2018 Workshops

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These are the workshops we accepted so far, we’ll be adding a new batch each month until the schedule is full. We are still accepting proposals, so if you would like to submit one please use the form here. We’ll be back to you within a month.

Workshop Proposals

Adapting to Changing Times: Adaptogens  with Marita Orr

Could you use a little pick-me-up to help with any stress that may accompany all of the fun and family? Adaptogens are a class of herbs that do just that. 
As the name suggests, adaptogens help your body “adapt” to stress in a completely natural, holistic and safe way.
 These plant extracts boost the body’s ability for resilience and resistance to the damaging effects of physical, emotional, mental and environmental stressors. We all know that stress can wreak havoc on our hormones. By normalizing the body’s stress response, adaptogens encourage hormonal balance. These non-toxic plant compounds are generally safe for everyone.

Here’s How Adaptogens Can Help:

Regulate the production of stress hormones like cortisol

Maintain healthy organ function during periods of stress

Increase your resistance to stress

Balance hormones

Boost immune health

Protect brain and heart health

Decrease adrenal fatigue

 

Ancestor Veneration with  Thor Halvorssen

The basics, considerations, and the importance of it, and why it is important in the development of our pathwalk, and our understanding of ourselves.

 

The Best is Yet to Be  with Catherine Kane

In this culture, youth’s valued and aging feared. It doesn’t have to be that way. Join Catherine Kane at 60 for a rollicking tour of getting older. We’ll look at alternative health options, quality of life issues, coping with the challenges of aging, as well as the advantages of getting older and how to make the most of them. Grow old with me- the best is yet to be!

 

 

(Shamanic) Cacao Ceremony with Willow Diana Pressler

Before the invention of chocolate as we know it, cacao had been used for centuries by Mayan, Aztec and other indigenous people of traditional plant medicine. It is served in community for the purposes of healing and connecting with each other and higher consciousness.
Cacao is an incredible antioxidant, has been revered for its powerful ability to open our heart chakras and feel peaceful and centered.
~join Willow for a magical evening involving ceremonial raw cacao, meditation, drumming, song healing and connection. People who attend these ceremonies notice that in the days that follow, blockages in their lives shift, powerful synchronicities occur and even deep healings take place. All with the help of some delicious chocolate!
As the cacao takes effect, you’ll feel your heart chakra gently expand as you’re guided on a healing meditation and journey. When working with the cacao spirit, you can ask her to show you what is unseen, to show you the next steps on your path or simply to come out and play. The circle provides a safe and nurturing space for clearing, healing and release work. All you need to do is turn up,
How to prepare for the Cacao Ceremony:
• Fasting is not necessary, however it’s best not to eat for a couple of hours beforehand
• Do not have any dairy the day of ceremony ( Cow’s milk is said to block intestinal assimilation of flavonoids )
• Make sure you drink plenty of water in the lead up to, during and after the ceremony
• Avoid drinking caffeine on the day of the ceremony – you may feel jittery from the combination of the caffeine and the cacao, and it is not recommended for the kind of inner journeying work we will be doing
• Dress in loose, comfortable clothing
What to bring
• A large bottle of water. Cacao is a diuretic and it’s important you stay well hydrated
• A cushion and yoga mat so you can make yourself comfortable on the floor (there will be seating available if you choose)
• A blanket to stay warm – when journeying it can get a little chilly!
• Something to cover your eyes with (like a scarf or handkerchief) to block out the light and help you turn your focus within. relax with the cacao, and surrender! You will leave feeling lighter and more energized
Health Benefits of Cacao
Cacao is the heart’s “blood” due to its relatively high levels of magnesium, antioxidants, and love associated chemicals, making it truly a “food for the heart”.
The medical and scientific buzz about chocolate began with studies of the Kuna, a group of indigenous islanders whose high-salt diet did not lead to high blood pressure. The early studies determined that Cacao was the cause, not genetics – the Kuna drink about an ounce (28 gm) of Cacao a day.
With Cacao, the heartbeat becomes pronounced, breathing is deepened and nourishing blood circulation is increased throughout the body. This increases physical and mental energy and endurance, arousing the senses and heightened awareness.
Pure Cacao has recently been found to contain high levels of antioxidant polyphenols, oligomeric procynanidins and other flavonoids that help boost the immune system and offer significant protection against “bad” cholesterol and heart disease. It is also very nutritious, having a high protein content and is reported to be the richest natural source for magnesium, an important mineral highly deficient in modern diets. The raw seeds are also surprisingly high in vitamin C and an excellent source of natural sulfur, a mineral associated with healthy skin, nails, hair and proper liver and pancreas function.
There is also much in the scientific literature about how Cacao not only lowers bad cholesterol and raises good cholesterol, but how it increases blood-flow to the brain which may delay dementias like Alzheimer’s, and about Cacao as a heavy metal chelator, binding and removing them from the body.
While the medical profession is suggesting that people eat dark chocolate, they don’t mention that most of the chocolate available lacks the essential components that are in the type of Cacao that much of the research was done with.
Contra-Indications
We think of our cacao as a plant medicine. Like any potent medicine, it is important to be mindful in its use.
In most cases, there are no concerns to be aware of. The pieces listed below are mainly a concern in higher doses, like when we use the cacao ceremonially. In these cases, the combination of potent cacao and a higher dose warrants some additional mindfulness. Cacao is a strong bitter and power detoxifier as it helps cleanse the liver. Because of this, in higher doses people might experience detox symptoms such as headache or nausea. In this case, take it as a blessing and drink plenty of water as your body lets go of whatever it didn’t like. This will likely be accentuated for people on a raw diet or who are fasting. Go with lower doses in this case.
Many anti-depressants are contra-indicated with the tryptophan and MAO inhibitors in this cacao, so we recommend checking your meds first. Again, this is because our cacao is more potent to begin with and often taken in higher doses. Chocolate doesn’t have enough strength to cause these effects. Worst case scenario is headache and nausea, but avoid the hassle and do research first.
Serious heart conditions. The theobromine in cacao increases heart rate significantly and is a vasodilator, lowering blood pressure. If you have such a condition, go lighter on amounts. Pregnancy & breastfeeding. Like coffee or tea, it is important to reduce intake of stimulating foods. The theobromine in cacao, which is very similar to caffeine, has a stimulating effect. Thus using lower dosages is recommended.

Costume Dessert and Tea Social

This year we are having a social event, a chance to get together and chat with each other between all the workshops, panels, rituals, shopping, readings etc. Won’t it be nice to just relax in an environment where you don’t have to pretend that you don’t believe in magick and psychic phenomena to protect your job, reputation, family, and talk about the supernatural without talking around what you really mean?

Costumes are encouraged, but totally optional. (Clothing is mandatory.) Please bring a dessert or something to share labeled with ingredients. 

Potluck Desserts and Tea

We will have tea and cakes- and tea,  we invite you to bring some dessert to share: whatever travels well, cake, cookies, …is there a sweet treat for which you are famous? We’d love to try it. Any leftovers will go to hospitality. (Do reember an ingredient label)

Costumes

Costumes are encouraged, but totally optional. (Clothing is mandatory.) We have no theme, but wear whatever costume you like: because Halloween!  Wear costumes of gods, ghosts, spirits, your ritual robes,  SCA garb, costumes from other events that may represent wish fulfillment, or spirits of change, whatever you like!

Dark Magick with Amy C. Wilson

The Art of Using Your Shadow Self to Create Positive Change in Your Life; In this class we will learn practical ways on how to “flip the script” on our internal dialog that keeps us from manifesting our desires. We will discuss positive and affirming ways to help us develop spiritually and emotionally.

 

Dealing with Deities with Raven Kaldera

We neo-pagans are as eclectic about our gods as we are about everything else. However, there’s more to the nature of most deities than you can find in the average high-school book of myths. This workshop will explore the experience of connecting with different deities, their intrinsic natures, and how to respectfully deal with them. We’ll cover appropriate offerings, offering places, altars, and rituals for a wide variety of gods and goddesses from many cultural pantheons. We’ll also discuss how to communicate with the gods of foreign places without letting too many of our own cultural biases get in the way….and we’ll explore our favorite little-known gods and goddesses as well.

 

Deities of Change with AVee Baron

Change is never easy. In order to grow, we need to change; and changes allows us to grow. Gods and Goddesses aid us in how we need to change or give us ways to implement change. We will be discussing the Deities associated with change. Some are gentle; some forceful. I’ll be sharing some experiences with these God/ess. We will also learn how to work with them through ritual, meditation and devotionals.

 

Develop Your Power Body Through Elemental Integration with Amy C. Wilson

Learn how to activate your Power Body through the Elements for Fire, Water, Air, Earth, and Spirit through everyday actions, meditations, and conscious awareness.

 

Dragon Cosmology with David Rea

Who are they? Where did they come from? Stories of dragons are present on all continents, very few mythological creatures have that in common…but why? Those that question their power are often burned, while those that work with them are healed from the burns inflicted. This class is a sharing of my life with them, working with them, growing with them, and a little bit of their history…from their own words.

Graeco-Roman spellcraft with Jane Sibley

Spellcraft in the Mediterranean region during the Etruscan, Greek, and Roman times was
significantly influenced by a then-Egyptian New Age. From mystical sigils (charaktêres),
incenses and oils, luck in gambling, talismans, amulets to ward off the evil eye, and lots more, a
rich record has been documented of the occult side of things back then. Learn how to “fix” a
chariot race, or how to magically bind a target individual using a doll. Some of these concepts and
techniques may even be found in today’s world.

 

“The Hero’s Journey ” with CoyoteSkywoman

– Following in the Footsteps of Greatness”: Joseph Campbell spoke at length about the idea of the Hero’s Journey and its meaning in regards to myth and modern culture. along the way, he created what is referred to as the “Monomyth,” a set of steps all heroes take on the way to reach their final goal. In this discussion, we will examine some classical myths that follow this pattern, including “Gilgamesh” and “Gawain and the Green Knight,” and look at some of the more modern stories that also follow the patterns of the Hero’s Journey and the Monomyth.

House Clearing and Warding with David Rea

Every tradition has their own method of house clearing and blessing, in this class I shall teach you the practice and methods of a shamanic house cleansing. We will look at everything from preemptory journeys to different energetic wards that you can use. I will present a solid well worked standard operating procedure as well as certain practical elements to keep in mind while working on a home. My goal is to show you that a home is just not something you live in, but an entity/ extension of yourself that you live with.

(An Int0roduction To The Endocannabinoid System

and the Herbs used to support it with Marita Orr

An introduction to the *human endocannabinoid system- what it is, how it works and where it fits into human anatomy and physiology and the herbs that contain it.
Discover how common herbs, spices & other food-based cannabinoids (CBD) can help activate the endocannabinoid system to treat and heal many conditions. 
*The endocannabinoid system, with its complex actions in our immune system, nervous system, and all of the body’s organs, is literally a bridge between body and mind. By understanding this system we begin to see a mechanism that explains how states of consciousness can promote health or disease

Kahina Stones with Rebecca Oubouzar Rebecca Hamilton

Readings and Interpretation You’ve got Kahina Stones! Now what do you do with them? Join creator and reader Lalla Rebecca as she offers an in-depth tutorial on using, interpreting, and sometimes RE-interpreting this unique system of divination.

 

Kala Ritual with MaryAlyce Merritt and Davis Sprague

The Kala rite is derived from the Hawaiian word meaning “to loosen, untie, or absolve” this simple ritual provides us with an opportunity to transform negative energies and blockages within ourselves, as well as to reclaim the power that these blocks have “tied up” within our energy bodies.
This class will be taught in Sacred Space. You may wish to bring a special drinking vessel or we will provide you with one to use for this class.

Lecture on Paranormal Investigating with the Duchess Paranormal Investigators

Presentation on the dos and don’ts while on an investigation. We go over equipment and evidence that has been documented over the years- Recommended for those who are planning on joining the after hours ghost hunt, especially if you’ve never been on one before. (see Paranormal Investigation below)

Making Portable Altars with Lady Luna Rose

In this class we will be creating altars that you can take with you. These are great for the office or for the hospital. There is a $5.00 material fee for the class. The material fee covers the items that will be provided to you for your altar, including but not limited to the metal tin, candle , mini Goddess and other magical stuff.

Mediumship Gallery with Star Rodriguez

Join Medium Star as she connects to the spirit world! A Mediumship Gallery is the opportunity for you to witness the power of evidential mediumship within a group setting. Evidence about your loved one from the spirit world will be brought forward along with messages they may have for you. These messages felicitate an amazing amount of healing, clarity, peace and proof of existence after death. Messages will be given to random audience members. Please try to keep an open mind; try not to fixate on only one person that you’d like to hear from. If you understand most of the information the medium is saying, please raise your hand and speak up when the medium addresses you. It is helpful for the medium to hear your voice, however, please do not volunteer information to the medium. Attending this event does not guarantee you a reading but always understand that your loved ones are forever with you.

Mindfulness for Change with Cathy Kane

Mindfulness meditation focuses on what’s happening now. Mindfulness can also help you get in touch with what’s happening in your world, what works for you (and what doesn’t), and how to make choices that move you towards the life you want. Come learn to use mindfulness as a tool to calm and center yourself, get in touch with your world, and make better choices in times of stability and change.

Norseworking with Jane Sibley

Norseworking: This is a high-energy circle in the Norse tradition, in which we may do healing, fertility magic, charging of major tools, experimental magic, distance work, and whatever else needs doing. Once the ritual begins, the room will be sealed, so please come on time, fed and rested, and pottied. Due to the high energies we will be working with, we will have grounding and tuneup for anyone (no matter their expertise) who has never been to a Norseworking before.
You MUST be able to ground and center to participate.

If you have a loved one who you’d like us to work on during the Norseworking, please contact them before we start to get permission for us to heal them.

 

Paranormal Investigation with Willow Diana

Led by Luna Hacker, Amy C Wilson, Willow Diana, & the Dutchess Paranormal Investigators.

Paranormal PTSD with Sarah Livermore

The paranormal has become very popular in recent years. It’s on TV in the form of paranormal
investigation reality shows even exorcism sometimes gets televised. There’s even a paranormal tourism
industry where people can go on haunted cruise ships, pay to participate in public ghost hunts at well
known haunted locations, and nearly every city has tours of local paranormal hot spots. The focus of
paranormal pop-culture is generally the investigation aspect of it. The thrill of chasing after something
spooky and the excitement of catching evidence of something beyond life as we know it. What tends to
be neglected and forgotten is the aftermath of a haunting or possession case. Experiencing the
paranormal is often traumatic for the people involved. Long-term follow up to help them restore their
sense of normalcy is often necessary, but there aren’t a lot of supports available to someone suffering
paranormal PTSD. This lecture is what I’ve come up with after many years of dealing with paranormal
PTSD in my work helping resolve haunting and/or possession cases.

Personal Gnosis with Raven Kaldera

Most Pagans (and other polytheistic minority religions) would agree that personal experiences of Deit(ies) are fine when they’re kept to yourself … but what about when they’re not? How do we decide whose divine messages get incorporated into group practice, and whose don’t? How can we trust each other? How did the ancient world handle these issues? This will be a discussion group on how to healthily incorporate personal gnosis into group doctrine. Please come with intent to be courteous and respectful of others’ views; the moderator is a hardass and will not tolerate rudeness.

Reinterpreting the Tarot with Nichol Montfort

Reinterpreting the tarot, make your own card. As the creator of a one of a kind tarot deck, I propose a class that would allow students to study the symbolism of a card of their choice and look at examples from different decks (which i will provide) and then utilize craft materials (paint, magazines and collage materials, glue sticks, card stock, etc. which I will also provide) to interpret a card of their choosing and create a piece of artwork, their own tarot card to bring home with them. As presenter, I will discuss the meanings of the cards as I have personally interpreted them as well as how they are traditionally represented. I will also advise on creation methods to assist students if need be.

Road Opener Spirits with Luna Jean Hacker

We will learn some of the best road opening Saints, and Spirits to work with. Learn how to petition them to help them open your roads, bring good fortune and remove obstacles from your path.

 

Samhain Ritual with MaryAlyce Merritt/Davis Sprague

join us for a Reclaiming style Samhain Ritual facilitated by Maryalyce & Davis

 

RúnValder with Starwolf

RúnValderis a stand alone magical system using both the Runes and a symbol set gifted to Rodney Cox. It can be used for healing, creating magical objects and spell work.

 

 

Santa Muerte with Luna Jean Hacker

Dispelling the Rumors about Most Holy Death/ The Angel of Death This workshop is a guide to dispel misinformation about Holy Death and develop a clearer understanding on how to work with Santa Muerte. Including is she the right Spirit for you? How to set up an altar and devotional to her; as well as offerings and prayers. We will learn about her manifestations, colors, and also some magickal workings with her.

 

 

Service or Servitude: Where do you fall?  with Mama Kimball

Many of us are happy to be in the service of others in our community. You know the ones that give of themselves to care for others. But what and how does this become servitude? Join us as we explore the things that cause us to go from in the service of others to servitude to others.

 

Soul at the Center of All Practice with Tom Blaschko

Many groups, such as pagans, shamans, martial artists, and energy healers, work outside of physical reality. We need to clearly understand — and be able to explain — the soul reality we are working in. This workshop provides a model of the soul that forms the underlying center of all soul-based practices. Understanding the soul at the center makes our practice stronger. It lets us join with other human practices work with other beings to form a more powerful community co-creating soul reality. When we know that every being, in the body and out, has a soul, our place in the worlds becomes clearer.

Soul and Your Practice with Tom Blaschko

An interactive follow-on to Soul at the Center of All Practice where participants can discuss their practices. As a group we will look at how each of our practices relates to our souls and the connections souls make between beings.

 

Spiritual Self Care: Healing the Wounded Healer with Lailani Martinez

Techniques of Spiritual Self Care through the 5 elements.
* A breakdown of our Spiritual Bodies and how they get sick. What the symptoms are.
*Recipes of baths, oils, powders, etc….to assist in self care.

Standing on the Edge of the Sword with Thor

Lately hate groups have gotten press, and by to exercise their perceived freedoms to hate. Pagan and heathen groups wrestle with this guilty by gross association for years, the bastardization of our ways, justified through hate. What strategies and educational means do we have to combating this? Does hategroups really have a place under the fringes of our faiths? 
How do we achieve the balance? How do we ourselves toe the tightrope of using items like Runes and other symbols and practices that have been likewise pilfered by hate groups?

Tapping for healing with Tchipakkan

Tapping is a generic term for a healing technique where you tap energy points on your body while expressing the healing you are targetting. EFT and Dynamind are two of these, and there are others. I prefer eft for emotional healing, but and dyamind for physical, but all tapping works for both. It’s fast, simple, and effective. Come learn how to do it on yourself.

 

 

 

Titans and Jotuns and Thurs, Oh My! with Christopher Kimball

The nature of paranatural beings from folklore and myth, including primordial, deities, ancestors, ghosts, spirits, fairies, angels and demons. Come and join us as we explore the behavior these entities.

Transgender Spirituality with Raven Kaldera

We have been symbols of the sacred two-in-one for thousands of years. Come hear the ancient stories about us, and rediscover our sacred nature. For transgendered people of all stripes, and anyone who is just interested in more direct ways of spiritually balancing male and female. By the author of “Hermaphrodeities: The Transgender Spirituality Workbook”.

“The Trickster – Essence of Change” with CoyoteSkyWoman

Although many may see the Trickster as a figure of humor and humility, the role of the Trickster in most societies goes far beyond that. The Trickster is a middleman to the gods, an impetus for learning, and a force of change. Come and find out what the trickster’s historical role has been, and the loss and replacement of the Trickster in our modern society.

 

Vampires in History with Tchipakkan

Let’s look at these blood (or life) draining monsters (spirits, revenants, gods, demons,…) and try to sort the yarn-spinning and mechanisms for social control from the accounts that may tell us something about the nature of life, death and the spirit. What kinds of vampires are they? (What’s in a name?) What do they do in different locals? How have they evolved over the centuries? Are they dangerous, and if so how do you protect yourself?

 

 

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