Director's Message for February 2011

Greetings, Sacred Path Community,

There is important news concerning our Spring Sacred Path Men’s Retreat and the Call to Adventure Rites of Passage Retreat. We will be hosting a Spring Sacred Path Men’s Retreat (April 7-10), but we had to make the tough decision to cancel our plans to host the CTA portion of the spring retreat this year due to a lack of funding. We need a minimum of $10,000 to provide scholarships for the young men and mentors that we invite from the inner city to attend.

Several months ago, one of our men had pledged $10,000 in matching funds to stimulate donations to the Walter Atkinson Memorial Scholarship Fund. I had spoken and written about this extensively but by the time our Wisdom Council met on January 15th we had not raised any upfront funds to engage the matching funds. In years past we have always gone forward with the retreat and chased the funding. We have tended to operate from the faith that if “you build it, they will come,” but there is a lot going on with all of our lives these days, and it’s my observation that for many there are personal financial needs requiring more immediate attention. There just didn’t seem to be the impetus to put the cart before the horse this year and chase the funding.

We don’t intend to let the CTA fall away, but it seems that we need the time off this spring to reorganize and approach that vital work with a renewed vision and broader support of our program. We are inviting men from the inner city to join us at the men’s retreat in April so that we can develop more of a core mentor group to support the group of young men that attend the retreat. We will need some scholarship money to make it possible for those men in need to be able to join us. If you would like to assist with that level of funding we would greatly appreciate your help. Please let me know if you’d like to make a donation to the Conrad Burke Memorial Scholarship Fund.

We realize that there are many choices regarding where you spend your time and invest your energies. At the October men’s retreat I expressed that it had become clear over the past 24 years that we are a community of men rather than an organization in the business of putting on retreats. We’ve always been a boutique retreat and not an agency for marketing our retreats to an extensive audience. We realize that the Sacred Path is primarily a community of men that enjoy spending time together and enriching each others' lives through programs that expand consciousness and create opportunities for training in Mindfulness.

This upcoming retreat will offer a range of possibilities rather than a one-size-fits-all. For instance, if what you really need is a respite from the hectic and driving pace of your lifestyle, then come on up and get some much needed rest, relaxation and time for reflection and solitude. We won’t bug you to participate in anything other than what serves your needs. We will offer a variety of break-out sessions on topics of interest as well as our sweat lodges, Rebirthing breathwork sessions, community and tribe times and of course the great cuisine. Read the information about the retreat in this newsletter and take advantage of the early bird discount when you register before March 3rd. We invite fathers and sons to attend with the understanding that this is a men’s retreat and we won’t be facilitating the ropes course, but why not have an opportunity to spend some quality time together in the company of other good men?

In the spirit of brotherhood,
Stephen

To download the flyer/application for the 2/5/11 Day for Men, Click HERE