fbpx
stone mandala on a green hillside
This program is free of charge

Date & Time Details: Friday, July 16 (check in 3-6 PM; program starts 7 PM) until Sunday, July 18 1 PM

Location: Dharmakaya Center for Wellbeing

Address: 191 Cragsmoor Road Cragsmoor, New York 12566

Contact: [email protected]
845.640.4593

Check-in Time: 3 pm - 6 pm

Open by Application: The program is free of charge. Please apply by emailing Therese Bimka with details on your community or organizational role, how you or those you serve have been impacted by COVID and why participation in this retreat is important for you. Those who are accepted will receive a registration code.

Soul Spa Wellness Weekend for BIPOC Leaders

With Iya Rev. DeShannon Barnes-Bowens, Abigail “Ifatola” Jefferson, ArinMaya, Ben Brown and Rev. Therese Bimka, Program Initiator and Weaver

July 16 - 18, 2021

REST ~  RESTORE ~ AND RESET

An opportunity to nourish body, mind, heart, spirit and soul.

CO-SPONSORED BY

THE DHARMAKAYA CENTER FOR WELLBEING

THE HUDSON VALLEY GUILD OF MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONALS

THE HOLISTIC HEALTH COMMUNITY, in collaboration with the Morty and Gloria Wolosoff Foundation

Let’s face it: Implicit and explicit racism is draining. Soul depleting.

And in some cases, life threatening.

While COVID has been challenging for all Americans, the pandemic has impacted communities of color in far more damaging ways than it has other communities. It has been devastating. In tandem, due to what some call the COVID pressure cooker, the profound pain and injustice of racism has exploded. The trauma of racism is being discussed and witnessed across diverse segments of the population and associated institutions. We need to find creative and meaningful ways to support those on the front lines.

The Soul Spa Wellness Program offers a free weekend of restorative practices in a peaceful spiritual setting for 12 BIPOC Leaders. Open by application.

We’re sorry, this weekend is fully booked and applications are closed. 

STAY SAFE DURING COVID-19: In the interest of safety, we are strictly limiting enrollment to 12 people; please read our COVID-19 Precautions & Preparations to understand our additional strategies.

a rainbow with a building int he foreground

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

The weekend will offer a diverse range of opportunities. Four main program sessions will be punctuated by contemplation, healing arts, time in nature, and holistic treatments.

Intention Setting and Intonation, led by ArinMaya
Sound healing practitioner and songwriter ArinMaya will guide us through welcome and introductory exercises, including intention-setting for the weekend and culminating in her signature Meditation Moments – a grounding, intuitive-based improvisational vocal sound bath. Centering in sound and silence will be a wonderful beginning to our weekend together as we circle up to center self-care for ourselves and refill our cups.

Sustainable Selfcare and Spiritual Wellness, led by Iya Rev. DeShannon Barnes-Bowens
As BIPOC leaders, healers and activists, we know firsthand how stress and trauma can affect our overall sense of wellbeing. The heartfelt connection we cultivate with causes and people we advocate for, often leads to exhaustion, depletion and fatigue due to the nature of daily living and work. During our time together, we will engage in spiritual practice and learn methods to reduce stress and bring our lives back into balance. This session will help you:

  • Learn the importance of cultivating mental, spiritual & emotional wellbeing
  • Identify how stress can impact healing, activism and service work
  • Develop sustainable self-care strategies

Sound Bath, led by Ben Brown
The experience of sound encourages more space, rest, and resilience in the body and nervous system. Sound also provides an opportunity to experience ourselves more deeply, to connect to our higher consciousness, to create a sanctuary within ourselves, and to provide a path to the present moment. Sound practitioner Ben Brown will create this experience through singing bowls, tuning forks, gong, drums, and various other sound instruments.

Expressive Healing Arts, led by Reverend Abigail “Ifatola” Jefferson
This exciting, fun-filled expressive arts experience will spark the imagination, activate ancestal healing, and tap into our creative flow by exploring storytelling as an art form. Arts educator Abigail Jefferson will also lead Energy for Life movement to relax and energize the system.   Lastly, there will be time for gentle stretching, calming breath work, journaling and group sharing.

APPLICATION

This program is free of charge, but requires an application. To apply, please email Therese Bimka with details on your community or organizational role, how you or those you serve have been impacted by COVID and why participation in this retreat is important for you. Those who are accepted will receive a registration code.

Note: Priority will be given to leaders in The Hudson Valley.

dramatic view over a valley

 

SCHEDULE

(subject to change)

Friday, July 16

3:00 PM Check in begins
6:00-7:00 PM Dinner
7:00-8:30 PM Welcome and Introduction
Intention Setting and Intonation, led by ArinMaya

Saturday, July 17

7:00-8:00 AM Morning Salutations and Meditation, optional
8:00-9:00 AM Breakfast
9:30 AM-11:00 AM Sustainable Selfcare and Spiritual Wellness, led by Iya Rev. DeShannon Barnes-Bowens
12:00-1:00 PM Lunch
1:00-6:00 PM Unstructured time for:

  • Hiking
  • Expressive Arts
  • Holistic Health Sessions
  • Relaxing
6:00-7:00 PM Dinner
7:30-9:00 PM Sound Bath, led by Ben Brown

Sunday, July 18

7:00-8:00 AM Morning Salutations and Meditation, optional
8:00-9:00 AM Breakfast
9:30 AM-11:00 AM Expressive Healing Arts, led by Reverend Abigail “Ifatola” Jefferson
12:00-1:00 PM Lunch
1:00 PM Checkout and Departure

 

Teachers

Iya Rev. DeShannon Barnes-Bowens
Iya Rev. DeShannon Barnes-Bowens is the founder of ILERA Counseling & Education Services, where she works as a psychotherapist, professional development trainer, and spiritual counselor. Through ILERA, Iya DeShannon offers a range of workshops and programs focusing on sexuality and spirituality, sexual abuse and healing, and vicarious trauma and wellness. She is the author of Hush Hush: An African American Family Breaks their Silence on Sexuality and Sexual Abuse (2007, 2015). Her work has been presented at national and regional conferences of the American Academy of Religion, Harvard University, Children’s Aid Society, Georgia Campaign for Adolescent Power & Potential (GCAPP), Washington University,…
Learn more about Iya Rev. DeShannon Barnes-Bowens
Abigail “Ifatola” Jefferson
Arts educator, storyteller, and yoga practitioner Iyanifa, Reverend Abigail “Ifatola” Jefferson, M.Ed., conducts programs globally. Through a unique blend of story, dance, and yoga, she keeps alive stories from the African Diaspora. Audiences of all ages have described her programs as spirit-filled, inspiring, and energizing. In June 2017, Abigail was ordained as an inter-spiritual and interfaith minister by One Spirit Learning Alliance in New York City. Abigail is certified in Kripalu Yoga, Karma Kids Yoga, and Yoga 4cancer; she has traveled to Egypt with Master Teacher Yirser Ra Hotep to certify in Kemetic Yoga. Abigail has also traveled to Cuba,…
Learn more about Abigail “Ifatola” Jefferson
ArinMaya
ArinMaya is an inspirational singer, songwriter, sound healer and activist who Grammy-nominated jazz vocalist Gregory Porter described as having “a unique and ancient sound.” Though she’s been called “the Mayor of Brooklyn,” ArinMaya originally hails from Chicago’s South Side where her artistic training began with studies in West African dance and rhythms, continued in numerous church and community choirs and was fostered by her parents’ diverse record collection. She went on to sing and study improvisation and traditional black music with Bobby McFerrin and Voicestra, Ysaye Barnwell of Sweet Honey in the Rock, respectively. Inspired by these experiences and her…
Learn more about ArinMaya
Ben Brown
As a sound practitioner, visual artist, and bodyworker. Ben Brown seeks the intersection of mediums that provide a haven from social-emotional isolation, and support our adaptive capabilities to self-soothe and heal. Much of his work comes from the impulse to create more space in the nervous system and body through vibrational frequencies that connect us to our ancestral wisdom and being. Ben facilitates live and virtual sound experiences. He is the co-creator of HOME and E L I X I R, two monthly sound practices; LUSH, a hands-on bodywork and sound experience; and Beauty Medicine, an interdisciplinary sound art project…
Learn more about Ben Brown
Rev. Therese Bimka, Program Initiator and Weaver
Therese is a spiritual director and a psychotherapist in private practice in the Hudson Valley and the former director of The Interspiritual Counseling Program at One Spirit Interfaith Alliance (2011-2021).  She is a seasoned leader of retreats and workshops on a wide range of psycho-spiritual and creative themes. She has advanced training in various trauma-based teachings, guided visualizations for health, mindfulness meditation, Buddhism and Psychology, Expressive Arts, Jungian Sandplay Therapy, Soulcollage,  Restorative Justice, and Collective Trauma, among others. Therese has led workshops and retreats for organizations, training institutes, educational institutions, government facilities, congregations, and community based nonprofits, in addition to…
Learn more about Rev. Therese Bimka, Program Initiator and Weaver
Dharmakaya Center For Wellbeing
191 Cragsmoor Road

Cragsmoor, New York 12566
845.640.4593

© 2019 Dharmakaya Center for Wellbeing. All rights reserved

Privacy Policy

Dharmakaya Center For Wellbeing
191 Cragsmoor Road Cragsmoor, New York 12566
845.640.4593

Privacy Policy

© 2019 Dharmakaya Center for Wellbeing. All rights reserved