Clevelanders Affirm Shared Values and Vision in Town Hall

Writer: Sr. Louise Lears, SC

Sr. Louise Lears, SC speaks at the Cleveland Town Hall at Blessed Trinity Catholic Church.

Our second full day of Nuns on the Bus & Friends took us to Cleveland for an evening Town Hall at Blessed Trinity Catholic Church on Saturday, October 5. We were pulsing with excitement from the rally earlier in the day at Pittsburgh’s Freedom Corner, a monument to civil rights activism. I could almost feel the bus riding a little higher as we traveled to Cleveland.   

We arrived at the church just in time to celebrate Mass with parishioners, many of whom remained after Mass to participate in the Town Hall. There is something special about sharing liturgy as a prelude to the Town Hall. The connection was deepened by sharing a meal in the basement of the church before we gathered again in the body of the church for the Town Hall.  

Our Town Hall gatherings are about coming together in community to create a vision, a future where everyone thrives, no exceptions. I watch and listen as people “buzz” with their neighbor about what issues are important to them with this election. People raise multiple issues because we are multiple issue people, we live multi-issue lives.  

Each Town Hall includes an opportunity for bus riders to offer reflections on the six freedoms that NETWORK promotes: freedom to be healthy; freedom to participate in a vibrant democracy; freedom to live on a healthy planet; freedom to care for ourselves and our families; freedom from harm; freedom to live in a welcoming country. I learn from each rider and each participant about what it takes to ensure that “everyone thrives, no exceptions.” The Town Halls are shaping me as an engaged, educated, compassionate voter. I hear that same feedback from the Town Hall participants.  

As a rider, I have the opportunity to offer thoughts on the freedom to live on a healthy planet. No matter where we live, the color of our skin or the money in our wallet, all of us deserve the freedom to drink clean water and breathe clear air. Yet, we know that some people, especially people of color and low wealth, suffer disproportionately from the climate crisis. They may have contributed little to the problem, but suffer more. We need to elect leaders who will support a rapid, just transition to a renewable energy economy. 

The opportunity for participants to form groups of 10 and create a vision for their city is a delight to witness. I see and hear passion and hope and commitment to a Cleveland where everyone thrives, no exceptions. That energy spilled over as people moved outside to sign the bus. 

On to Detroit!

This reflection is from the 2024 Nuns on the Bus & Friends bus rider blog.