If you’ve ever been a part of a Watershed project, then you know that something special happens when communities gather to imagine new possibilities together. This was the experience of Pastor Amalia, who inherited a familiar Tucson problem when she became the new steward of Our Saviour's Lutheran Church.
Every monsoon, water rushed toward the church office, pouring down a staircase and flooding the lower level. The congregation had grown accustomed to hauling out sandbags each summer and cleaning up afterward. Seeing the flooding herself led Pastor Amalia to ask what if we worked with the water instead of fighting it? And that question led Our Saviour's to Watershed.
Together, with the support of Watershed’s Cultural Ecologist Director Joaquin Murrieta-Saldivar, they imagined something different.
At Joaquin’s suggestion, the project was organized as a workshop with the congregation invited to work on a series of projects aimed at capturing the water and putting it to work. In the process, Church members who were previously disconnected from our native Sonoran landscapes learned how water has shaped Tucson for generations. And when the day came to bring Joaquin’s plan for their space to life, more than twenty volunteers came out to dig, plant, and secure Our Savior’s flood resilient future.
Inspired by the project, members have begun replacing non-native landscaping with native desert plants throughout the campus and actively re-imagining the historic property that they steward as a community space for all. As Pastor Amalia reflected,
"We're becoming much more than a church in a place. We are understanding our role in the fabric of Tucson and the Sonoran Desert.”
Every Watershed project begins with a different challenge. Our work focuses on responding effectively to these while supporting communities in imagining new possibilities together. That’s why we’ve spent the last 25 years creating places where neighbors can learn from one another, contribute according to their abilities and resources, and leave a legacy of stewardship.
This summer, we're inviting you to help create more stories like this across Southern Arizona by giving your summer gift today. Your support helps Watershed partner with neighborhoods, schools, congregations, and community organizations across the entire watershed to transform local challenges into lasting opportunities for stewardship, connection, and resilience.
Photo credit: John Wahl