Novice Project: Mutual Aid Mini-Grants

Sister Tia Cliterati

December 2025

Committed to standing in solidarity with those in need and finding ways to create bridges with those in the LGBTQ+ community with means, Sister Cliterati sought to create a novice project that focused on creating a new mutual aid outreach initiative for the DC Sisters.

During her novitiate in 2025, Sister Cliterati was point nun for two fundraising events. The first event involved writing a proposal for a paid speaking engagement with the Maryland State Arts Council. The accepted proposal, Holy Mother: What’s That! brought a panel of DC Sisters to the annual Maryland Art Summit at Prince Georges’ Community College. Sister Perla, Sister Ruth, Sister Felix, and Sister Cliterati spoke to a full workshop audience about performance art and drag activism.

The second fundraiser saw Sister Cliterati head to the streets of Baltimore’s Hampden neighborhood, along with Sister Apocrypha and Sister Mary. Braving the freezing December temperatures, the trio set up their Salvation Sisters red buckets and bells on The Avenue and spread Christmas joy and Sisterly blessings, while raising the largest amount of money ever for a Salvation Sisters event.

With money raised and a giving budget set, Sister Cliterati created a social media campaign to raise awareness of the mini-grant application process. She created a scoring rubric, which a panel of Sisters used to objectively judge each application. Sister Cheeky, Sister Bennie, Sister Sedusa, and Sister Apocrypha, along with Sister Cliterati rated each application individually, before meeting as a group for a final discussion and selection.

A total of $1,000 was distributed to three recipients from Sister Cliterati’s mini-grant novice project.