I was saddened to hear that CommunityWorx at Hopeworx was closing.
CommunityWorx started as a “ barter store” at Building 6 at the Norristown State Hospital many years ago. When HopeWorx moved to its new building on Stanbridge Street, they continued the operation with a new name “Hope Market, gathering donations and giving people in the community an opportunity to “earn points” by sorting donations, or helping with the HopeMarket. The points could be used to purchase items that were donated (usually household items, furniture, or clothing).
Through the years, the Hope Market operated without being “policed” or without strict guidelines. It slowly became something amazing all on its own.
As people from the community, people with mental health challenges, and people struggling with homelessness continued to come in daily, we saw something beautiful happen. People from different walks of life supporting each other and sharing resources! The environment starting becoming a safe place for anyone to come and just be themselves, no judgment, no “ comparing”. People starting sharing cultures, sharing ideas, and just simply being kind. During a time of rebranding, the name of the Hope Market name changed to CommunityWorx…well because that’s exactly what it had become - a community within the community.
Over the years, people began to not only come to help with donations or find things they needed, people started also doing activities together such as art, games, music etc. For many years as I worked on the Consumer Satisfaction Team at HopeWorx, there were many days where I too found solace in CommunityWorx on trying days. I would simply put down my burdens of the day and go back in CommunityWorx and just enjoy the simplicity of the environment. The compassion, kindness and yes, even sometimes chaos (not negative at all).
As CommunityWorx started partnering with a local organic farm, I had the pleasure of using my Chef skills from previous employment to teach others how to can vegetables, share recipes, and just enjoy being out of the office. Then we started receiving food donations from local stores and a bunch of us would imitate “Chopped Kitchen” and find new exciting ways to use food that would have been discarded. That turned into other people from our little “community” to start sharing their recipes and the next thing you know, all of HopeWorx was filled with wonderful smells of delicious food that everyone could enjoy. An amazing woman who taught and created art started coming in and then there would be art activities going on simultaneously as food was being shared, music playing, people from all walks of life and recovery playing games, chatting, etc. I know these words do not begin to explain all the wonderful things that came out of this once tiny place to get a few household items, that because of no restraints or “guidelines” morphed into something other places asked how to duplicate. There were no answers on how to duplicate it because it wasn’t “created “ by anything in particular - it just happened.
There was never really any actual funding to run CommunityWorx but somehow it survived because of the people who came and the places that donated food, games, art supplies…everything. CommunityWorx also became extremely helpful when Hurricane Ida hit and many people lost everything! People could come in and get some things to lessen the burden of losing everything. Other organizations began to help with necessities like hygiene items and clothing that not only helped individuals struggling with homelessness
but people who had survived the storm and people that were struggling with food insecurity. I could talk forever about all the beautiful things that happened in CommunityWorx and it still would not even begin to do justice to such an amazing place. As I speak about the CommunityWorx and all the guests and volunteers I have to include all the staff at HopeWorx who yes, played a huge role in helping this “community within a community” run. They helped with events during holidays to give people in the community who either didn’t have a place to be or family, to enjoy a meal with. Our annual “Friendsgiving”, winter celebrations, and many more were always filled with wonderful food, wonderful people and just all around joyful days. It’s very sad that this incredible place has to end and I’m truly heartbroken over it. I hope that another non-profit will allow a space for people to come be themselves and watch how it, too, will morph into something beautiful.
I don’t believe anyone can recreate CommunityWorx but I do believe that if you get the opportunity to look past social norms, diagnosis, and economic stigmas, there could be another “safe place” for people to come together again and create their own version of CommunityWorx. So as I close this chapter I want to thank all the amazing people, staff, donors, and organizations that didn’t try to change the environment by implementing stipulations, “rules and regulations”, or exclusions. Thank you all for simply letting it be what it was ….. something beautiful!!
