40 Orchards’ Story: Keep This Work Alive Into 2026
Read our year-end letter to see why your support matters, how we are reclaiming Scripture and building community, and the many ways you can sustain this work into the new year.
Many of us know the weight of religious harm: fear, shame, exclusion, and the experience of Scripture being used against us rather than for our flourishing. These experiences shape how we show up, how we read, and even how we understand our own worth.
They are not only individual experiences. They exist within a wider religious landscape where Scripture is too often used to limit, to silence, or to consolidate authority. This same landscape continues to fuel the rise of Christian nationalism, which depends on certainty, hierarchy, and a single way of reading the text.
At 40 Orchards, we create spaces where curiosity is welcomed, voices long silenced find space to speak, and Scripture becomes a source of insight rather than injury. Learning happens through shared wisdom rather than imposed authority. In a time when Scripture is weaponized in public and private life, this work matters. It is a quiet but powerful act of resistance.
This year, as we close out 2025, we need your help to sustain this work. Our goal is to raise $25,000 by December 31, the amount necessary to enter 2026 with stability and continue offering these generative spaces. For a small nonprofit like ours, meeting this goal is the difference between staying open and continuing to transform harm into insight, or facing the painful prospect of closing our doors.
Why Your Support Matters
Steph & Lisa at the Minnesota Multifaith Conference in Oct 2025.
A question we sometimes hear is: "If I pay for a circle or a class, why does 40 Orchards need donations?"
Your giving bridges the gap between running a class and seeding transformative change. It helps people find questions, community, and freedom in a landscape that too often demands certainty and conformity.
Program fees cover the time we spend together in a room, but the work of transformation and the stability of this organization go far beyond those hours. We are building a firewall against a religious landscape increasingly defined by hierarchy, control, and Christian nationalism. Your year-end gift sustains the essential, often invisible work of 40 Orchards:
Challenging the Weaponization of Scripture: Leading an organization that resists dominant, well-funded religious systems is strategic work. It requires creating alternative frameworks that center justice and the voices of those historically silenced.
The Searching the Sacred Podcast: Sharing the work of reclaiming Scripture with a wider audience, reaching people who may be geographically isolated or hesitant to join a formal circle.
Spiritual Care: Holding space for deep religious trauma, deconstruction, and the painful unwinding of harmful theology. This care supports people as they rebuild a sense of safety and self.
Scholarships: Ensuring that no one is excluded from these spaces because of cost.
Ways to Give
We know our community includes people in different seasons financially, spiritually, and emotionally. We want to honor that. Whether you are new to us or have been here for years, here are three ways you can help us reach our $25,000 goal and sustain our work:
If you have participated in the past but could not pay in full: You are always welcome here. If this is the year you can give back in gratitude, your gift creates space for someone else to participate.
If you have paid for programs but have not donated beyond that: Your participation sustains one part of our work. Your giving sustains the rest—the behind-the-scenes structures that transform struggle into flourishing.
If 40 Orchards is your spiritual home or you cannot imagine it closing: Monthly donors provide the foundation we need to plan ahead, support more participants, and grow the Orchard over time. One-time gifts allow us to innovate and expand our reach rapidly.
Here are some ways your gift can make a difference:
Monthly $25 / One-time $300 – Expand Access
Covers materials, coaching, or small gatherings, helping participants reclaim Scripture from the hands that have misused it.Monthly $50 / One-time $600 – Support a Participant
Ensures someone can fully engage in a circle or online session, receiving guidance and community where they might otherwise feel isolated.Monthly $100 / One-time $1,200 – Strengthen Our Work and Sustain Transformation
Funds behind-the-scenes support for circles, curriculum development, and community initiatives, including scholarships, podcast production, and spiritual care.Monthly $125 / One-time $1,500 – Equip a Pastor
Supports a pastor’s participation in our Pastor’s Learning Community, helping them bring generative approaches back to their congregations.Monthly $200-$400 / One-time $2,500-$5,000 – Support New Initiatives and Ensure Stability
Funds the development of new programs and community initiatives that expand our work. Provides long-term support for the Orchard’s mission, sustaining ongoing circles, scholarships, community care, and future visioning.
Every gift, no matter the size, helps people ask better questions, engage Scripture with curiosity, and build community instead of isolation. Together, we are cultivating spaces of insight, care, and spiritual growth.
Voices from the Orchard:
"Through the 40 Orchards community, I’ve learned to ask questions, not memorize answers, and found my footing again." – from Meagan’s Story
"I knew within the first 15 minutes of my first Circle that we were healing old wounds while exploring Scripture with curiosity." – from Sana’s Story
"I found my way back to 40 Orchards... a small, cozy space where I can rebuild this precious faith thing." – from Claire’s Story
Your giving helps people ask questions, engage Scripture freely, and build community.
We need to raise $25,000 by December 31 to enter 2026 with stability and continue offering these life-giving spaces. Every gift matters.
Thank you for walking this journey with us.
With hope,
Steph, Lisa, and the 40 Orchards Board
