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ECM to be on Lawrence historical register

By Aleese Kopf

Monday, February 8, 2010

For more than 100 years, the Ecumenical Christian Ministries, often referred to by insiders as the “front porch of KU,” has offered an open-door policy for the marginalized and socially unaccepted. And now the building is being recognized for its role within the Lawrence community with a placement on the Lawrence Register of Historical Places.

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ECM becomes historical landmark

The ECM building is becoming a National Historical Landmark.

The ECM building is becoming a National Historical Landmark.

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Ecumenical Christian Ministries

The 105-year old Ecumenical Christian Ministries building is being added to the Lawrence Register of Historical Buildings. For decades the building has been known as the "front proch of KU" and is already listed on national and state historical registeries.

Benefits of a listing on the National Register of Historic Places:

— Recognition that a property is of significance to the nation, the state or the community.

— Consideration for federal or federally assisted projects.

— Eligibility for federal tax benefits.

— Qualification for federal assistance for historic preservation.

The ECM, already on the state and national registers, gained this particular distinction primarily for its acceptance of social and political groups during the 60s and 70s, an era marked by violence during this period of dramatic social change throughout the nation.

In the 1960s ECM, then known as the United Campus Christian Fellowship, became a place where people could openly experiment with new lifestyles and beliefs surrounding race, religion and gender.

Richard Crank, a 1989 graduate, described himself as a gay kid from a military family, never able to openly be himself. He first discovered the ECM after attending a meeting for the Gay Liberation Front as a freshman in 1971 and remembers instantly feeling accepted and comfortable.

“It felt like being in a home away from home for a gay guy,” Crank said. “I felt like I could be in this room and be gay. You can be who you are here. It has always told me that.”

Other marginalized groups of the time, such as the American Indian Movement and the February Sisters, also played an important role in ECM history. The February Sister’s used the ECM as a safe place to meet and discuss women’s rights issues such as birth control, equal pay and chilcare on campus.

When The Oread offered to buy the ECM building in late 2007, Tom Harper, a ‘92 KU graduate, was spurred into action to preserve the ECM’s legacy and its contemporary resources. After receiving approval from Thad Holcombe, the current ECM campus minister, Harper began the lengthy process of nominating the building for the Lawrence Register of Historical Places.

“First I wanted to demonstrate its significance and importance to the community,” said Harper. “Second, I wanted to help preserve the ECM building by making it eligible for tax credits that can go towards portions of renovations.”

Harper said the “part of KU but not of KU” attitude of the ECM made it a neutral place for dialogue surrounding issues such as race, civil rights, the anti-war movement, women’s movement and gay and lesbian issues.

“I knew that KU was a turbulent area in Kansas in the 60s, but I didn’t realize the extent of how much this center was involved with what was going on,” Holcombe said. “It played a pivotal role in some ways in terms of what came out of the 60s.”

Decades later, the same open-door hospitality is still available to students. About 1,100 students, faculty, staff and community residents gather every month for a variety of educational, spiritual and social gatherings at ECM, Holcombe said.

Members of ECM have initiated their first capital campaign to raise $832,000 for restoration, renovation and repair. The campaign booklet states that the 105-year-old building is one of the oldest campus ministries in the United States.

Jason Hering, a senior from Hutchinson, is a member of the ECM administrative board, the Student Leadership Team and is President of Eco Justice, a group that seeks to improve environmental injustices nationally and globally. Hering described the ECM as a community hub that helped him get involved and active on campus.

“It’s an outlet for students and the community for any reason — especially radical — that wouldn’t necessarily be accepted somewhere else,” Hering said.

— Edited by Becky Howlett

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