2022 Spiritual Awareness Group

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The 2022 Spiritual Awareness Group will begin on January 25th. Although the group will primarily meet on Zoom. I have been a participant of many personal development groups in which the work experienced on zoom has been magnificent. I have no doubt that our work together, meeting virtually, can also be magnificent.

A sense of personal freedom is often the result when one’s focus is placed on the Self that is below the surface level of the mind and personality. It helps to have the support of others to steady one’s attention enough to encourage such focus. The work that occurs in the Spiritual Awareness Group can often feel magical as old beliefs and ideas about how things are begin to dissolve and we have the glorious opportunity to know ourselves directly.

If you or someone you know is ready to address a sense of deficiency, anxiety, depression, loneliness, loss or guilt feel free to contact me:, barbara@spiritualawarenesscounseling.com.

Happy New Year!

Barbara

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Adopt a Homeless Senior Project

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Adopt a Homeless Senior Project

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Dear Friends,

This has been a rich year for me with travel, a new and most loveable puppy, wonderful retreats, teaching precious classes & counseling precious students, losing Sally, Janet’s sister-in-law and spending invaluable time with family and continuing to love and enjoy Janet. Alongside all of this, the Adopt a Homeless Senior Project has had a new boost of energy as a result of a great response to our fun and informative booth at the Solano Stroll. We have several more volunteers who are upping the vitality level of the project.

Our project, Adopt a Homeless Senior is one Berkeley neighborhood’s attempt to have some positive impact on homelessness in the Bay Area”. We have chosen a goal that we feel is doable: the majority of Alameda County’s homeless are over 50, and for an average cost of $17,000 we can get one homeless senior off the streets and into permanent housing. With the support of neighbors in the four blocks of north Keeler Avenue, Berkeley, we have achieved more than half of that sum. By widening our appeal to friends like you, we think we could raise $17,000 by the end of the year.

We aren’t, of course, equipped to “adopt” a homeless senior on our own. We are collaborating with St. Mary’s Center in Oakland, a respected institution (secular in spite of its name, and non-profit) that has been working successfully with Alameda County’s homeless for 46 years. $17,000 is what it costs St. Mary’s, on average, to provide one homeless person with one year of services including (but not limited to!:

emergency shelter & meals
mental-health services
money-management counseling,
addiction recovery,
transitional housing and
low-income housing

You can read more about them at http://www.stmaryscenter.org. I have also attached a chart that outlines their homeless senior services (along with services for housed low-income seniors and a preschool). I can say personally that a visit to St. Mary’s Center makes your heart sing.

Could you help us to achieve our $17,000 goal by the end of the year? If you’d like to contribute, you can send a check to St. Mary’s Center, 925 Brockhurst St., Oakland CA 94608. Make sure to mark your check Adopt a Homeless Senior or AHS.

For online donations, go to this link. Under “Designation” type “AHS”

You would be making a tangible contribution to addressing homelessness in the Bay Area.

Thank you!

Barbara

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2019 Coming of Age Group

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2019 Coming of Age Group

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Change of Dates and Times:

The 2019 Winter/Spring
Coming of Age Group for Women 60+
will meet on

Wednesdays 3 PM – 5 PM
March 20th – December 4th

Explore the spiritual and psychological
effects on our souls to be an older woman in today’s culture.

Grief and loss, physical challenges, devaluing cultural beliefs, changes in self-image,
feeling without purpose and approaching death are some of the difficult
issues that we face as aging women. Addressing these issues in a supportive
environment can help us to re-engage with our deepest nature, discover our
purpose, uncover our vitality and express the beauty and the wisdom of our
unfolding souls.

Some of the tools used for self-exploration in the group are:
Body-centered Inquiry, Interpersonal Exercises, Group Sharing, Creative Expression and Ceremony.

The Group will meet every other Thursday
March 20th – December 4th
3 PM – 5 PM
North Berkeley
Cost: $45 per meeting (no one turned away for lack of funds)
Facilitator: Barbara Reiner

To register, call or email Barbara Reiner at 510-506-3902
barbara@spiritualawarenesscounseling.com

For more detailed information about the Coming of Age Group, visit:
https://embodyingspirit.org/embodying-spirit/coming-of-age-group-for-women-60/coming-of-age-group-a-pilot-group-for-women-60-and-over/

For information about Barbara and her work, visit:
https://embodyingspirit.org

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COMING OF AGE GROUP, a group for women 60+

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Adopt a Homeless Senior Project

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“ADOPT A HOMELESS SENIOR”, A BERKELEY, CA NEIGHBORHOOD PROJECT

LABOR DAY BLOCK-LONG GARAGE SALE
SILENT AUCTION
KEELER AVENUE, BERKELEY

If you live in the Bay Area, it is hard to miss seeing and being affected by the numbers of people who are living on the streets. They sleep in doorways, on benches and in tent communities that are cropping up under our overpasses, railways and freeways. Our shelters are at maximum capacity. The main cause of homelessness here in the Bay Area is a lack of affordable housing. According to St. Mary’s Center located in downtown Oakland, an agency that works with very poor and at-risk seniors, over 50% of the homeless in the Bay Area are seniors.

Several neighbors in Berkeley who live on Keeler Avenue have gathered together to do something to make a difference. I am one of those neighbors who has committed themselves to raising 17K, the average cost of getting one homeless senior off the streets and into housing. On Labor Day, Monday 9/3, we are going to have a BLOCK-LONG GARAGE SALE. At least a portion of the proceeds will be given to St. Mary’s Center in support of our “Adopt a Homeless Senior Project”.

I invite you to come and enjoy the Garage Sale or simply give a cash donation to St. Mary’s Center. You can donate on-line at stmaryscenter.org. If you do, please acknowledge the Keeler Neighborhood Fund so that your donation will go directly to support our project.

Thank you for helping us make a difference.

Barbara

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LABOR DAY BLOCK-LONG GARAGE SALE & SILENT AUCTION

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LABOR DAY BLOCK-LONG GARAGE SALE & SILENT AUCTION

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“ADOPT A HOMELESS SENIOR” PROJECT
Keeler Avenue
Labor Day Garage Sale & Silent Auction
September 3
Garage Sale: 9 AM – 1 PM, between Grizzly Peak & Marin Ave
Silent Auction: 5:30 PM – 7:00 PM, between Forest & Miller
Proceeds to support the Keeler Avenue “Adopt A Homeless Senior Project”

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COMING OF AGE GROUP, a group for women 60+

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COMING OF AGE GROUP, a group for women 60+

The next group cycle will begin on June 13th and end on November 28th

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The Coming of Age Group is a safe place for women 60+ to explore their issues and enjoy the openings and connections that accompany such work.  The circle is now open to new members for the 2018 Summer/Fall cycle.

The 2018 Summer/Fall Coming of Age Group will be structured so that participants can delve into topics related specifically to aging as well as other issues that are  important to each individual via a combination of spiritual and psychological inquiry.

TOPICS TO BE EXPLORED
How do you see yourself? What is your relationship to aging?  What are your fears about aging?
How are you recognizing and nourishing your vibrancy and aliveness?
What devaluing beliefs do you carry about women your age? How do you limit yourself as a result?
What is your experience of grief and loss?
What is your Soul’s desire and purpose?
How do you live a life of truth, beauty and wisdom?
What is important to you?

THE GROUP FORMAT
Group Sharing and Feedback
Body-centered inquiry
Interpersonal Exercises
Creative expression (no artistic talent necessary)

2018 SUMMER/FALL COMING OF AGE GROUP MEETING TIMES
The Coming of Age Group will meet 11 times for 2 hours every other Wednesday evening.
Dates: June13, 2018 through November 28, 2018
Time: 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Location: Berkeley
Cost: $45 per person per meeting
Facilitator: Barbara Reiner
Website: http://www.embodyingspirit.org
To Register: Call or email Barbara Reiner at 510-506-3902
barbara@spiritualawarenesscounseling.com

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