The Spirit Room began as a small volunteer organization in 1997 at a location on 4th avenue north and Eleventh Street in Fargo, ND. At that time it was called Namaste with Paddy McLaughlin as the director. When Paddy left the area and took the name with her, Marilynn Quam and Dawn Morgan remained.  A new name was needed, and Dawn suggested the Spirit Room. With Paddy gone, the primary emphasis of the organization became yoga and meditation classes. Dawn Morgan recognized the bare walls as an asset and began booking monthly art exhibits. Yoga and meditation was practiced in the aesthetically pleasing atmosphere of an art gallery, as opposed to the sports club environment currently popular. Literary and humanities programs began to be offered periodically, and the publication of the Shining Times, a literary publication became part of the ongoing activities of the Spirit Room.
The space consisted of two large rooms, one for classes and one for small exhibits and meetings. The one paid teacher was Marilyn Quam, Mamata, who had returned from fifteen years as a nun with an organization based in India. When Mamata left the area in 1998, in order to continue to offer yoga in this unique space, the remaining yoga practitioners formed a co-op in order to pay the bills: no one was paid, each taught a yoga class for others to take, and each made a supporting monthly donation. A variety of arts activities was offered free to the public as well, with Dawn Morgan coordinating all activities.

About the same time, the lease was not renewable, and Dawn Morgan located a space on the second floor of 111 Broadway. It had been vacant for thirty years and was in great need of renovation. The landlord, Lee Swanson, and Dawn Morgan secured the first storefront renovation contract as part of the newly formed downtown  Renaissance Zone.  The Spirit Room led the way  for other downtown reclamation projects. Swanson paid for most of the building improvements while Dawn Morgan donated her interior design talents, managing the project and investing financially in the creation of a new home for the Spirit Room. Contractors, volunteers, and well-wishers completed the project in about six months. Six dump-truck loads of rubble were removed. New heating, electricity, plumbing, air conditioning and a sound system were installed. Randy Rick installed the hardwood floor in the gallery from the remnants of a high school gymnasium in South Dakota.  He also did all the painting and created woodwork to reflect the age of the building. Michael Orchard installed the sky light glass.  Artist Judith Hartwick (now Judit Hart, deceased) worked with Dawn Morgan on creating a setting for dining and entertaining through the purchase of dishes, cookware, glassware and tables. Sandy Miles donated fine linens for the dining tables.

The Spirit Room at 111 Broadway opened officially on May 22, 1999 with a celebration. Walter Piehl, Jr. was the inaugural artist exhibiting, and his son, poet Shadd Piehl, read from his new collection Toward Horses that evening with great food, belly dancing, and later dancing to the music of Jim Sitte. Ever since, the studio has hosted numerous art exhibitions and a variety of arts and humanities events.
In May of 2003, it was decided that the organization should become a non-profit officially. It had never been a money-making proposition anyway. There were never any paid employees, and the entire place was maintained by volunteers, sustained by class fees and “member” monthly donations. A board of six community members was formed, and the long, arduous process of applying for 501 (c) 3 status began. Board members began assisting with program development and event execution. By-laws were completed and filed in July, revised and accepted by the State of North Dakota by October. The federal application process took nearly a year before the Spirit Room received word that its 501 (c) 3 status had been granted in August, 2004. At that point, the Spirit Room was ten years old and Dawn Morgan signed another five-year lease with Swanson Properties. A new roof was put on that summer, the studio was repainted, and a fall full of interesting programming was executed. In December 2004, John Geiser patched and repainted every room, bringing the Spirit Room up to its present state of gloriousness.
Over one-hundred fifty exhibits have been shown since beginning monthly exhibits in 1997.  The primary gallery at 111 Broadway is a room with hardwood floors and a large skylight  with exhibit wall space for visual art to total about 125 feet.  A second gallery was developed in March 2005 upon the idea that smaller exhibits could be shown in addition to the larger space. Dawn Morgan is the curator of all gallery exhibits.

The Spirit Room continues to reinvent itself along the lines of its mission statement, “to enrich people’s lives through development and practice of creative, contemplative and healing arts.” The organization is a grass-roots organization responding to the needs of the community.

Grant writing and the development of bigger projects now leads the organization into the future.
The Spirit Room is fortunate to have had continued support since its beginnings in
1997 and looks forward to a long future within the community.