Intention to Manifestation

In the December-2010 Mountain Matters I wrote; "It is difficult to imagine what might be possible as we venture forward, yet we continue to imagine ~ a place where community gathers, where we practice loving each other well, where you are already forgiven, where you are reminded of your Divine essence, and where we invite each other to "engage the whole world in a conspiracy of love."

Oh the joy of belonging in a place that practices ‘a conspiracy of love’. As the year is concluding and we enter the days and weeks sometimes referred to as the dreamtime of the year, I find myself both opening to the dream and reflective of the dream made manifest. What a remarkable gift this year has been for Shalom ~ from intention to manifestation. Not to say that the hard work is done, rather taking a moment in time to pause ~ to listen in as the light recedes and the world quiets. To raise our hands with hearts wide open and bless what is, with gratitude.

Even as we recognize that we are entering what can be a very socially active season, consciously coming into the dreamtime allows me to live in some balance. As a committed introvert who regularly practices extroversion, heeding the call to the inner world comes with some ease. And I am aware that my relationships continually beckon me to engage fully in the world. Finding a comfortable flow remains my imperative.

As you live into these weeks of quieting and celebration, may you find the balance of inner and outer that feeds your soul. And, whether together or apart, may we continue ‘to engage the whole world in a conspiracy of love’.

Blessings of the season,  Nance

A New Chapter for Women Loving Women!

by Stephanie Roy

In October of 2011, LJ left a message on my voicemail asking me if I had any interest in co-leading WLW Retreats with her at the Mountain. It only took a moment before I heard a deep and resonant "Yes" in my heart.

I’ve always been something of a late bloomer and coming into my authentic sexuality was no exception. In many ways, I have the Shalom Process and the incredible Shalom community to thank for my own awakening as a woman who loves women. I first came to Shalom in 1991, with almost 3 years of sobriety, to work on (what else?) unfinished business with my mother. In the ensuing years and over the course of retreats too numerous to mention, the Shalom process held me as my soul attended to the broken places with my parents, my perpetrator, my ex-husband, my Creator and ultimately of course, with myself. (… Read more)

Elder Retreats Launched

by Michael Thomas

This October witnessed the advent of the first Shalom Mountain Elder Retreat ever. It was overbooked solid without a single phone call. It didn’t matter that we participants were still asking, "What is an elder anyway?" The magic of the mountain was still strong, and this generation of forerunners still felt the power of belonging that kept us close for so long.

It started low key, Joy and Lawrence leading. We told our stories Friday morning attempting to articulate what it meant to us to have arrived at this point in our lives. There was, of course more to tell: Friday afternoon we took time to list our personal and professional accomplishments over our lifetimes. We marveled at how diverse and powerful a group we are. In the evening, we were reminded that along with the bright light of our accomplishments, we still have darker sides to attend to and heal. We explored sobering questions in a fair witness framework about what and who we had yet to forgive, ourselves and others. (… Read more)

The Season for Gratitude & for Giving…

by Rosemary Calderalo, Director of Development 

Jacques Cousteau once said, "If you realize you are only a violin, you can open yourself up to the world by playing your role in the concert."

Here at Shalom, we learn to feel into and live the beauty of our individuality and our place in community. We may not literally pick up a violin but we can come to understand the music in our souls. Whether we’re dancing to our own soul’s vibration or to the music so lovingly chosen by a leader, it’s about the coming together to live, to laugh, to love.

So from that place of joy inside, we hope you will consider how you can help support the ongoing work of Shalom in healing the world one person at a time. Perhaps you are already a Faithful Friend but can give an extra gift at the holidays. Or, you’ve thought about becoming a Faithful Friend and are ready to commit. If you’re at or nearing retirement and would like to give a gift but need to think about meeting expenses, consider a charitable remainder annuity or unitrust, gifts which would help support Shalom while providing guaranteed income as well as tax benefits. It’s been a year of growth and change, successful because of the commitment and generosity of so many. Help Shalom move into its next stage and consider your part today!

Whether you can give just a symbolic dollar to be counted towards the funds that must be raised or whether you can give more extensively, every contribution is needed and deeply appreciated.

And remember, Shalom Mountain is a nonprofit organization and gifts are fully tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law. For more information on the different ways you can help, click here to go to the donations page or contact me at 203-536-6620 to discuss possibilities from a one-time gift to monthly giving through Faithful Friends to the wide variety of estate planning options.

Thank you and best wishes for the holiday season!

Report from the Board of Directors

by Joyce Harvey-Morgan, Secretary of Board of Directors

What a year it has been! We approach year’s end with high enrollments, successful new programs, a highly effective staff, and ever increasing numbers of community members sharing their talents to support Shalom Mountain. The Board is delighted with all of this and we want to express our deep gratitude to each of you who has helped enrich this vibrant organization.

In our October annual meeting (our first!) on the Mountain, we all paused to reflect on just how far we have come and how much has been accomplished in such a short time. We began our first annual planning cycle, with final business plans and budgets nearing completion for 2012. While the Board is the policy/governance arm of SMI, the Executive Council is the operational arm. Nance McGee, Rosemary Calderalo, Tom Goddard, and recently added Victoria Myer (finances) are working hard to create a highly effective and collaborative operational team. The Executive Council and the Board each meet regularly separately and jointly every six weeks.

In our new status as a nonprofit, we have become a fully community-funded organization, and the Board is therefore delighted to endorse the holiday fundraising campaign. Each of us has committed to make a tribute gift to the Mountain in honor of someone or something precious to us. We are excited by all the energy on the Mountain and encourage you to join us and consider making a special tribute gift of your own or a general holiday contribution. We also invite each of you to find the place(s) where you can be a part of this actively supportive community.

Please be aware that in our efforts to keep you informed about our activities, Board minutes are regularly posted on the website here.

And here’s to a wonderful, sustainable 2012 on Shalom Mountain!

The misty weather on the Mountain these days is perfectly mirroring the weather inside of me as I prepare for the ending of my time living and serving at Shalom. I experience the fog as a holding, loving presence – the breath of god – as well as an invitation for me to lean into the mystery of the unfolding of my life.

As Registrar, it has been a pleasure and honour to be the face and voice of Shalom for new and returning community members. It has been a privilege to meet so many beautiful mirrors, even as it has been a challenge living in the "accelerated earth school program" that intentional community offers. I am grateful to have heard the call to service in helping to develop the RSVP (Residential Stewardship Volunteer Program) and I have been deeply moved by witnessing so many of you as you embody the principle of "love is goodwill in action".

In reflecting on what Shalom means to me, I remember a morning in the fall of 2008, after completing my first Intro to Process training session. A freak overnight snowstormfound me scraping ice off the tree in the front garden in an effort to save its heavily weighted down branches. As each limb sprang back to life it struck me that I was doing for this tree what Shalom had done for me: lifted the weight of pain, shame, fear and anger from the branches of my heart, soul, body and mind so that I could once again fully experience the flow of my life force energy. In that amazing moment of consciousness, there was no separation between me, the tree and the divine. The scar on the trunk of that beautiful tree where one branch could not be saved, reminds me that it is from my wounded places that I am able to love the biggest in the world and show up the most fully and authentically for my life.

Thank you for the opportunity to strive towards living the Principles and Skills of Loving, to dive deeply into myself, to take such huge leaps forward on my journey and for teaching me that ecstasy really is my birthright. I am excited and ready to take and share what I have learned at Shalom, continue to live with a daily intention to love well and live large and to call myself and others to be fully alive in the midst of the world!

Betty Ann Rutledge

barutledge@hotmail.com

Well wishes and deep gratitude to Betty Ann as she ventures out to enjoy some time visiting with friends and loved ones before heading back to the Toronto area. Thanks for the loving service you’ve given to the Mountain.

Welcome home to Karen Landry, who has returned to serve the Mountain as the new Administrator. It is likely if you call Shalom, you’ll encounter a familiar voice on the other end of the line.

With Love and Gratitude

To all of the folks who gathered for the April Work Weekend and loved up the house, property and gardens. To Shelly Reichenbach for her enthusiastic coordination and to Tom Goddard and Shaena Heintz for their entertaining and successful auctioneering.

To Leslie Krasne who worked her magic with paint in the 2nd floor bathrooms.

To Emma Wrigley and Leslie Krasne for hospitality support.

To Elizabeth Broyles for admin and hospitality support and Spiritual Direction.

For the Mentees ongoing service ~ Thanks Judi and Sarah Jez.

Saying Goodbye

We bid goodbye to Sarah Jez Duckworth who has completed her six weeks in residence as a participant in the Mentorship Program. Sarah leaves her footprints on the land, her smile in our hearts and the generosity of her stewardship . . . we expect to welcome you back soon!

"Our Shalom, Our Future"

There have been many successes over the past months as the Shalom Mountain community has worked together to focus on supporting the ongoing evolution of our sacred ground and the ways in which people are called to be loving and fully alive! And on this journey we find that once again we are called to trust the process, which due to all the legalities involved, is turning out to be a longer road than originally anticipated. Everything continues to progress, however the timeline has lengthened because it feels particularly important to make sure that all is in order for the best set-up of the new organization for the sake of all who have so generously contributed to make it possible.  

We have chosen what feels to be the best path forward by merging FSM and the new Shalom Mountain, Inc at the time of the sale, even though it will take longer.

In the last months, the money was raised to secure the purchase of Shalom Mountain . A new educational  501c3, Shalom Mountain, Inc. was registered in NY State, whose mission makes it possible to run a retreat center.  A new board was selected to take office at the time of the sale.

To now form the merger and close the sale we are in the process of reaching the following milestones:

1. Secure the accountant to file 2010 taxes and perform a certified financial audit for FSM (With the generous donations of community members, FSM is now in a non-profit IRS bracket that requires a certified financial end of year audit and more in-depth tax filing.) 30-90 days
2. File for approval of merger of FSM and new Shalom Mountain, Inc. with the Attorney General of New York.  Another 30-60 days 
3. Closing

We are using the extra time to prepare well.  

1. The attorneys and accountants are working with all parties to prepare the sale documents and agreements.
2. The new board is building the team and forming purpose statements and bylaws. 
3. And Tom Kovalich has re-joined us to guide the merging of the FSM and Retreat Center financial systems.  Tom was the creator of the FSM bookkeeping system and so it’s wonderful to have him guide the merger of books with his love of the Mountain and great financial experience and wisdom.

There are many people working on all aspects of this process from legal, financial, management, relational and communication.  This is the gift of many hands!

You will continue to receive more information regarding the evolution of Shalom Mountain as it continues to unfold.

Meet the New Board members for Shalom Mountain, Inc.

After an in depth selection process by the Trustees, the following community members, who carry a wealth and range of experience both on and off the Mountain, have agreed to serve on the board for the new Shalom Mountain, Inc. These individuals carry a passion and love for the soul of Shalom and bring a breath of professional experience, Shalom community involvement and representation across the Shalom family, not to mention geographical area! 

The new board will officially take office at the time of the sale. They will have their first in person meeting following the April Work weekend. Join us in April to have the chance to welcome these bold souls on board and to get to know them better in the informal setting of a Shalom work weekend. 

To read more in depth personally written biographical information of the board members click here

These past few mornings on the Mountain have held the promise of spring despite winter’s last breath of snow.

There have been robin sightings, the sound of the woodpecker making itself known in the early morning, crocuses are peeking their heads through the mud and the sound of snow run-off is trickling in the woods. It is a welcome sign after an arduous winter of trying to keep up with the incessant snowfall. Before long the first Work Weekend will be here and the return of the larger community to help spruce up what winter has left in her wake.

A recent wind-storm moved throughand since then we’ve been working to clean up some of the damage. We were without power for a couple of days which created some interesting navigation during the February Shalom Retreat and of course, the loving community rose to the occasion with mat-trips by candlelight among other oddities. It continues to amaze me how love can transcend just about anything including these mildly uncomfortable conditions.

I am please to let you know that Elizabeth Broyles has agreed to come to the Mountain to be in residence for a day and a half each week. Elizabeth is currently making her home in Kerhonkson, NY, about an hour from Shalom Mountain. Her time at the Mountain is being used assisting with hospitality and in the business office as well as a twice monthly, offering of Spiritual Direction to the residential team. We are deeply grateful for her playful, quiet wisdom and happy to have her as part of our community.

Blessings to Dave as he continues to tend to "all things needing fixin". In the next couple of weeks he and Cristian will be working to get the list ready for the April Work Weekend when we’ll have a chance to bring the Mountain into her springtime glory! We also welcome Betty Ann back after being in Toronto for the past week.

These past few weeks we’ve been pleased to receive help from some community members including Emma Wrigley, Leslie Krasne and this week a visit from Alex York and Laura Gordon. What a delight to know that loving hands and hearts show up when most needed to offer a blessing and practical support to this place we love.

Last week we offered a low-cost Shalom Retreat led by Carrie Jameson, Elliott Strick, Dianne Weisselberg and Craig Hopkins and supervised by Vyana and Nance. The house was full up and several folks, here for the first time, got a taste of what loving community feels like. I am deeply grateful for the leadership team for offering their time and gifts as well as Barbara Brown who offered bodywork on a "love offering" basis for anyone who wanted it. It was truly a weekend of abundance and great generosity.

Last weekend at the Mountain, we hosted Victoria Myer and family for a private family celebration in honor of Victoria’s 50^th birthday. Victoria, for all the love you have poured into this place and this community, we trust that you’ll feel it returned to you from the all the love steeped in the walls and the property, as you gather here to celebrate. Congratulations!

As spring begins to unfold, I hope that "love is in the air" wherever you are and that you know you are welcome to return here to the Mountain anytime to be reminded that, "more than anything, we want to love and be loved” .

Blessings and Love,

www.shalommountain.com

“More than anything else we long to love and be loved.”

Hello dear ones,

The Shalom process has forever changed our lives and continues to call us to be conscious, loving, and fully alive.  Shalom Mountain has been a home-of-the-heart for thousands of people for more than 35 years. We don’t want to imagine a world without Shalom. And yet without a strong financial intervention before the end of this year, it’s something we may have to face.

Fortunately, there is a plan: We, the Mountain Trustees, working with a network of Shalomers, have spent the last 6 months identifying, articulating, and developing a plan to carry out the will of the community for Shalom Mountain’s future. The results of these labors are now available for your review on the website, www.shalommountain.com. There we lay out our findings and call for your help to ensure Shalom’s strong and vibrant future.

We are excited to announce that Shalom is planning to expand from being a privately owned business to a nonprofit organization, community funded and operated. We are inspired and optimistic about Shalom’s prospects and hope you will choose to contribute as strongly as you are able in this new dream for our future.

Sincerely,

The Mountain Trustees
Victoria & Shawn Myer
Nancy Thomas
Nance McGee
Joy Davey
Lawrence Stibbards
Ken Frank
Judy Weiss
Vyana Bergen

www.shalommountain.com

It has been a busy and full summer on the Mountain.  There has been an enormous amount of tending, watering, growing, weeding at all levels and I can feel that we are now ready to move into the season of harvest.  It feels that Labor Day is arriving as the great metaphor for all that has transpired over the last couple of months.

Shawn and I were fortunate to attend two retreats this summer that blessed us both.  My experience at the Wisdom School session with Marc Gafni comes from that place that is hard to articulate.  I entered a deep, deep space where through the transmission of the dharma the gathered community was together evolving consciousness.  A real WOW experience.  We were also privileged to participate in the summer couples retreat, which was a full retreat, rich with laughter, story, deep sharing and connection and loving expansion arising out of the particular perfect alchemy of the group gathered that inspired and fed us all.

I would like to share with you more of the highlights of the summer at the Mountain: 

• 28 new people came to the Mountain for the first time this July and August!
• Nance McGee moved to the Mountain in July and has taken up a large portion of running the retreat center and overseeing leadership and programs.  Her presence and attention have been greatly appreciated.
• The Body Sacred community donated a brand new dishwasher for the kitchen!  Wow!
• Women Loving Women celebrated 10 years of community on the Mountain with a full summer retreat.
• The teens and young adults participated in three retreats over the summer
• Over 30 people came together to celebrate and connect at both the Women’s Festival and the Family Festival.
• The Gender Outlaw community held their second retreat for this year.
• The longer extended Spirituality and Sexuality and Integrating Life Choices retreats were well attended and afforded more time to sink into the heart and land of the Mountain. 
• So far there have been 298 responses to the Shalom Mountain community survey. What an amazing response!  If anyone is still wanting to respond, do so now as we will be closing off on Monday morning to be able to post results in advance of the Labor day weekend to the whole community.

The Mountain Trustees along with consultant Trish Blain have been laboring intensely to develop the vision and plan for a Shalom Mountain owned by community members. We are excited to share with the community what we have gathered from the community surveys and ownership possibilities at Labor Day work weekend.  Come join us for this significant time!

The fruits of our labor are upon us.

Victoria

It feels like great winds have been stirring around Shalom Mountain as we continue to explore the next steps in Shalom’s journey. Various plans are being debated and considered, conversations are being held in many corners, and everyone is searching their hearts and their lives for where their piece fits into the picture. There are many things still unknown and some directions seem to change weekly. And here is what I know today.

Retreats, gatherings and work weekends continue to gather the community. Over 120 people attended the May work weekend where much work and love was accomplished! One community member referred to the June Women’s Festival as "BEST EVER WOMEN’S FESTIVAL, 2010" (See Quote/Unquote in sidebar) and we are gearing up for a full summer of Teens and Young Adults, Families, Path of the Mystic, Wisdom School, Integrating Life Choices, and Women Loving Women.  Please take a look at our calendar (left) and see if one of our programs calls you to be on the Mountain this summer.

The September 2010-August 2011 program brochure should have arrived in your mailbox with a complete year of programming ahead. (If you would like additional copies, please contact the office.) Beginning in September, the price structure will change. Please note this is the first price increase in five years and we have moved from a sliding scale to a fixed rate fee structure.  Three-day retreats will now be $650, four-day retreats $750, five-day $850, six-day $950, and seven-day $1050. A few specialized programs such as Moving into Recovery, Teens and Young Adults, and Couples have their own fee structure. For many of you this may mean a small increase in fees which has been necessary to cover costs of running retreats. We trust that the transformative nature of the Shalom experience is well worth the cost of offering this work.

In early July Nance McGee will be moving into 663 Cattail Road (formerly the home of Joy and Lawrence) in order to be closer geographically as she continues to play a more active role in the running of the retreat center and programs.

As for ownership of the Mountain, Nance and a group of leaders continue to be in discussion around a leader run business and FSM continues to explore the possibilities of community owned property. Discussions continue around possible models for these transitions.

Judy Hall, who has brought her passion for the earth, the community, the food and our connection with it all has served the Mountain for over a year and has decided to end her residential time on August 5th.  Her contributions to Shalom are felt deep within the earth and the community.  We are so grateful for the gifts she has brought!

As seems to be the nature of Shalom and it’s work, life is continuously in process and birthing us and itself….so here I am again:

Trusting the process,

Victoria

It is a time of reflection on our beloved and mysterious Shalom Mountain as an evolving hope structure for our community and the world.  We have all in some way been captivated by her gifts and our lives have been transformed, although not often easily, by how she has required each of us to lay down our lives in ways we never imagined.  Yet, we have no choice but to follow her divine calling as it guides our individual and collective unfolding.

My story begins when I was 17 and attended, with my father, my first Shalom Retreat led by the wild and ingenious Jerry Jud and his then wife, Elisabeth.  Jerry and his consorts brought into our world this transformational process rooted in loving community.  When it was time for him tomove on, he called on Joy and Lawrence, who said yes to something not yet imagined in their lives.  In answering their call, their lives also transformed the many who came on retreat with them and even the nature of the organization itself.  As well as leading retreats and running the center, they began to teach others how to do those things and a leadership base began to emerge.

When Shawn and I began to feel the call, we were standing on top of Machu Picchu in Peru, in a healing ritual with Joy, Lawrence and a group of Shalomers.   Terry received his call to service in circle with Jerry Jud.  We imagined that our part was to make it possible for Joy and Lawrence to move to the next stage in their lives and to support Shalom through a transition time where a collaborative leadership base would develop to run the business and a whole community of stewards would unite and mobilize to sustain the future of Shalom. 

Our calling to be part of this process has required of us time, energy, finances, sweat and tears far beyond our comfort zone.  And yet, our calling and love for Joy and Lawrence, each other and Shalom Mountain left us no choice but to heed it.  Our lives have once again been transformed in ways we do not even yet fully realize.

Many are stepping forward to answer their call to serve and support and we are very excited to be a part of this unfolding vision.  At this time a group of leaders is in discussion around buying the retreat center business. FSM, with the help of the community, has decided to explore the possibility of buying the property.  We, the steward owners, fully advocate this transfer of the retreat center to the leaders and feel it is the right time for you the community to become owners of the land as the best way to support the continuation of the work of the retreat center.  We are eager to continue to do what we can, both financially and energetically, toward this next evolution.  Many of you have expressed your desire to be a part of securing the transformational power of Shalom and are intimately aware of what is required to lay down one’s life as the process takes hold of you. 

To take the next step always requires us to stretch and step out of our comfort zone to fully enter what is to come.  I invite you now to stretch into what Shalom is calling you to make possible and join us in becoming a part of holding, loving and securing Shalom and all she has to offer. 

More information coming soon from FSM!

Blessings,

Victoria

Memorial Day Work Weekend!

Friday, May 28 – Monday May 31, 2010

April 2010 Work Weekend

Love is goodwill in action.

Love is a response to need.

Come join us for a weekend of serving your beloved Shalom Mountain and living into the Skills and Principles of Loving

After an amazing April Work Weekend where many projects were attended to, the temple and grounds still needs lots of loving tending! One way that you can tend the temple of Shalom this summer, is to bring your love in the form of flowers to be planted over the weekend.  Our flower garden will be the product of your generosity of a flat or a couple pots of your favorite flowers or something from your garden that you would like to share.

Friday evening we gather for a potluck supper (bring a dish for eight) and community building. Saturday and Sunday we work for six to eight hours during the day and then spend the evening together with dancing and an auction to benefit Friends of Shalom Mountain and a Sunday night Talent Show. We wrap up the weekend celebrating our time together with a renewed commitment to live lovingly in the world.  Here are some of the projects that will need loving hands:

·  Clearing fallen branches on the land, chopping wood and gathering kindling
·  Painting the pool (scraping and priming got done in April!)
·  Washing windows
·  Gardening, gardening, gardening
·  Cleaning and reorganizing
·  Many indoor and outdoor tasks of tending to house and grounds for all ages and skill levels

Important info:

- Rooms are first come first served.
- Arrive after lunch on Friday, please! Early arrivals must be negotiated with us in advance.
- Bring a tent, sleeping bag (linens not provided) and your personal belongings.
- Bring a flat or a few pots of your favorite flowers (with a tag with your name and description of plant)
- Bring a potluck dish for eight for Friday evening
- Cost to help cover food:  $35 adults $10 children (6-12 yrs old). CASH preferred.
- Work weekends on Shalom Mountain are drug and alcohol free events.

Let us know you’ll be here so we can plan for you!  RSVP to: 845-482-5421, email@shalommountain.com or use our online registration.

PLEASE RSVP 

Life On the Mountain

NEWS FROM THE VOLUNTEER PROGRAM

By Judy Hall

Welcome Alex York!

First visit to Shalom Mountain:September 2001
Resident tenure: May 15 – the end of August
RSVP Position:Maintenance, general support
Former jobs: food service, landscaping, sales, limited painting apprentice, limited carpenter apprentice.
Favorite pastime on Cattail Road: Bonfires… hands down
Last book read: Fear and Trembling Kierkegaard, but there is a new one every day or so…
Quote: well… "All great deeds and all great thoughts have a ridiculous beginning. Great works are often born on a street corner or in a restaurant’s revolving door." – Camus

and Maeba Jonas!

First visit to Shalom Mountain: October 2008 Maeba Jonas

Resident tenure: Summer 2010 – May Work Weekend through The Family Festival
RSVP Position: Helping out Betty Ann in the office and house, also working on special video projects.

Former jobs: Johns Hopkins School of Public Health – HIV/AIDS research with at-risk drug users in Baltimore, Maryland.

Favorite pastime on Cattail Road:  Exploring new and exciting secrets of the mountain
Last book read: The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery
Quote: "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly, what is essential is invisible to the mind." – The Little Prince

********************************************

Recent RSVP Acts of Kindness

A special thank you to nine RSVPers who contributed in the months of April and May!

Bara Brown (Feb/Mar)

Maeba Jonas
Leslie Krasner

Jen Kuhlman
Roberta Mahler
Emma Wrigley

Above and Beyond the Call:

Easter Weekend Painting Party:
Jen Kuhlman
Arianna Santoriello
David Turpin
Alex York
LRae York
and thanks to Carrie Jamison for supplying the kitchen with some brand new tea towels! 

If you would like information about arranging to come early or stay after a retreat to volunteer, please contact Betty Ann or Judy at 845-482-5421 or email@shalommountain.com

KEEPING THE DREAM ALIVE AND VIBRANT

(Follow-up to my article in the January FSM Community News newsletter)

By Ken Frank, FSM President

In the Friends of Shalom Mountain (FSM) newsletter I stated that "I am committed with FSM to working with the owners and leadership to find successful ways through the challenges of this time." THIS PROJECT HAS BEGUN.

On January 20^th, in response to a request from Victoria, FSM convened a team of skilled professionals from within the Shalom community though not actively involved in Shalom Mountain (except as lovers and cheerleaders.) The Advisory Group met with the current owners who reported that they are in critical need of both relief from the financial risk and of support in ways to run the business. New approaches are needed to ensure continued viability and long term sustainability.

The group concurred that the issues of ownership and leadership needed to be dealt with separately, and individuals on the team committed to specific tasks in these two areas. Individuals from the Advisory Group will be working with both the owners and the Leadership Council to develop a set of critical choices for the owners to make that will meet their needs as well as the needs of Shalom Mountain, the leadership, and the Shalom community.

There was great gratitude to the current owners for stepping up two years ago; and the understanding that the specific management work and financial risk, coupled with the current economic climate, were far greater and more complex than they could have predicted or even imagined. There was absolute consensus that the job is to "start from where we are today and build on past and current successes." Some of these successes are evident in the high quality of leadership of retreats, the interest in and quality of training, the on-site staff both paid and volunteer, the recent cost savings in running the center, the magnificent and sacred ‘campus’ that is Shalom Mountain, and the loyalty and gratitude of the thousands of folks whose lives have been forever enriched by Shalom Mountain.

In response to your possible question of, "What can I do?" I would ask you to communicate with me personally if you have specific questions, brainstorms, or offering of expertise; join, continue, or expand your Faithful Friend contribution (this directly impacts the financial picture), add Shalom Mountain to your prayers, and most of all… hold a space of healing, renewal, viability and sustainability for our beloved Shalom Mountain mother house as this project progresses.

Thanks to Ken Frank for his contribution above! And now a few words from Victoria:

Many of you have asked what the Mountain needs.  What can you do?

• Attending retreats and encouraging others to attend provides the necessary income to operate the Mountain.  65 of us each bringing one new person to a retreat on the Mountain in 2010 would eliminate a loss similar to this year’s. 
• Contributing to FSM responds to the need for increased tuition assistance. 50 new Faithful Friends donating $17 a month or 50 Faithful Friends increasing their monthly donations by $17 would provide for $10,000 in tuition assistance.  More tuition assistance makes it possible for more people to come to retreats, which directly supports the Mountain.

• Volunteering your expertise and time for care of thefacility, support and promotion of the organization and its programs and special projects maintains and grows the Mountain.  Donating expertise in areas such as bookkeeping, web design, marketing, maintenance, gardening, printing, etc. saves the Mountain thousands of dollars a year.

 
Victoria Myer

Life On the Mountain

NEWS FROM THE KITCHEN AND VOLUNTEER PROGRAM

By Judy Hall

Pork Present

The pig (known affectionately to some as Kevin – Bacon, that is) that was raised on our kitchen leavings by Rich and Maryanne Dirie at the farm around the corner on Shandelee Road was slaughtered in November and his life has fed several retreats and the residents in the form of breakfast sausage and a delicious roast cooked by our new RSVP cook in residence John Carbone.

Goodbye

Two of the original members of the RSVP Team,Niilo Makkonen and Kathryn Zimmerman, are no longer living here. Niilo completed his 6 month commitment to RSVP and is taking the next steps in his life. Kathryn who is working with the Stewards on sorting out financial data, is now doing this remotely from her home in Rochester as she prepares to hike the Pacific Crest Trail in March! Niilo and Kathryn were here during the formation of this experiment that is the new residential volunteer program and we are grateful for their contribution. As we gather the data from our learnings of the last six months, we feel tender about some of the bumps along the road and extend our thanks to everyone involved for their patience and loving support.

Hello: Two New Residential Volunteers

Our two new residential volunteers started in January. John Carbone has chosen for his service to the Mountain, liaising with the cooks, the organization of the kitchen and pantries and the ordering of the food. Having been a cook here he has inside information and has been enormously helpful already. John being who he is has also found other ways to serve including organizing the wood and kindling for the fireplaces and helping with the labyrinth. Jen Kuhlmanwill be working more with Betty Ann Rutledge in the office and around the house and intends to bring her loving energy and creativity to the temple in whatever ways are needed.

In addition to our two new residents we have had an abundance of RSVP help this month. For example oneconversation Judy had with Tom Wickes(Shalom Seacoast Community) about the ecological and psychological value of eating seasonal and local food this summer, resulted in a New Year’s Eve feast of clams, halibut, lobster and salmon that he sought out at the markets and piers in Gloucester, brought to the Sober But Stuck Retreat and lovingly prepared with his partnerFrancesca!

Another conversation Judy had withRoberta Mahler on the April Work Weekend resulted in Roberta coming to Shalom for 3 days in January to help plan next steps for the Greening of Shalom. While she was here she also published an advertisement on an organic farming website to recruit an RSVPer with permaculture skills, and found a home for some red wrigglers. Click here to read the significant and funny story of red wrigglers at Shalom!

Wiki Site for Shalom Cooks
Another summer conversation seeded with Emma Wrigleyat the Cooks’ Meeting poked its head part way out of the ground a week ago when she was here as an RSVP building a Wiki site for Shalom Cooks to come together. It is just alittle sprout at this point but it has so many exciting possibilities, such as a recipe page, seasonal foods available, who is cooking, news from the kitchen etc. And just like Wikipedia it will be open to anyone who wants to contribute something related to Shalom Food, Garden, Composting, Cooks and the Kitchen.

Organizing Wonders

Wait until you see the undercroft! Maeba Jonas, who is an organizing wonder, tackled it (on one of those freezing cold days up here) with help from Joanna Barr, Jen Kuhlmanand Emma Wrigley. It is so clean two "senior" members of our community who will remain anonymous, suggested we could put a bed in there!David Turpin who seems to be a David-of-all-Trades helped me (Judy Hall) snake the septic. Yes, I am not a virgin anymore. David organized the hall closet and "Lost and Found" as well.

Neighborhood Holiday Party

One winter weeknight this December the walls of Shalom were ringing with the sound of more than 30 neighborscoming together to meet, some for the first time, to share a holiday pot luck dinner. In the Shalom way, led by Amy Gillingham, we gathered in a circle in the living room and shared contact information, interests and talents. This was typed up and redistributed as the start of a Neighborhood Resource Directory. A fruit of that evening is going to be a Board Game Party.

Recent RSVP Acts of Kindness
A special thank you to thirteen RSVPers who contributed in the month of January!

• Joanna Barr
• John Carbone
• Judy Johnstone
• Maeba Jonas
• Jen Kuhlman
• Karen Landry
• Roberta Mahler
• Niilo Makkonen
• Jeff Skarr
• David Turpin
• Trish Wassel
• Emma Wrigley
• Kathryn Zimmerman

Commitments!

Sending
Help
And
Love (to)
Our
Mountain!

What are YOU willing to do for Shalom Mountain this year?
Send an email to Betty Ann Rutledge at the Mountain and we’ll anonymously (with your state only) publish your commitments next month!

For Example:
From NY:  A commitment to bring 2 friends to a Shalom Retreat by September
From MA:  A commitment to take brochures on the Recovery Programs to a local AA Group
From CA:  A commitment to add $25/month to my Faithful Friends donations.
JOIN IN THE FUN!

Brand New Retreat Participants

9 = Number of brand new retreat participants in January 2010!
Wow!

As the end of the 2009 year approaches, I find myself in a time of review and reflection. While Shalom has weathered various challenges this year from changes in residents to a global economic downturn, I am encouraged by the outpouring of love and support of so many for the Mountain, from the leaders who offer their skills, time and dedication to running retreats and tending to the community, to the staff and all the volunteers who care for the facilities, prepare for retreats and provide many areas of support and interfacing with the community.  And of course, all who come to retreats and make it possible for others to come to retreats keep the Mountain alive.  We are a community of many loving supporters.
Many of you have asked for clearer information on the state of affairs at Shalom Mountain and here is what I can offer at this point:

• Betty Ann Rutledge and Judy Hall are coordinating the retreat center and the Residential Stewardship Volunteer Program (RSVP) and receive a stipend for their work on the Mountain.
• Niilo Makkonen and Kathryn Zimmerman are residential volunteers (RSVPers) on the Mountain.  Two others, John Carbone and Jen (J.J.) Kuhlman will be coming in January for several months (Meet them below).  These volunteers cover facility caretaking, office and financial consulting support, kitchen and housekeeping support.
• Additional volunteers have been coming to the Mountain for a day or two before or after a retreat, and some of you have expressed interest in coming up for shorter stays to work on special projects or assist from home with outreach and local community support.
• The two staff members and leaders of retreats are the only financially compensated roles in the organization.  All work done by the leadership council (other than leading retreats), the owners, bookkeeper, residential and community volunteers, FSM board and committee members is a labor of love and service and not financially compensated.
• By November 2009 Shalom Mountain had a significant loss this year of over $25,000.  This was a result of a 24% decrease in retreat income.  This means that the Mountain did not bring in enough money to cover its expenses for the year.  
• Retreat income included $50,000 in tuition assistance from the community provided through FSM. Tuition assistance in 2008 was $45,000 and in 2007 was $36,000.
• Given that this level of loss is not sustainable, conversations are taking place with owners, leaders and community members about the organizational and financial structures that will best sustain Shalom Mountain.

Many of you have asked what the Mountain needs.  What can you do?

• Attending retreats and encouraging others to attend provides the necessary income to operate the Mountain.  65 of us each bringing one new person to a retreat on the Mountain in 2010 would eliminate a loss similar to this year’s.

• Contributing to FSM responds to the need for increased tuition assistance. 50 new Faithful Friends donating $17 a month or 50 Faithful Friends increasing their monthly donations by $17 would provide for $10,000 in tuition assistance.  More tuition assistance makes it possible for more people to come to retreats, which directly supports the Mountain.

• Volunteering your expertise and time for care of the facility, support and promotion of the organization and its programs and special projects maintains and grows the Mountain.  Donating expertise in areas such as bookkeeping, web design, marketing, maintenance, gardening, printing, etc. saves the Mountain thousands of dollars a year.

Look for more ideas in the January issue of Mountain Matters about how we as a community can keep supporting and loving Shalom into the future!

As you celebrate the holidays and the coming of a new year may the light of hope and love surround you!
Victoria