About us
Mission
To bring together progressive Catholics and spiritual seekers for creativity, intentional community, and cooperative housing.
Overview
History: The Fireplace began in 2021. In the years since, it has emerged as a vibrant community space. Learn about the community’s journey here.
Structure and governance: The Fireplace is a cooperatively-governed intentional community. This means that we do not have an external governing body; the long-term residents are the Board of Directors and participate in monthly board meetings. We are a not-for-profit corporation in the state of Illinois.
Values: The Fireplace is women-centered, LGBTQ+ affirming, and intergenerational. We strive to be anti-oppressive in our community practices. We have Catholic roots and are open to people of all religious and spiritual identities.
Extended community: Non-residents who engage with the Fireplace are our “extended community.” They may attend and support house dinners, use our space, contribute financially, and share their creative skills.
Events and guests: The Fireplace is an intentional community that sometimes holds public events and allows community members to host events in our space. As we are able, we also use our guest rooms to host visitors.
Residents’ shared life: All residents work or study outside the house (the Fireplace is not our “full-time job”) but long-term residents each do about 10 hours per week of house activity, ranging from twice-weekly dinners/prayers to house administration. We also welcome subletters who share community life at the Fireplace but make a lesser commitment to its operations.
Location: The Fireplace is located in a large house on the south side of Chicago (Kenwood/Hyde Park).
Current residents
Leslie Carranza is a singer, crafter, handyperson, and lifelong resident of Chicagoland. She works as a stagehand with IATSE Local 2, where she is a certified fork lift operator.
Sister Sharon Dillon, SSJ-TOSF is an experienced master special educator and Franciscan spiritual director. She ministers full-time as a Special Education Instructional Teacher in Berwyn, IL.
Abby Rampone holds an MDiv from Union Theological Seminary and works in ministry at DePaul University. She has a background in the Catholic Worker movement and church reform, and loves writing, cross-stitching, and all animals (especially cats).
Katerina Sasieta is an outdoor enthusiast and musician, committed to communal singing and climbing trees. She’s from a multiracial family in small town Illinois and has lived and worked in various communities across the country, including Catholic Workers and organic farms.
Melanie Winston is deeply invested in personal and collective growth. She’s passionate about combining creativity with healing, and values a holistic approach to spirit, emphasizing well-being, connection, and joy as key to collective liberation. Her work as an independent contractor centers on helping others tap into their fullest potential, not just through traditional leadership strategies but by incorporating somatic practices, art, and nature. When she's not working, Melanie is a lifelong singer-songwriter, yoga enthusiast, ceramicist, plant serial killer (oops), and a semi-professional dad joke aficionado.
