The Gathering Grounds is an honesty box café located inside the beautiful, new, Kilternan Parish Centre. In this fast-paced world we have all come to know, I am ever mindful of the need for community, belonging, growth, and healing. At the Gathering Grounds, this is just what you’ll find.

A team of dedicated volunteers run the café, serving great quality coffee and tea, where you will find a comfortable space and a friendly face. We are open to the public Monday to Friday from 8AM to 3PM during school term-time. While this may look like other attractive cafes you have been to, in reality, it is a far deeper system of support for anyone who wants it. We hope to bring joy to your day and make strangers feel at home. Everyone has a story to tell and deserves to be heard. I hope that everyone finds a listening ear and nourishment for their soul.

As the name suggests, the Gathering grounds is designed on the principle of gathering; we live better when we are connected.

Follow Gathering Grounds on Facebook

It is with great excitement that I get to introduce the Gathering Grounds Café, opening in September 2018. The Gathering Grounds will be located inside the beautiful new, long-awaited Kilternan Centre. In the fast-paced world we have all come to know, I am ever mindful of the need for community, belonging, growth and healing. At the Gathering Grounds, this is just what you’ll find.

Over good-quality coffee, espresso and tea, you will find a comfortable space and a friendly face. The Gathering Grounds will be an honesty café, where the amount you give is up to you. It will be open to the public on Monday to Friday from 8am to 3pm, and will be run by a team of volunteers happy to serve each person who walks through the door. While this may look and feel like other attractive cafés you have been to, in reality it will be a far deeper system of support for anyone who wants it. We hope to bring joy to your day and make strangers feel at home.

Everyone has a story to tell and deserves to be heard. I hope that everyone finds a listening ear and nourishment for their soul. As the name suggests, the Gathering Grounds is designed on the principle of gathering; we live better when we are connected. Intentional gatherings will be run at the Gathering Grounds, such as Play Cafés for toddlers and their carers, senior lunch clubs, mindful Mondays, arts events, support groups, special interest groups, etc. These intentional gatherings will happen regularly, but the café is always open to anyone who would like to come in for a quiet cuppa as well.

I recently watched A Plastic Ocean with my daughter Sophia over a few nights in the precious few minutes between her brothers’ bedtimes and hers, and I feel deeply burdened by the way we treat this Earth. I promised myself that I would do all I could to promote and encourage positive environmental and health choices through the café. The café will do its best to demonstrate and promote environmentally sustainable practices.

The volunteers... Who will make up the team of volunteers at the Gathering Grounds, you might ask? It could be you, your parent or your neighbour! Volunteers don’t need to be connected with this parish, so pass the word on if you know someone who would like to get involved. If you are not sure whether you want to volunteer, ask yourself these questions. Do you enjoy people? Do you have a desire to serve the general public? Do you want to be a force for good in our community? Volunteering is a highly beneficial act, both for those who receive from the experience and for the volunteer who is giving. The more we give, the happier we feel. Volunteering can have numerous positive outcomes, such as reducing stress, meeting new people, learning and practising new skills, increasing your self-confidence, experiencing a challenge and giving back to the community! If any of this sounds exciting to you and you have a minimum of four hours a month to give, please get in touch!

Julie Clements