Karis Community came into existence in May of 1976 under the name of Shalom. Pat Washburn was working on her Master of Divinity degree at the Iliff School of Theology. The Episcopal Church was not ordaining women at that time, and Pat was encouraged to set up an “urban retreat center” for her internship. Pat found a vacant building that would work perfectly for this mission at 1361 Detroit Street, formerly the convent of St. Philomena.

Shalom became known as a place of hospitality, and in addition to its retreat function also served families who had children who were having surgery at The Children’s Hospital. In those days before the Ronald McDonald House, Shalom was able to provide families with rooms on the second and third floors where they could stay while they were experiencing the difficulties of hospitalization for their children.

Pat and Tom Washburn sold their home in Park Hill and used the proceeds to rent the space from the Archdiocese of Denver for three years. Pat (center in photo below) managed Shalom and created a welcoming haven for many people who were looking for spiritual renewal and rest. At the end of two years in 1978 the Washburns decided to leave Shalom.

Just as the Washburns were making their decision, a new mission was developing in the minds of Swanee Hunt and Mark Meeks (pictured at right) who lived at the corner of 12th and Detroit. Swanee and Mark saw a need for a mental health agency that would be able to service adults who were recovering from a serious and persistent mental illness. While Swanee and Mark were walking past 1361 Detroit one day, it occurred to them that this might be the place to start their mission. When they rang the doorbell and Pat answered the door, they asked about the availability of the building. Pat shared that she and Tom were leaving and that not only was the building was available, but there was still a full year’s lease paid in full.

Swanee and Mark began developing the program, using a therapeutic community model that was popular in Europe at the time. This model was successful in increasing people’s quality of life and social well being through intentional community. The model is designed for community members to be able to give and receive support and feedback. Jessica Stone was hired as the first executive director of Karis and was responsible for the oversight of the therapeutic community as well as an outpatient clinic.

In 1980 the name was changed from Shalom to Karis. Karis is the Greek word for grace, and it aptly described the mission. Karis is a place for people to be received, valued, accepted and appreciated for who they are, and one of the major goals of the program is to help decrease stigmatism and labeling of individuals who are recovering from a mental health issue. In 1984 Swanee Hunt and Mark Meeks left Karis, and the board of directors hired its second executive director, Ann Kusic. Ann served until 1985 and was followed in 1986 by Bill Milnor. Bill developed the resident coordinator position; he began staffing two positions with graduate students from the School of Professional Psychology and the Graduate School of Social Work at the University of Denver and housing the coordinators in two apartments on site. He oversaw the operations of Karis and the community until 1993, when Patty Hasbrouck became director.

Patty worked hard at making Karis a home. She developed relationships with foundations in the area and wrote grants to replace the furniture and carpet in Karis. Patty utilized volunteers from the old AT&T Telephone Pioneers group. These individuals put in many hours of sweat equity, stripping staircases of paint, painting rooms and helping hang wallpaper borders. Patty remained executive director until January 1999.

In January 1999, E.J. Barklage became the fifth executive director of Karis Community. He has continued in Patty’s footsteps of strengthening relationships in the community with foundations, corporations and individuals, sharing the mission of Karis. He implemented a group called “In Focus” to help insure a smoother transition from Karis to the larger community for each person who completes the program. Moderated by the program assistant, “In Focus” meets every other month in the home of one of the members. Dinner is provided by Karis. “In Focus” provides the opportunity for group members to reconnect and share how they are doing with each other and with the program assistant, who tracks progress carefully.

We’re proud of the work we’ve done since 1976. We look forward to many more years of service to the Denver community!