PHOTO BY CHUCK HOVEN

Saturday, September 20, 2025; 2459 Washington Avenue: Members of the West Side Creation Care Team, an ecumenical grassroots organization promoting care for creation, return to St. Malachi Church after a Pilgrimage of Hope walk to Wendy Park on Whiskey Island.

  (Plain Press October 2025) The West Side Creation Care Team, an ecumenical grassroots organization promoting care for creation, celebrated the 10^th anniversary of the late Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Sí with a Pilgrimage of Hope. The group walked from St. Malachi Church to Wendy Park on Whiskey Island and back. They prayed and picked up litter on their way to and from Wendy Park.

  Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Sí, which inspired the formation of the West Side Creation Care Team, called for attention to ecology and creation as necessary means to promoting social justice.

  West Side Creation Care Team member Kay Vine said West Side churches involved in the Creation Care Team include St. Malachi Catholic Parish, St. Patrick Catholic Parish, St. Paul’s Community United Church of Christ and Calvary Reformed Church.

  Also participating in the walk commemorating the 10^th anniversary of Laudato Sí were members of Fairmount Presbyterian Church, Jesu Parish, and members of the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph. Kay Vine said she was encouraged by the participation of members of East side churches. She felt it represented an expansion of the group beyond the Near West Side.

  One of the goals of the Pilgrimage of Hope “was to focus on the value of water in our ecosystem and to be thankful for our great Lake Erie.  That’s why the route from St.  Malachi to Wendy Park was chosen,” said Kay Vine.

  Following the walk, the group gathered at St. Malachi Church to share food. Kay Vine directed walkers to a literature table with information about the West Side Creation Care Team, the Catholic Church’s 2025 Jubilee Holy Year, and materials from the Cuyahoga County Solid Waste District and the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District on recycling and caring for the environment.

  West Side Creation Care Team encourages community members to join them in caring for creation. Literature from the group offers an invitation to “become a part of the movement for environmental justice.” The West Side Creation Care Team meets monthly on the third Wednesday at St. Paul Community Church, 4427 Franklin Boulevard. To join the meeting virtually, email: westsidecreationcare@gmail.com.