Center for Spirituality at Work

Impact Statement

The Center for Spirituality at Work has had a deep and lasting impact on our local and regional community for the past 13 years:

Through our Making Choices program we have helped 411 incarcerated women, and by extension their 976 children, to make better decisions about their lives and successfully re-integrate back into their communities. This has also saved Colorado taxpayers over $11.4 million dollars in incarceration costs, and has reduced crime in our neighborhoods.

Through our Formation Program for Spiritual Directors, we have trained 513 spiritual directors to companion the poor and marginalized. People who are incarcerated, homeless, sick, and elderly often have nobody to turn to for companionship and little access to the few programs and resources available to them. Our Spirit Mentors help them realize their value and restore their dignity.

Through our Spirituality in the Marketplace program, we have given numerous workshops, conferences, presentations, lectures, and retreats to hundreds of people: business professionals, executives, care-givers, retirees, grandparents, home-makers, volunteers, parents, teachers, etc., on various topics that focus on what’s important in our individual and collective lives; our spirituality, the way we live and work with ourselves and one another. Subjects have included community service without burnout, personal and societal health, effective decision-making, work/life balance, and voluntary simplicity.

Needs Statement

Our most pressing needs are:
1. Expanding funding for our Making Choices program for women offenders.
2. Funding for new up-to-date computers and printers.
3. Funding and pro-bono assistance with marketing materials to effectively communicate the impact of our programs to the broader public.
4. Expanding our Board of Directors while increasing diversity and inclusiveness.
5. Increasing the diversity of our volunteer mentor pool to better reflect the diversity of the populations we serve.

Background Statement

The Center for Spirituality at Work brings together people from all walks of life to seek solutions to social issues. As a community-based nonprofit, we are not affiliated with any religion or religious agenda. Dr. Vie Thorgren, the Center’s founder, holds degrees in education, counseling psychology and spiritual theology and has an extensive background in program design/implementation, cross-cultural work and interfaith dialogue. Twelve years ago, she hosted a downtown forum to determine if the Denver business community had an interest in spirituality in the workplace. Although only 50 people were expected, a crowd of over 250 attended a luncheon program to discuss the practical implications of social justice in the marketplace. As a result of the community’s demonstrated interest, the Center opened its doors in 1996 and began offering workshops, seminars, and training programs to both individuals and business groups.

We provide direct services and comprehensive educational programs addressing the value of work and the role that spirituality plays in people’s work lives. The Center recognizes the dignity of the human person, the inherent value of work, and the rights and responsibilities of all who work. Employment, programs and services of the Center for Spirituality at Work are available to all people regardless of race, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, religion or disability.

Each of our programs resulted from a think tank of people from various backgrounds and perspectives:

1. Our Making Choices program resulted from 18 months of study by a roundtable that included business leaders, representatives from various faith traditions, and professionals from social service, criminal justice, and victims assistance. The impact is a profound reduction in the recidivism rate for women offenders.

2. Our Formation Program for Spiritual Directors was defined by perspectives from nonprofit leaders serving the poor, the incarcerated, the elderly homebound, the developmentally disabled, and at-risk youth. The impact is development of spiritual wellness programs for the poor and marginalized.

3. Our Spirituality in the Marketplace programs grow out of partnerships designed to respond to clearly identified needs in the workplace. The impact is a better spirit at work and a deeper orientation to service.

As an organization, it is exciting work to bring people together and facilitate the synergy that develops.

Executive Director Statement

At the Center for Spirituality at Work, we connect on a weekly basis with healthcare agencies, small businesses and the Colorado Department of Corrections, with numerous nonprofits serving the disadvantaged and a variety of faith communities, with social groups that gather over a meal and with the homeless, at-risk youth, developmentally disabled, homebound elderly and the incarcerated. We are constantly impressed with how much people care about pressing social needs. We also learn each week how people feel overwhelmed and helpless to really do much about the needs that exist. We discover again and again that the perspective and understanding of most people is framed by the boundaries of their particular work and/or faith community. We enter into this context as a “bridge” connecting people across disciplines, faith traditions, employment settings and economic circumstances. The impact is a broadened perspective on what is possible, the creation of new partnerships and programs to address social needs and an expanded commitment to service.

As an organization, we define spirituality as “how we live and breathe and work.” This definition leads to the central question we offer others. “Are you living and breathing and working in a way that is life-giving for you? Life-giving for those in immediate contact with you (family, friends, neighbors, coworkers)? Life-giving for the broader community? We would be grateful for the opportunity to connect with you, to explore and expand the life-giving possibilities for you and for the community.

Board Chair/President Statement

We are often asked how we do so much with such a small budget; we work hard to ensure that donor funds are used wisely and efficiently. Our many volunteers make it possible for us to conduct our programs with the dedication of a staff of only three (2 full-time and 1 part-time).

Our programs are known for excellence and professionalism. A Department of Corrections officer recently called our Making Choices program "the most professionally run volunteer program operating at Denver Women's Correctional Facility." The personal touch and care with which we conduct our relationships is noted and appreciated by donors, collaborators, volunteers, and program recipients. Many of our volunteers for the Making Choices program come to the program because of the personally enriching experience they have had through our Spirituality in the Marketplace and Spiritual Direction Formation programs.

Like so many other Colorado nonprofits, fundraising remains our constant challenge. With a budget of nearly $106,000.00, the Making Choices program represents nearly half of the Center's annual budget. Unlike the budgets for our other two program areas (Spirituality in the Marketplace and Spiritual Direction Formation), which receive support through earned income, the entire Making Choices budget must be funded through donations, as we receive no government funding.

Governor Ritter's administration has put an emphasis on reducing recidivism. We have a proven track record in this area. We are hopeful that donations will increase as public attitudes toward incarceration change: there is a growing recognition that solid life skills are essential to the successful re-entry of offenders to the community, and that successful re-entry is essential to a safe, healthy society. I'm proud to be a part of an organization that is leading the way, and invite you to join us.

Bob Campoy, Board Chair