Congregations open up their buildings to serve children, the hungry, the homeless and others in need. Sacred places stabilize neighborhoods, strengthen commercial districts and significantly add to the economic health of our communities. All of this is endangered, however, when congregations can no longer afford to maintain these aging buildings. Partners has developed a family of highly-acclaimed resources to help congregations connect better to their communities, raise capital funds in new ways and preserve their historic building for future generations. We are the nation's only non-sectarian, nonprofit organization dedicated the sound stewardship and active community use of America's older religious properties.
Moving into Our Next Ten Years

The PSP – Texas Office turns ten years old this year. We are receiving an unprecedented number of inquiries about our programs and services, and we will highlight new partnerships as they develop. Until then, here are four projects about which we are very excited.

Carmelite Monastery in Stanton, Texas: Mentioned in a previous newsletter, this is a partnership with the Martin County Convent, Inc. in their efforts to preserve this existing 1884 adobe structure. At the very moment this newsletter is released, PSP is conducting a community discovery study to help local stakeholders define a clearer vision for the future use of the site. The restoration has already begun as evidenced in these two recent photos.

Art in Sacred Places (AisP): PSP encourages space sharing as a vital way for sacred places to serve their communities. Too often, large spaces like fellowship halls, classrooms, and kitchens go dormant and underutilized during the week.

A unique program under this heading is AiSP. In 2015, with a grant from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, PSP conducted a study in three major cities - Detroit, Baltimore, and Austin. The purpose was to see how sacred places could help meet the space needs of artists - especially emerging dance and theater groups struggling to get established.

Austin was a perfect candidate. Long known for a music scene that rivals Nashville, it has shown through events like South by Southwest that its creative community extends to all media: film, theater, dance, visual arts, and literature. This thriving art scene contributes nearly a quarter of a billion in revenue to the local economy each year. However, the skyrocketing growth and increased real estate prices in Austin have made it extremely difficult for emerging artists to find rental/retail space for their activities. The PSP study showed that sacred places in Austin can be instrumental in meeting this need.

Now, with new grant money from both the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and the City of Austin’s Department of Economic Development, PSP will move to the next phase. With the help of the Austin Creative Alliance, a Partner’s consultant will further develop the congregational and artist database already in place, hold focus groups and training workshops, facilitate the partnership process, and identify a way to establish a shared administrative co-op facility for artists.

Stay tuned for updates on this far-reaching and meaningful movement!


Leadership Fort Worth (LFW): PSP understands and values the power of great partnerships that benefit our communities. That’s why we are excited that LFW has chosen to focus their attention this year on Partners collaborative work with Early Childhood Intervention of North Texas. Together, we will facilitate space matches that place this critical programming for developmentally delayed children in welcoming historic sacred places throughout Fort Worth.

LFW is one of the oldest community leadership programs in the nation. It brings together a diverse group of Fort Worth decision makers who want to broaden their perspectives and use their resources to address identified needs in our community. It is an honor to partner with them!



The Texas Sacred Places Project: This online archive has long been cheered and supported by a multitude of Texas universities, architects and preservation organizations across the state. The project is now entering phase two, a resource center for rural congregations to access Partner’s programs and connect with advocates and resources throughout Texas.