Friendship House facts for kids

Friendship House was a special Catholic group that helped people in need. It was started in 1934 in Toronto, Canada, by a woman named Catherine de Hueck. She was born in Russia and became a Catholic.

After the Toronto group closed, Catherine moved to Harlem, a neighborhood in New York City. There, she and others lived among the Black community. They helped people with their daily needs and worked to stop unfair treatment based on race. This idea spread to other cities like Chicago.

In the 1960s and 1970s, Friendship House changed its focus. Instead of just helping people directly, it worked more on making society fairer for everyone, especially in terms of race. The Harlem branch closed in 1960, and the Chicago branch closed in 2000.

How It Started

The idea for Friendship House came from Catherine de Hueck Doherty's strong religious beliefs. She was born in 1896 into a rich family in Russia. She lived through tough times, like World War I and the Russian Revolution. In 1921, she came to Canada with her first husband and experienced being very poor herself. She had become Catholic in 1919.

In the early 1930s, Catherine felt a strong calling from God. She felt she should give up her comfortable life and go live among poor people. She wanted to share their lives and help them with whatever they needed. This was a new idea for the Catholic Church at that time. But the Archbishop of Toronto, Neil McNeil, believed in her. He asked her to wait a year, then gave her his blessing.

Catherine first thought she would do this work alone. But other people were inspired by her Christian ideas and wanted to join her. The archbishop agreed that this was also God's plan.

Friendship House in Toronto

On September 14, 1934, the first Friendship House opened in Toronto. This was during the Great Depression, a time when many people were struggling. There was a lot of need, and some groups were trying to take advantage of people's struggles.

Catherine and her helpers collected food and clothes for those who needed them. They also planned fun activities for children and teenagers. They opened a Catholic library where people could borrow books. They offered English classes for immigrants and gave meals to people who had no home. To share Catholic ideas about fairness, they held study groups. Most importantly, they offered friendship to everyone.

In 1936, new Friendship Houses opened in Ottawa and Hamilton. But Archbishop McNeil, who had supported Catherine, had passed away. The new leader, Cardinal James McGuigan, was not as supportive. There were disagreements with local church leaders and other people. This was partly because Catherine spoke up for the poor. It was also due to her own inexperience and false rumors about her. Because of these problems, Friendship House in Toronto closed in 1936.

Friendship House in Harlem

After the Toronto house closed, Catherine was invited to work in Harlem, New York City. This invitation came from Father Michael Mulvoy, a priest at St. Mark the Evangelist parish. Catherine arrived in February 1938. With support from Cardinal Patrick Hayes, she started a new kind of group that helped people of all races. This work became well-known in the American Catholic Church.

Friendship House in Harlem offered many services. They had a center to help people find jobs. They also had a credit union and a co-op store, which helped people save money and buy things together. There was a library named after Martin de Porres, and groups for Cub Scouts and Catholic youth. The young people who joined Friendship House lived in the community they served. They lived simply and focused on prayer and religious practices. They wanted to help others, seeing it as serving Jesus.

Through her work, speeches, and writings, Catherine became a strong voice for racial fairness. This was before the major Civil Rights Movement. She challenged Catholic leaders and regular church members to stop treating people unfairly because of their race.

Friendship House in Chicago

In 1942, another Friendship House opened in Chicago. This was at the request of Bishop Bernard J. Sheil. Ann Harrigan and Ellen Tarry led this new branch. However, there were growing disagreements among the leaders. These problems became worse when Catherine married Eddie Doherty, a newspaper reporter, in 1943. Eventually, Catherine stepped down from her leadership role and moved back to Canada. There, she started another important group called Madonna House.

Later Years

Friendship House continued to grow in the United States until the late 1950s. New branches were started in Washington, D.C. (1948), Portland, Oregon (1951), and Shreveport, Louisiana (1953). In the 1950s, the Friendship Houses in Portland and Washington, D.C. joined Madonna House instead.

As society in the U.S. changed, Friendship House's work also changed. It moved from just helping people directly to working for bigger changes in society. They focused on making things fair for all races. It changed from a group of people living simply and helping others to an organization with paid staff.

Catherine de Hueck Doherty officially left the American Friendship House group in October 1956. By 1960, Friendship House had become a national movement for racial fairness, with its main office in Chicago. The Harlem house closed that year because of money problems and management issues. Finally, fewer people joined and there wasn't enough money, which led to the Chicago Friendship House closing in 2000.

Other Groups with Similar Names

It's important not to confuse Catherine de Hueck's Friendship House with other groups that have a similar name. For example, the Friendship House Association in Washington, D.C., was started in 1904. It was a community center that helped people until 2008. The Peoria Friendship House of Christian Service in Illinois is also a different group. Many different social service groups use the name Friendship House today to help people in various ways, like mothers, homeless people, or Native Americans.

See also

• Madonna House Apostolate
• Catholic Worker Movement
• Ellen Tarry
• Friendship House (Washington, D.C.)