Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporter Sophie Carson outside Old St. Mary at the corner of North Broadway and East Kilbourn Avenue in Milwaukee on Oct. 3.

Meet Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporter Sophie Carson

It’s hard to separate Sophie Carson. I am a generalist reporter who covers some of the biggest news stories. He is also a prolific reporter focusing his many talents on religion, faith, immigrants and refugees.

That means readers may recognize his coverage of the local effects of the Israel-Hamas war, or his stories about Afghan refugees and Ukrainian refugees who have built new lives in Milwaukee. It also means that he has been part of the coverage of the Republican National Convention, the school shooting in Mount Horeb and many other news events.

This week, Carson dives into the issues facing the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, which has the largest area of any denomination in the region, and is in the midst of a multi-denominational merger, as well as the closure of There may also be real estate sales.

Also:Mass Movement: Sixty years ago, Catholics in Milwaukee were in a building phase. That world has changed.

Also:Catholic churches in Milwaukee are in a position to be held accountable. Here are a few ways to understand decline.

Also:After the merger, the three West Allis Catholic churches need to shed some of the unused buildings

Also:With their pews empty, Catholic churches in northwest Milwaukee are teaming up to change the situation.

Meet the Journal Sentinel’s Sophie Carson:

Why religion and immigration?

When I tell people what I’m talking about, sometimes they respond, “Is there enough to write about?” Clearly the answer is yes.

Some journalists like to say that “religion is always in the closet,” no matter what they’re talking about. I’ve found that to be true here in Milwaukee, especially when I mix with immigrants. My stroke affects many areas of life. There is a Jewish-Palestinian-American response to the Gaza conflict and college student protests. There is the influence of Black and Hispanic religious leaders on voluntary get-out-the-vote and anti-violence efforts. There is everything from abortion to homelessness; non-profit work in real estate development; political campaigns for immigration law.

Even the decline in religious membership is noticeable. What happens when church buildings in prominent places are empty? What drives so many young people away from the faith? The growth of “nones” – people who do not adhere to any religion – is a trend with great consequences in the United States, especially in the southeastern part of Wisconsin.

Also:A rural Wisconsin church has a plan for survival: Be relevant to the unchurched

One of Milwaukee’s nicknames is the “City of Steeples.” It has the fourth highest number of houses of worship compared to the country’s population, according to recent research. And, as I learned in my research for this series of stories, at one time nearly two out of five residents of southeastern Wisconsin were parishioners.

In a city known for its German, Polish and Italian heritage, Milwaukee’s main source of population growth will come from international immigrants, I reported last year in collaboration with the Lubar Institute of the School of Law Marquette Research in Public Policy and Public Education.

Also:Amid high demand for STEM workers, retired professor helps students from India process visas

I am grateful every day to find the opportunity to meet interesting people from different cultures. It’s exciting to raise the profile of communities that are often not featured in local news, such as the Congolese or the Rohingya, and to talk to people who can shed light on trends that affect our culture and society.

What brought you to the Journal Sentinel?

I am one of those rare people who got into the job I dreamed about when I was a child. I grew up in Milwaukee, read the Journal Sentinel, and went to the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota. After college I got a job at Oshkosh Northwestern dealing with criminal justice and the courts. In the Northwest I am part of the USA TODAY NETWORK – Wisconsin, like the Journal Sentinel, and after less than a year, I accepted a position here covering the evening news.

I went to a general day job more than three years ago and started planning on religion and immigration.

Also:Wisconsin’s oldest Methodist congregation closes due to high debt, low attendance. It is a nationally known story.

How do you deal with difficult or controversial issues?

I try to approach each story with empathy and emotion. It is important to be fair and accurate, and to fully understand the issues. I am very careful with my choice of words.

I can’t solve the problems of the Middle East or Ukraine, but I can share the stories of the people there who are concerned themselves. In doing so, I hope to help readers understand difficult issues on a personal, relatable level. We often listen to the world’s news because we don’t see why it is important to us.

Also:Two years ago, the latest attacks hit an Orthodox Jewish family. Now, they’re thinking about their Milwaukee location.

What is the origin of these stories in the local Catholic Archdiocese?

The rise of “nones” and the decline of mainstream Christianity means that many churches are aging, declining and cost prohibitively expensive. Some congregations are actively looking for new uses for their assets while they are still operating, and others are being forced to close without a plan for the future.

The Catholic Church, in particular, has a history and place in Milwaukee unlike any other faith. After putting together a few topics and closing this year, I wanted to review how local parishes have gotten to this point, and what lies ahead.

I often think of a quote from Mark Elsdon, executive director of Pres House, a Presbyterian campus ministry at UW-Madison, and church property expert.

“You can just look at a map of where all these churches are (in Milwaukee), and you think, 10 years from now, 20 years from now, a third to a half of them are something that one. What does that do to those areas?” Elsdon said.

Elsdon makes clear that churches provide social services, such as meals for the homeless, or gathering places for Alcoholics Anonymous groups, and when the properties are converted into, say, luxury apartments, services those are lost.

What is the best part of your job?

It’s always nice to have something new. Another time that inspired me was in a French language service for African immigrants at Benediction Lutheran Church. When the musicians started playing, one of the members asked me: “Do you know how to dance?” I laughed and said I didn’t, really. “Just add to your hands,” he said. The music was beautiful, beautiful, different than anything I had heard before.

I also love being able to go behind the scenes and see hidden architectural gems and antiques. When I reported on the merger of three West Allis Catholic churches, I saw a whole second church under Holy Assumption that is now being used mostly for storage. I also saw a large book of handwritten marriage records from the late 1800s in a Methodist church in Milwaukee, a stained glass window in an old Christian Science church, and a model ship hanging. from the ceiling in a rural Wisconsin church with Danish heritage.

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Meet Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporter Sophie Carson

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