The Merton’s Heart Center for Service and Community, Inc. was established in 2026 and exists to promote community well-being, cultivate compassion, and support the people of Livonia and Livingston County through service, connection, and quality-of-life improvements.

Our core values are reflected in our service areas:

• Strengthening Community and Instilling a Sense of Pride of Place

• Exercising Compassion, Care and a Spirit of Fellowship

• Recognition and Care of our Natural Assets/Environmental Stewardship

• Support for our area Youth, Parents, Caregiver and Families

Our vision is to find a presence in the simplicity of the everyday through intentional acts of kindness, service, and community-building.

Ian Coyle is serving as point-of-contact and Executive Director.

Why Merton’s Heart?

Merton’s Heart is an open hillside visible from the St. Bonaventure University campus, a landscape long associated with the spirit of Thomas Merton and the Franciscan heritage of the university. During his years at St. Bonaventure, Merton was known for walking the surrounding hills, seeking solitude, reflection, and a deeper connection with the world around him. The site later took its name from those journeys and from the enduring influence of his contemplative life.

The hillside itself was originally cleared in the 1920s for oil drilling, but that effort was abandoned before Merton arrived on campus. While there is no record that this exact location was a particular destination for him, the space has nonetheless become a meaningful symbol of his presence. Today, Merton’s Heart serves as a place of contemplation, reflection, mindfulness and gathering, embodying the Franciscan values of service, connection, and care for creation.

“For my wife and me, both alumni of St. Bonaventure, Merton’s Heart carries a deeply personal resonance. As undergraduates, we hiked to that hillside and found not only inspiration, but also a deep sense of peace and gratitude—reminded of the values of faith, service, and community that first brought us together at St. Bonaventure. While that place continues to inspire us, the work we are undertaking is rooted here at home, in the Village of Livonia, and is intended to benefit the broader Livonia and Livingston County community. In many ways, it reflects how Merton and St. Bonaventure alumni understand community—as relationships grounded in service, compassion, and belonging. Just as the hillside stands as a reminder that life is lived in connection—with community, with place, and with each other—we hope this effort will carry those same values forward in the place we now call home.”

-Ian M. Coyle