[Sdpg] December 2007 Newsletter
Quail Springs
info at quailsprings.org
Fri Dec 14 16:48:01 PST 2007
Quail Springs' December 2007 Newsletter
Winter Greetings from all of us on the land to our community near and far! May your
winter be warm with family and friends and the honoring of the traditions that are dear to
your hearts.
Thank you for all of your support and friendship this year - for the work you do for our
community and the planet in your own lives and for your generous contributions to Quail
Springs in many forms.
Our first snow has fallen, blanketing the ground and giving the plants slow sips of cold
water as the day's sun warms the earth. Winter is such a magical time at Quail
Springs...long cold nights, short bright days, the promise of storms and rain. Everyone
feels the primary importance of SHELTER in the high desert canyon.
We're allowing winter to be a time of reflection, completion of work begun, honoring
family and community relationships, and planning for the coming year, as well as hosting
a few groups at the Quail Springs fire for their programs.
We've initiated our Stewardship Council, which along with our nonprofit Board of
Directors, helps guide Quail Springs' journey and vision. Stewardship Council is composed
of residents of the land with a commitment to stewardship, honors consensus in decision
making, and will meet seasonally. Our first meeting laid the groundwork for our Council
process and plans for programs and projects for the 2008 year.
Comings and Goings...
We'll soon be welcoming home our co-founder, Warren, from a 3 week journey of
learning and teaching in Liberia with the Everyday Gandhis, and can't wait to hear his
stories. We want to welcome to the Quail Springs caretaking team.... Jan and Brenton
and daughter Iris, who come from many years in the Santa Barbara community, including
helping running Island Seed and Feed, and who are helping guide Quail Springs in fund
development, soil regeneration, and master planning for food systems. Welcome to
Rion, who we have known as youth mentor with Wilderness Youth Project and computer
wiz, who is helping everyone with everything here, while braving the winter weather in a
willow lodge of his own making. Welcome also to Justin and Lynn, who come from New
Mexico to continue their learning journey in natural building and gardening, and who are
helping us complete critical building projects and develop food systems. Thank you to
Travis, and Sarah, who joined us as fall interns, and continue on their learning journeys by
going 'back home' to Canada and the Midwest. We miss you already!
Internships
Winter Natural Building Intern Position (January through March, 2008)
We are searching for a gentle, dedicated intern who approaches life and learning with a sense of
curiosity and wonder. Intern will work closely with Justin Kirmse, the coordinator of our current
natural building projects, to assist in completing two strawbale projects. Intern will have the
opportunity to learn on-site clay harvesting, base coat and finish coat plasters, earthen floors,
and clay paints, while also participating in community life on a drylands permaculture
demonstration site. Experience is not necessary. Please contact info at quailsprings.org or 805-
886-7239 to learn more. After initial inquiry, we'll arrange for potential interns to interview with
Justin by phone.
Interested Interns please inquire for 2008...
We're developing a dynamic intern program that will include focused skill building along with
service learning for the coming year. More information and applications will be available in
February 2008 for internships running from March/April through October/November. Contact
Kolmi at info at quailsprings.org if you're interested.
Skill building opportunities will include natural building, permaculture design, food systems,
gardening, aquaculture, watershed restoration, animal husbandry, fund development, and
more. Experience and training is not needed, although this is a great opportunity to further
experience and education in all aspects of farm and permaculture site development.
Events and Courses
Weaving Our World into Life - a Natural Fiber Arts workshop
First in a series of "Hands and Hearts" Skill Builders at Quail Springs
March or April 2008 - dates and details TBA
This will be the first in a series of our "Hands and Hearts" Skill Builders. These will be 1-3 day
workshops that focus on various hands-on skills, taught by special guest teachers as well as on-
site teachers, all with the intention of using our hands and hearts to regenerate healthy
community life, meet our human needs, and honor the natural world. Contact Kolmi at
info at quailsprings.org to join an interest list for this or other Skill Builders.
Service Learning weekends return in Spring 2008
We will offer volunteer visitor weekends again in Spring 2008 as a time for interested people to
receive a tour of the site and learn about site design, participate in projects on the land, as well
as enjoy the company of community. These are free of cost events, with community potluck
meals. The calendar of Service Learning weekends for the Spring will be shared in February.
Permaculture Design Certification course with Geoff Lawton - August 16-27, 2008
We're happy to host our third Permaculture Design Certification course at Quail Springs, and
welcome back one of the world's top permaculture teachers, Geoff Lawton. For more about Geoff
Lawton, visit www.permaculture.org.au . More info on the course will be available in February.
Contact info at quailsprings.org to join the interest list.
Permaculture is a holistic approach to land use design, based on ecological principles and
patterns. It aims to create stable, productive systems that provide for human needs,
harmoniously integrating the land with people. This world-recognized, 72-hour course provides
an introduction to Permaculture as set forth by movement founders Bill Mollison and David
Holmgren. This course covers sustainable living systems - with everything from food systems,
water harvesting, waste cycling, home design, to climate care, and much more - for a wide variety
of landscapes and climates. Graduates of this 72 hour Permaculture Design Certification course
(PDC) will receive a Certificate in Permaculture Design. See www.tagari.com to learn more about
the Certification, and options for continuing study to earn the Diploma.
Southwest Drylands & Southern California Permaculture Convergence - with
Keynote Speaker, Geoff Lawton - August 29 - September 1, 2008
Co-sponsored by Santa Barbara Permaculture Network, Quail Springs, and others. More info
coming soon! Contact info at quailsprings.org to join the interest list.
Advanced Permaculture Workshop - with Geoff Lawton and Brad Lancaster -
September 2-3, 2008
This 2 day advanced workshop will offer on the ground opportunity to learn and work with Geoff
and Brad. For more about Geoff Lawton, visit www.permaculture.org.au. For more about Brad
Lancaster, visit www.harvestingrainwater.com. More info coming soon!
Contact info at quailsprings.org to join the interest list.
EcoNest workshops 2008
The beginning stages of the EcoNest will involve workshops in which builders, home owners, or
other interested folks will work with the EcoNest team in a series of two workshops that give the
participant a solid foundation in understanding this unique system of sustainable building.
Dates and cost are TBA. If you would like to be on an initial interest contact list, please email
info at quailsprings.org.
Available for purchase. Quail Springs, An Experiment in Permaculture
Quail Springs, An Experiment in Permaculture, by Joss Jaffe, serves as an important research
and development tool supporting permaculture design and the long term vision of Quail
Springs. If you are interested in purchasing the book, please let us know at
info at quailsprings.org. The cost of this full color book is $30 including the CD, or $10 for the CD
only, plus $5 shipping.
We are hosting Pam Montgomery's Plant Spirit Healing Apprenticeship at Quail
Springs this Winter and Spring.
PLANT SPIRIT HEALING ***APPRENTICESHIP*** with Pam Montgomery
Dates: 4 sessions in Winter-Spring 2008.
January 10-13, February 14-17, March 13-16 and April 10-13, 2008.
Thursday 10:00am to Sunday 4:00pm. All sessions must be attended.
Cost: $1995 Includes instruction, materials, all meals, camping or dorm spaces for all 4
sessions plus Pam's new book, Plant Spirit Healing: A Guide to Working with Plant
Consciousness.
Registration: To register, send a $200 deposit to: Partner Earth Education Center, 1525
Danby Mtn. Rd., Danby, VT 05739
Full payment is due by January 10 unless other arrangements are made.
For more information: Please contact Susan Draffan at 805-646-2690 or
info at ShiningSpirits.net.
For more about Pam, visit: www.partnereartheducationcenter.com
Plant Spirit Healing accesses the conscious intelligence of plants in order to direct the
dynamic nature of energy. Plants are sentient beings whose symbiotic relationship with
humans gives them the unique ability to communicate, guide and heal us on physical,
emotional and spiritual levels.
When plant spirit healing is undertaken you begin living according to your own true nature.
You become more fully who you are and more engaged in walking the path that is uniquely
yours. As one of Pam's clients said, "There's no room for Lyme disease because I take up
more of the space."
Plant Spirit Healing is on the leading edge of vibrational healing. Accessing Spirit through
the avenue of the green world is one of the easiest and most effective ways to achieve
healing at a root level. The healing that occurs is not symptomatic, rather it transforms the
source of the dis-ease or challenge.
This certified college level course is designed for those who desire to receive in-depth
understanding and training in:
* personal healing - physically, emotionally and spiritually
* accessing your true path in life and living your bliss
* integrating plant spirit healing into an existing practice
* creating a new healing practice with plant spirit healing
* practicing spiritual ecology in one's personal and professional life
* working to bring balance to the Earth
Your apprenticeship will include:
* Spiritual Ecology theory and practice
* heart, soul and spirit - the triple spiral path of healing
* communication with plants
* accessing plant spirits through the dreamtime
* energy anatomy and chakras
* interaction of plant spirits with the Four Elements and Medicine Wheel
* shamanic journeying techniques both with plants and for people
* developing working relationships with animal and other guides
* "seeing" intrusive energies and extracting them
* heart entrainment, soul retrieval and spirit loss
* "greenbreath" to overcome obstacles and access plants' healing gifts
* developing green allies for personal, professional & planetary healing
* practical application of plant spirit medicine in a healing practice
* personal growth via vision quest, sweat lodge, fire vigil, night walking
* and more
Pam Montgomery is a leading educator and practitioner of Plant Spirit Healing. She teaches
workshops and apprenticeships across the U.S. and internationally and has documented her
pioneering work on healing the energy body with plant spirits in her book, Plant Spirit
Healing: A Guide to Working with Plant Consciousness, forthcoming in Fall 2007 from
Inner Traditions. Pam is also the author of Partner Earth: A Spiritual Ecology and a
contributing author in Planting the Future. For more about Pam, visit:
www.partnereartheducationcenter.com
Reminder to Quail Springs' friends, family, interns and other guests...
As of January 1, 2008, the gate codes with be changing monthly. Therefore, you will need to
contact us for the current code even if you have been here many times before. We are doing this
as part of a concerted effort to address issues with the private landowner through whose
property the private road that gives access to Quail Springs crosses. It is critical that each and
every vehicle coming to Quail Springs strictly observes the 10 MPH speed limit on the private
road, as well as ALL TRAFFIC LAWS. In other words, this is no longer an opportunity to teach a
young person how to drive, no riding in the back of the truck or on the bumper, and be sure to
keep your lights on at night despite how much we want to see the moon and stars, etc. etc. We
must require adherence to these rules for all approaching and departing from Quail Springs in
order not to jeopardize our ease of access.
Thank you for understanding and helping!
Quail Springs is a project of the True Nature Society, a community supported non-
profit organization.
Please consider giving a financial or in-kind donation to help us continue offering
important services to the community.
To make a donation online, visit www.quailsprings.org/donate
Or send in your contribution to PO Box 417, New Cuyama, CA 93254. Thank you!
In-kind donation needs list
* Natural insulation materials
* Fencing materials
* Recycled building materials
(lumber, doors, tile, windows, etc.)
* Shading materials
* Self-powered arc
welder/generator
* Motorized bicycle, moped, scooter
* Petal Bicycles w/baskets or trailers
* Bike repair tools and spare parts
* Flail mower
* Tractor
* 3-point hitch grater for our tractor
* Bobcat
* Radial arm saw
* Wood-working tools
* Welding torch and gas tanks
* Shop tools
* Super efficient washing machine
* High capacity air compressor
* 3 compartment stainless steel sink
* Diesel generator
* Diesel to vegetable oil conversion
for our Ford F250
* Four wheel drive vehicles
* Solar hot water panels
* On-demand hot water heater
* Farm animals
* MULCH
* ROCK
* GRAVEL
* Potters wheel
* Hardwoods for crafts
* Raw wool and wool yarns
* Candles
* Canning Jars
* Full tang knives
* Japanese hand saws
* Marketing consultation
* Event planning services
* Catering for special events
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Our postal address is
PO Box 417
New Cuyama, California 93254
United States
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