Tag: Circle Sanctuary

Circle Sanctuary Responds to Festival Closure – Interview

On June 30th Circle Sanctuary issued a statement in response to the early closure of their largest event, the Pagan Spirit Gathering (PSG)  due to flash flooding. Besides other measures “Circle Sanctuary is offering a gift to all 2015 PSG paid registrants who request it — a $100 certificate ($50 for minors aged 12-17) that can be used toward any Circle Sanctuary event, including future PSGs, through June 21, 2020.  This is a gesture of commitment to our community, to do what we can to promote healing. Please understand that this is a gift, not a refund or compensation for any loss.”  The early closure was the first in 35 years of PSG, and the Circle community has rallied in support of the organization, and for the healing of those most effected by the waters and trauma of the flooding.

I spoke with Bob Paxton, Circle web and email administrator, an ordained Circle Sanctuary minister for seven years, current PSG assistant manager, and a Circle Sanctuary land maintenance volunteer each week.

N: What went into the decision to offer this gift?

Bob:  After we unloaded the truck and started to think about things going forward we as an executive committee met, and had a long in person conference and tried to figure out what the best way forward would be, not just for Circle Sanctuary but for the PSG community as a whole. There were things that we knew we would do as church relative to the community, such as mobilizing our ministers to provide spiritual counseling. When people come to PSG they bring a years worth of spiritual work they intend to get done. To a substantial degree that work was short circuited by events.

There was a need for energy work and spiritual healing, and so we put out a call to the community to send in requests that they had We held full moon, our regular circle, and had it focused on healing and recovery from the events at PSG. There was a healing altar and about three dozen people in attendance, and we did an energy working to bring peace and solace to those effected.

Thirdly we decide because so many had lost so much during PSG, not just physical loss but the opportunity to do the work that happens there, to give a gift to the community for those who felt they needed it, a certificate toward admission to future Circle Sanctuary events. Good for not only for PSG but for future events on Circle Sanctuary land.

Psgflood

Why is a gift appropriate?

Bob: There are two sides of that. A refund is an actual return of money. You gave us X number of dollars, we are giving you X number of dollars back. The reality is that PSG is Circle Sanctuary’s single largest fund-raiser, but Circle is pretty well diversified in activity to bring in funds year around. As we looked at the numbers we saw that we could not give a refund of any sort without severely impacting the work that Circle Sanctuary does for the community year around. There are people who approach the entry fee to PSG as a simple purchase. Most events have a calamity befall it do not provide refunds because of an act of nature. An act of nature occurred that rendered the PSG site as unsafe for occupancy so we elected to close the gathering early. The gift certificate is a gesture to help people severely effected by the flooding to come to future events.

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Veterans Honored at Paganicon

Ceremony Begins

Ceremony Begins

Last Sunday, March fifteenth,  during the afternoon tea at the conclusion of Paganicon,  seven veterans who served in various branches of the armed forces were honored.  In a community ceremony of recognition and appreciation, Selena Fox presented the Pagan Military Service Ribbon to Pagans who have served or are serving in the US Armed Forces.

Honored Veterans, Selena Fox at left

Honored Veterans, Selena Fox at left

Pictured from top, clockwise are Wayne Sears, John Farrow, Herbert Cook Roy, Celeste Proe, Shawn Burns, Debbie Olson, and Tamia Finnegan. They received their pin to the applause of appreciation and support from the over hundred community members present.

 

The Ribbon pin, created by Circle Sanctuary in 2011, is being presented to Pagan veterans and troops around the country who request it. If you are a veteran please visit the ribbon website to participate in the honoring recognition.

Please congratulate these service members!

Nels Linde

Selena Fox – Paganicon Guest Interview

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Selena Fox

Selena Fox is a well-known priestess, environmentalist, religious freedom activist, writer, teacher, and psychotherapist. Also known as Rev. Selena Fox, she is senior minister of Circle Sanctuary in Wisconsin, which has been serving Nature religion practitioners worldwide since 1974.

Selena will appear at Paganicon March 13-15, 2015 and offer several workshops, participate in panel discussions, lead a ritual, and facilitating the Military Pagan Honoring Ceremony . Tickets are available at the door for the day, weekend, or for special events. Selena responded to written questions:

Nels: Tell me about your Cauldron Magic workshop?

Selena: I have been studying folklore and folkways for many years, and old folk traditions are an essential part of the Circle Craft tradition that I practice. In my Cauldron Magic workshop, I will share some of the ways that cauldrons have been used in ceremonies as well as in daily life through time and across a variety of cultures and spiritual traditions. I also will share some of my own experiences working with different types of cauldrons as well as ways that Pagans today can use them as ceremonial tools and symbols for celebrating the seasons, home blessings, and other sacred work. In addition, I plan to facilitate some Cauldron meditations and experiences during the workshop.

What will you include in the Pagan Death Passages workshop?

Selena: Creating and guiding Life Passage Rituals is an important part of my services to Pagan community and has been since I began priestess work more than forty years ago. In addition to creating and performing weddings, baby blessings, coming of age into adulthood rites, cronings and sagings, I also do several types of end-of-life passage rituals. The Pagan Death Passages workshop emerged out of my experiences working with individuals and their family and friends prior to, during, and after death. I realized that there was a need to do end-of-life preparation education as well as facilitate crossing overs, funerals, and burials when the need arises.

In my Pagan Death Passages workshop, I share ideas and information about ways to support end of life planning and processes for family and friends, and I also express the importance of considering your own needs and making your own end of life plans. This workshop also is designed to help facilitate community discussions and considerations about dying and death, topics that some are reluctant to talk about with others.

In the workshop I not only present some information about types of end-of-life ceremonies but also give practical tips on end-of-life planning. We will explore ways to support a loved one at the time of being diagnosed with a life-threatening illness, and discuss approaches to maximizing quality of life in the time remaining. We will talk about working with life review during the last part of life. We will examine crossing over support, including the use of music, touch, presence, readings, and ritual. We will also look at post-death rites, including customizing wakes, funerals, memorials, and celebrations of life. In addition, I will be talking about natural burial as a death passage option.

Part of my work with Circle Sanctuary includes being the director of Circle Cemetery, a national Pagan cemetery and one of the first Green cemeteries in the USA. It is located at our headquarters near Barneveld, Wisconsin and this year we will be celebrating our cemetery’s 20th anniversary. We inter cremains at our cemetery and also do full body natural burials. Natural burial, also known as Green burial, is an ancient Pagan practice – it is placing an un-embalmed body in the earth in a shroud or other biodegradable container. In the workshop, I will describe some of our work in doing burial rituals at our cemetery, as well as things to consider in selecting a cemetery as part of end-of-life planning.

Is the Goddess Brigid one of your personal patrons?

Selena:  Yes, and I’ve been working with Brigid for most of my priestess life. I keep a Brigid Shrine at my home and also am among the caretakers of Brigid’s Spring, an outdoor healing place dedicated to Her at Circle Sanctuary Nature Preserve.

I had already been working with Brigid for many years, when I discovered while reading a book on Scottish history that I am descended from some who were caretakers of a Brigid site in Fife, Scotland.

In addition to doing personal Brigid work, I also facilitate Brigid rites for small and large groups at various conferences and festivals across North America. The Brigid Healing Ritual which I will be facilitating at Paganicon has evolved over time as my own work with Brigid has deepened.

In this rite as well as in my own person work, I work with Brigid in a variety of forms. In addition to honoring Brigid as the Triple Goddess of Inspiration, Healing, and the Forge, I also work with Her as a Sun Goddess, and a Goddess connected with the Land, Oak, Swan, Flames, and Waters of holy wells and sacred springs. Included in the Brigid Healing Ritual are invocations and chants drawing on these different facets of Brigid. We will be doing different types of healing during the ceremony — healing for ourselves, healing for each other, and healing for loved ones at a distance. And we also will be doing a community working for the well-being of Planet Earth and will energize Brigid crosses, charms, necklaces, and other items participants place on our central altar during the rite. I am looking forward to bringing the Brigid Healing Rite to Paganicon.

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Pagan Leader Passes – Obituary Editorial

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I received word at Pantheacon Sunday morning of a friend’s passing. He was not a famous author, or leader of a tradition, or a major contributor to the intellectual development of Pagan philosophy. For many in the Madison, WI area and the Midwest, Circle Sanctuary, Pagan Spirit Gathering ( PSG ), and hand drumming community, he was their rock.

Dennis Presser1958-2013

Dennis Presser
1958-2013

Dennis Presser passed peacefully and unexpectedly of natural causes Saturday, Feb 16th at the age of fifty-four. He is survived by his loving wife of 25 years, Laurie Blue Heron, and his two children; Hunter and Allegra all of Madison, WI.

The details of his long history of service, as a veteran and through his dedication to environmental organizations are elaborated on his official obituary. As an activist conservationist he worked, often in leadership positions, to preserve and improve the outdoors he loved so much as a Pagan, hunter, and trout fisherman.

The loss of Dennis is felt across the breadth of his influence as a force of dedicated service to others.  In the Pagan community, he was known as a man of great personal strength, generosity, commitment, and ethical responsibility. He was willing to speak out and act in support of the people, community, and the natural environment he so loved.

Dennis was generous with his time and hands. He was an avid brewer and mead maker, and always a cheery and welcoming host. His easy-going and good-natured disposition made him a natural choice for anyone who needed help. If you were in need, he would do whatever he could to help. He was a man of his word, a commitment from Dennis was one you could count on. In a world of opportunistic ethics, Dennis was one who would stand for his beliefs, whatever the cost. Continue reading →

Exclusive: ‘New’ Location for Pagan Spirit Gathering Announced

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In a PNC exclusive,  Pagan Spirit Gathering, one of the largest and oldest Pagan camping festivals, announces its ‘new’ location this year.  The site used for the last two years, Stonehouse Park, near Earlville, Illinois came under fire by local residents for loud music festivals and illegal activities.    None of the complaints or arrests have occurred during PSG.  Stonehouse Park was then listed on a sheriff’s sale in June of 2012.  This prompted speculation that  Circle Sanctuary, hosts of Pagan Spirit Gathering, would need to move the festival for the third time in five years.  That speculation was put to rest today when Circle Sanctuary announced Pagan Spirit Gathering 2013 will be held at Stonehouse Farm.  Same location as 2011 and 2012, just a new name and under new ownership.

The sale of Stonehouse Park to its new owner, Daren Friesen, with its accompanying change of name to Stonehouse Farm, was finalized last Wednesday.   A temporary special-use permit, solely for holding PSG, was granted on Thursday, and Friesen is going through the process of securing zoning for long-term use.  Friesen attended PSG in 2012 and is the owner of several yoga studios in the area.

This is not the first time PSG faced uncertainty due to drug charges at a campground by other events not related to PSG.  In 2009, PSG moved to Camp Zoe in Missouri.  In November of 2010 Camp Zoe was shut down by federal authorities after a four-year-long investigation allegedly uncovered rampant drug use and sales on the property.    In 2011, PSG moved to Stonehouse Park.  Then in April of 2012 Stonehouse Park underwent increased scrutiny by area residents, law enforcement, and the DeKalb County Board.

Concerns voiced by community members and law enforcement included loud music late at night, underage drinking, and arrests at two events in 2011 where witnesses say multiple people were selling and smoking marijuana.  Park owners improved procedures at the park and barred the groups responsible from Stonehouse Park.  With only weeks until PSG was set to open, the question of if Stonehouse Park would be able to host festivals or would be shut down was still up in the air as the park’s Special Use Permit, needed to host festivals, was recommended to be revoked.

In May of 2012 PSG’s Sharon Stewart worked closely with Stonehouse Park, county officials and park neighbors to seek a solution allowing PSG to be held as scheduled.  Stonehouse Park was granted an amended special use permit, but the approval came with eleven new conditions and contingencies from the hearing officer and health department and board members warned owners that a single violation could lead to a revocation.

Stewart says that the permit passed in part thanks to local Pagan Spirit Gathering attendees speaking out.  ”During the meetings I attended it became abundantly clear we needed local Pagans involved.  John Dickerman, our Sacred Fire Keeper, Barbara Andree and Ana Bledschmidt with the Crone Temple of Wisdom, and Jim Bledschmidt who will be working with the Sages at PSG this summer came on board and their work was invaluable in this. Then at the meeting last night, my assistant Brian Sather and another local PSG’ers Shawn Skau and John’s wife Caroline were there in support.”

PSG2012 happened as scheduled at Stonehouse Park and boasted  record attendance even with the uncertainty regarding the location. Now that the location for PSG2013 is formally secured, registration is open.

Below is the full Press Release from Circle Sanctuary:

Barneveld, WI – Circle Sanctuary announced today the opening of registration for Pagan Spirit Gathering (PSG), to be held on from June 16th – 23rd at Stonehouse Farm Campground in Earlville, Illinois.

“We are absolutely thrilled to be holding PSG at Stonehouse Farm,” said Sharon, PSG coordinator. “This will be our third PSG at this location, and we are excited to work with the new owners of the property to make this event a success and to grow PSG.”

Held the week of the Summer Solstice since 1980, PSG is one of the largest and oldest Nature Spirituality festivals in the United States. Participants come from across the country and internationally to form a joyful and supportive community.

“Our goal for PSG has always been to create a community where like-minded people can meet one another, learn, and develop tools and ideas that they can take home with them to deepen their spirituality in the year to come,” said Selena Fox, Circle Sanctuary’s
founder and Executive Director. “This year our theme is ‘Connections’ and we hope to incorporate many ways for participants to connect with Community, connect with the Land and connect with the Divine!”

Throughout the Gathering, there are hundreds of program activities including rituals, concerts, workshops, panels, meetings, intensives, revels, dancing, drumming, firespinning, and bonfires. There are also a variety of youth program activities including specific programming for children, tweens, and teens. In addition, there is leadership training for Pagan ministers and other leaders through the Pagan Leadership Institute. Applications for programming and merchanting are now being accepted at www.circlesanctuary.org/psg.

Registration is open now via http://www.circlesanctuary.org at the “early bird” reduced rate until March 3rd. For more information visit http://www.circlesanctuary.org/psg.