Be Love In Action

fall 2026:

Sacred medicine For these Times

REGISTRATION for Community Village 2026 is opening soon.
Sign-up to receive an email invite below. Stay tuned.

In these fractured and fragile times, we remember the blessings of our Creator and get back to the elements, back to Nature. We remember that ceremony is a potent portal for healing our planet and her people. That we each have the power to heal ourselves and our Earth and cleanse and strengthen our souls and systems through prayer, ceremony, gratitude, and reconnection to the land, plants,our Earth Mother, and each other.

Welcome to our 10th annual Community Village Gathering!

Join us as we regenerate a common-life infused with healthy relationship, collaboration, trust and intimacy with Earth and each other, through community. Together, we will live our truth by creating an environment that empowers diversity, honors indigenous roots and nurtures the web of life that holds the evolution of humanity.

For three-four days, we will create a village, invoking a living prayer that includes reparations with first nations peoples, opportunities to connect with our own ancestors and direct experience of living together in ceremony and council. Each year that we create the village, we add another stone in the foundation of earth-based community that honors what is learned by caring for spiritual-elemental forces alongside our elders and children.

THIS IS NOT A WEEKEND RETREAT or FESTIVAL. We create a ceremonial gathering, working together heart-to-heart, hand-to-hand.
This gathering is for families and individuals called to deeply honor the land, the ones who lived here before us, our own ancestors and the wisdom keepers and young ones who hold the seeds of the future.

In addition, you can experience:

Healing Through Song, Circle & Dance
African Drumming & Community Medicine Wheel
Strong guides who support the inclusion of children in the ceremonies and other earth-based activities to meet kids' interests
Encouragement to engage in all areas of holding this gathering. Daily volunteer opportunities are found in the kitchen, supporting ceremonies, children and elders.

Food, Camping & Details:

Our food will be beautifully prepared, with vegetarian options
Camping is available with access to a bathroom, running water and outhouse.
This event is organized by volunteers and offered by donation. We request our guests give generously so we can cover the hard-costs with ease. This allows us to take care of our elders, children and others as needed.
Due to the sacred and family oriented nature of this gathering we are only including guests known to our community. Please email any of us below if you are interested in attending this year’s gathering or use the registration link you have received via email.

The 2022 Power of Ceremony Youth Co-Facilitator, Lucia Morey
It truly takes a village to feel the sanctity of life as we care for one another, the elders, the children and live in harmony with the land, ancestors, elements, and spirit.

Tending the Sacred Fire & Hearbeat Drum to harmonize and unify as a community

The central focus of our village is the ceremonial fire and heartbeat drum guided by Mayan Spiritual Guide Nana Wilma. This practice of uniting as community through a collective act held sacred, has been a way to unite humans with each other and the earth for thousands of years. Being held in circle and ceremony with the sacred Fire and the heartbeat of Earth can open us to our own ancestral memory and wisdom so we can be better guided toward what is needed for ourselves and our world.

Participants are encouraged to experience this collective holding by caring for the fire and-or the heartbeat drum during our gathering.

We will come together to listen and share through talking circles, a ceremonial tool that has been used through the ages, honoring all voices as having equal value in the great circle of life. A healing medicine in and of itself, the talking circle is a sacred form of communion. We will explore topics that require vulnerability, strength, endurance and the creativity inherent within us.

2019 Earthlands Community Village on Nipmuk land. Thank you for all of the generous gifts that have helped us take of the original people where we pray.

Uniting as Community
Guided by Nana Wilma

We will initiate a sacred fire and heartbeat drum to bring balance to ourselves in alignment with our Mother Earth. Guided by Mayan Spiritual Guide Nana Wilma, this practice has been a way to unite humans with each other and the earth for thousands of years. This weekend, we are opening to learn through this practice. The gathering supports individuals to have a direct connection with spirit and nature as we explore topics that require us to share with vulnerability; and, the strength, endurance and creativity inherent within us.

Mayan Spiritual Guide
NANA WILMA

"Difficult times are coming, and we need to see how to survive. The ancestors will say who it falls upon to stay and who it falls upon to leave. If the nature wants it this way, no one can fight against that, yet one knows that they are giving themselves to the Mother Nature.
And for this, the difficult times are looked at.
So, we want to live life as content.
Everything has its timing, everything has its age. So this is all I say, that many of us are leaving and some of us stay for the seed of the future."

Anchoring Our Insight & Ancestral Intelligence
Guided by Marsha Forest

Wisdom keeper marsha forest

Wisdom Keeper Marsha Forest is of Mohawk ancestry (Six Nations Reservation, Ontario, Canada), she's worked as a Registered Nurse for forty years. She is recognized as a Wisdom Keeper and Grandmother by Earth Peoples United and Grandmothers Circle the Earth. She now supports people to help them discover their own strengths and responsibility for their well-being and their environment. She has represented the Aboriginal Nurses Association of Canada; B.C. Nurses Union; Canadian Women’s Health Network; Earth Peoples United; Grandmothers Circle the Earth.

"We could use more lighthouses … and that includes you."
Wisdom Keeper Marsha Forest

uplifting our spirits
with Grandmother Nancy andre

GRANDMOTHER NANCY ANDRE

Grandmother Nancy Andry is of Algonquin and French heritage and has followed the Red Road since childhood. A Sundancer and a Sacred Pipe carrier, she is acknowledged as an elder and a grandmother in her communities in Canada, where she was given instruction to bring out and share certain teachings. Grandmother Nancy is a well-known storyteller, sharing legends from many different Nations in schools, health facilities and the pow wow circuit. She is among those who sought permission to share the Algonguin healing water song.

“We sing this song like a lullaby.
The song means the water is the life's blood of our mother the earth. Water is the life's blood of our own bodies”— Grandma Nancy

* We are grateful to the guidance of our indigenous elders, whose teachings come from their own cultural and personal journey's. Some teachings reflect traditional roles; not every identity may be represented. Everyone is invited to engage and find meaning in a way that resonates.

Special Guests the Ajanku Brothers

AJANKU Brothers Born into the vibrant world of the Sankofa Dance Theater, King and Jumoke Ajanku were immersed in the rich tapestry of West African rhythms from a young age. Their musical odyssey has taken them across continents, from the rustic landscapes of West Africa to the pulsating energy of Madison Square Garden. Along the way, they have studied under esteemed masters and collaborated with international icons, shaping their sound into a seamless blend of heritage and modernity. As artists, they have graced stages worldwide, sharing their passion for music with audiences from all parts of the globe. Whether performing with symphony orchestras or headlining iconic venues like Carnegie Hall, The Ajanku Brothers continue to push the boundaries of musical expression, inspiring listeners with their unique blend of tradition and innovation, and igniting audiences with an unparalleled musical experience.

The Ajanku Brothers carry the torch of multigenerational cultural preservation with levity. Grounded by deep roots, they share an embodied understanding of the rhythms they carry and why they are so needed during these times.

elders, children & families

Wisdom keepers have imparted the benefits of maturing our circles to be inclusive of all people, especially elders and children in ceremonial spaces. We have structured our time together so that it can serve many different interests while including elders and families to receive healing, learning and nourishment, together.

Please note that this is a ceremonial gathering. We thank you for keeping this gathering free of recreational drugs and alcohol. Orchard Hill only allows registered service dogs.

This year's gathering is generated through many generous hearts and hands. If you have specific questions, please reach out to connect with our Community Village Holders or email us here. Consider offering a skills or gift as one of our 2026 Direction Holders. Learn more about our Sacred Wheel and take an interpersonal journey in collaboration.

Kate McConnell
Unity Weaver