interfaith and open to all, is founded by Brayton and Suzanne, with Paul Hood, Dinah Starr, and others.

Picture: Ailanthus members meeting at the Quaker meeting house in Beacon Hill. From left to right, Robert Hillegass, Dinah Starr, Paul Hood, and Jeanne Holladay.

Members of Ailanthus travel to Jonah House in Baltimore and the Pentagon for arrests and witness. Ailanthus: A Nonviolent Witness for Peace combines with Catholics, Quakers, and activists including Tom Lewis, John Leary, and Cathleen Cooney, to begin a weekly vigil at Draper Labs, Cambridge, MA. The vigils include actions of civil disobedience which lead to arrests and trials. Kathe McKenna, founder of the first Catholic Worker (and only) in Boston, welcomes Ailanthus to Haley House, establishing a life-time relationship.