~ Karen Ely and "A Women's Way"
~
In 2003 Karen Ely fulfilled a lifelong dream of creating a women's spiritual
retreat program.
Located in Sedona, Arizona, A Woman's Way is her latest project in
a life filled with commitment to issues affecting women.
“The mission of A Woman’s Way is to provide a sacred space and to sponsor
a process that encourages women to
find their vision and their voice through small, structured retreats
for women by women.”
Through her 30 year non-profit career - from domestic violence and sexual
assault to drug prevention
and welfare-to-work – Karen has helped assist many women through difficult
life transitions.
It is her hope that A Woman's Way will benefit other women searching
for a spiritual center and a path to find themselves.
"Daring to Dream: Reflections on the Year I Found Myself " is Karen
Ely's personal story of rebirth
following the end of her 32-year marriage, of coming to grips with
a life that she could no longer live and
walking toward a self that she no longer knew. And eventually discovering
that she had the strength,
power and wisdom to grow from life's challenges.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~
Judith
Duerk, the "Wise Woman we all want to know"
Judith Duerk has worked with women for 35 years as a psychotherapist
and music therapist and has facilitated
more than 1,000 retreats across the USA and Canada. She has also led
several ongoing women’s groups since the late 1970s;
the longest one met continuously for more than 20 years and still occasionally
gets together.
“Each woman must go through the slow process of discovering who she
is and bringing herself to birth,” says Judith Duerk,
author of two beloved women’s classics Circle of Stones and
I Sit Listening to the Wind.
Duerk speaks to women in a nurturing voice that is deeply accepting,
understanding and empowering, a voice that calls women back to their
center of stillness.
Duerk believes that being in touch with one’s woundedness is an important
part of the healing process. “We place a high importance
on being up so feelings of sadness or woundedness get pushed away.
If we continually push them away, they will pop up and simply engulf
us in perhaps a depression or on the cellular level as a physical malaise,”
she says. “If we can realize that our sadness is as natural
as our happy times, then we are not afraid of our feelings when they
come.”
Judith Duerk appreciates the value of women sharing themselves... speaking
to one another of the pain as well as the joy.
"For being truly listened to by other women allows healing to begin,
lets the new direction begin to emerge."
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