My relationship to Youth Passageways & how I now call them family began when Clement encouraged me to work with Pacific Quest on the Big Island. Through my work in horticultural therapy, I developed skills to guide youth in meaningful rites of passage experiences. I have come to believe, beyond a shadow of a doubt, these ceremonial and intentional spaces are a necessary field of healthy youth development.
It was during this time that I also met Darcy, who over the years has served as one of the inspiring way to soulfully & authentically live my life by example in service to the sacred. The kismet of reuniting with Clem & meeting their friend Darcy on the Big island, a place of refuge, took us to the dance-floor and my participation in the game-changing work of Golden Bridge, founded by Melissa Michaels. A body of work that brought me home, again & again through embodiment practices.
And here is where a very personal, transformative initiation into healthy adulthood occurred for myself as I began Queer Odyssey- the journey you all have been following of mine for the past 3 + years, beginning with crossing the Atlantic on a 50 ft. sailboat! In all of this, I was developing my relationship to YPW, encouraged to write about & explore Gender by Dane Zahorsky & find ways to champion the benefits of restoring ROP as we "confront an unparalleled global crisis —... the revitalization of rites of passage has the potential to play a leading role in the renewal of our communities and the human family."
Rites of Passage, for me, serves as a map for navigating life challenges. This lens I use to shape my world view, my Guides along the way, the lives I have impacted by being guided by my heart to live authentically is due in large part because of the compass I call Youth Passageways. I am eternally grateful & devoted to this body of work and honored to have been recently elected to the Stewardship Council.
For those of you I have impacted, supported and touched through the way I move through the world, please give to Youth Passageways. This family, all those folks I mentioned above, those woven into the fabric of YPW too, continues to give to me in so many ways and I'd be jazzed to be a part of meeting our year end goal.
AND this #GivingTuesday Nov 27, Facebook and PayPal will match donations! Thank you for your support. I've included a link about Youth Passageways below to learn more.
http://youthpassageways.org/