Do you find our current health care system lacking or
incomplete? Have you ever wondered how things could be different, especially
for those who are struggling just to make ends meet? Are you inspired by the
idea of health care as a holistic, community endeavor? If you’ve answered yes
to these questions, then we invite you to join us on our journey to develop our
skills, so we can help bring healing and health justice to others.
Our vision
Mary and Nathan dream of developing a community based,
wellness center that operates on the principle of whole person health (body,
mind, and spirit), and primarily serves individuals and communities that
experience social and/or economic barriers under the current system. We aim to
create an environment that in, and of itself, fosters wellbeing and healing. Our
desire is to uphold traditional medicines and wisdom, while also exploring ways
elements of modern, science based medicine can provide additional support. We
also seek to create a model that breaks down the traditional top-down hierarchy
between health care practitioners and patients, and which also utilizes the
arts (writing, photography, painting, etc.) and community building (amongst
patients and beyond immediate patients) as key components of healing. In
addition, we see the center as a potential hub for health care activism, both
in terms of advocating for needed reforms to the current mainstream health care
system, as well as providing models for systemic change and transformation.
Our Plan
Mary and Nathan are both in a period of refining the skills we have, and developing additional skills needed to birth the vision. Nathan
is in the process of learning the art of leading meditation and classes exploring
the wisdom of the Zen tradition. He also is developing an herbal medicine business and practice, and plans on undergoing additional herbalist training in the coming
years to deepen his understanding of the plants, and expand his ability to
utilize their healing capacities. Mary is in the process of strengthening her clinical skills in a health care setting, and also is exploring how a clinic operates and functions
under the current system. She plans on returning to school in the coming year
or two to get a Masters in Nurse Practitioner degree, and following that, a
Doctorate in Naturopathic Medicine.
What we need help with now
In addition to our longer term learning plans, Mary and
Nathan intend to attend conferences and workshops that target specific areas of growth
and development. The Buddhist Peace Fellowship’s upcoming National Conference at
the end of August is one such event. We see the conference as an opportunity
for us to do the following:
explore and practice applying spiritual wisdom to
service and activist work,
network with others on similar paths,
and share
our vision with folks from across the U.S.
In addition, Nathan will be
co-leading a yoga, movement and meditation session at the conference with
Oakland based Buddhist teacher Mushim Patricia Ikeda. So any financial gift to
this campaign will also support the gift of this class to the approximately 120 people that will be in attendance
at the conference.
Our Financial Goal
Our goal is $1,000 for this campaign, which will cover our round
trip airfare and car rental costs. If we receive gifts beyond the
target goal, they will initially go towards lodging, and to offset the conference fees we
already paid.
Beyond immediate expenses for the Conference, any additional gifts will allow us to start shifting more of our financial resources towards the next steps in our long term plan.
The campaign has multiple gift levels listed, but we invite you to give at whatever level you can. Every donation helps!
Other ways you can help with the campaign
In addition to financial contributions, we need help spreading
the word about the campaign. If you know either of us, or both of us, offering
personalized appeals to your circle of friends and family would be greatly
appreciated. We intend to give periodic updates during the campaign, so sharing
those updates in your circles also would support us.
Beyond our campaign, we’d love it if interested supporters
also spread the word about the good work of the Buddhist Peace Fellowship.
Their website is filled with thoughtful and compelling writing from a diverse
group of authors, including some of Nathan’s writing. In addition, the
Fellowship is developing programs like this conference to support activists,
peace-workers, and people in service who seek to integrate their spiritual
practice into the work they do in the world.
Learn More
Nathan recently gave a talk at his Zen community about health and illness, birth and death, where he explored the relationship between holistic health and spiritual practices. Included is a short meditation reflecting on how we respond to commonplace illnesses and pain in our daily lives, as well as conversation about the intersection of personal health with social conditions. You can download the talk here.
Thank You
Thank you for taking the time to learn more about our vision, and for supporting us take a step along the path. Please check out the photos and links we have included to learn more about us, what we do in the world, and our passions.
