The Impact of Our Women Veterans Retreat

 "I can honestly, wholeheartedly say, that during the five days I spent at the Tassajara retreat last year, I had more remarkable healing... than I have had in 6 years of therapy... Whenever I feel myself getting stressed out, or antsy… I can literally take one minute and I go to a quiet area – I just put one hand on my chest and take deep breaths in, slowly breathing and I feel my heart beat and it re-grounds me.  It’s huge for me to be able to do that every day, and to know what it means."                            

 ~ Former Marine 

HPW's 2011 Women Veteran's Retreat filled immediately and had a long waiting list.  The women who attended experienced profound healing and change in their lives.  Many of them had never shared their experiences before at all, let alone in a space of compassionate listening.  They shared stories of invalidation, feeling overlooked, sexual harassment and Military Sexual Trauma (MST) on top of PTSD.  And some of them shared that when they had reported harassment and MST, their claims had been ignored.  In addition to sharing their stories, they recognized that women on active duty often isolate and avoid other women, as a means of protecting themselves in a male-dominated environment.  

Without adequate support for MST and PTSD, more veterans are dying in suicide than in combat.  Here is a simple way to make a difference. Help us fund this retreat that brings women veterans together in community to acquire tools that can support them in living the lives they are meant to live.

What We Offer

The six-day, five-night retreat for women veterans at the Tassajara Zen Mountain

retreat center each summer offers a safe space for women to connect with one another, share their experiences in a space of deep listening and compassion, and learn mindfulness-based tools that are easily accessible and that reduce the symptoms of PTSD / MST.

This event is free-of-charge, and non-denominational.  We teach meditation, Sensory Awareness and other mindfulness-based tools that can be applied in daily lives.  

What We Need

We have already have more sign-ups than space for our 2012 retreat!  Our $31,000 budget covers:

• Space for 16 veterans at absolutely no cost to them
• All room, board and retreat facilitation.

Other Ways You Can Help

Please know that a gift of any amount will help us.  But there are other ways you can help, too!

• LIKE OUR CAMPAIGN ON FACEBOOK!  This will give us greater visibility on Indiegogo.
• Tell everyone you know know about us and give them the opportunity to contribute!  
• We would be happy to contact any of your friends or contacts personally if they have the means and desire to help us in a bigger way.
• If your employer would be interested in sponsoring us, we'd love to talk to them and would be happy to publicly recognize them.
• If your employer would list us as an option for employee giving, that would give us great exposure.
• Remember to use the Indiegogo share tools!