TEEN INITIATION CIRCLE
A 9-month rite of passage for love of self, community, and nature.
See what past and current participants are saying…
In our new, featured promotional video on Soul|Light Outdoor Mentorship!
Then scroll down for details and how to sign up for the ‘23-’24 Teen Circle.
TEEN INITIATION CIRCLE
On this 9-month rite of passage journey, we will gather in nature for twice-a-month workshops and seasonal campouts that interweave art, leadership, and community care. Join us as we cultivate close-knit community while learning to navigate our challenges and embrace our gifts on the exciting and revelatory path toward adulthood.
“As a mom who has felt worry and hit roadblocks during this challenging time, I have deep gratitude for the space you created for my daughter to find connection and feel good about who she is!” - Amber C.
Program Details
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Wednesdays 3:30-6:30pm
*Info Session: Sunday, August 13th!
Aug 30th - Initiatory Circle (First Session)
Sept 9th-10th - Starting the Journey (Fall Campout)
Sept 13th
Sept 27th
Oct 11th
Oct 25th
Nov 8th
Nov 22nd
Dec 6th
Dec 20th
*Winter Break
Jan 10th
Jan 24th
Jan 27th - Mid-Year Threshold (Winter Campout)
Feb 7th
Feb 21st
Mar 6th
Mar 20th
Apr 10th
*Apr 19th-21st - Rite of Passage (Spring Campout)
May 1st - End of Year Integration & Celebration!
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Afterschool teen circles take place in a rotating collection of beautiful outdoor parks and gardens in the East Bay. From Tilden to Redwood Regional, we choose locations that are accessible and can accommodate the varying activities of our program, from fire-tending to foraging, herbal medicine to water immersion.
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The Soul|Light teen initiation circle is for teenage girls and nonbinary youth ranging from age 13 to 17, depending on available space, dynamics, and maturity level. Soul|Light offers a middle school program for youth under the age of 14.
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Soul|Light programs are offered based on an equity pricing model. Sliding scale tuition ranges from $4,250 - $6,000 (full program cost). We encourage families to choose an amount that represents a dedicated investment in this valuable experience, without putting the family into financial stress.
Choose Your Track
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Leadership & Culture Change
For teens looking to raise their voice and find their path into mentorship and taking action in their communities. This track will focus on developing leadership skills to be used in community projects devoted to ecological and community care. Students of the LCC track will receive high-quality coaching and community service hours at a project of their choosing. Great for college apps as well as finding direction and vocational skills.
Track Leader: Sammy
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Ritual Arts & Makers
This track offers creatively-inclined and artistically-gifted teens a chance to develop and try new skills in a series of art-focused workshops including garment and jewelry making (sewing, beading, leather tooling, etc), ritual theater, storytelling, music-making, and a variety of other nature-based arts & crafts. RAM track participants will have the opportunity to showcase their projects and talents in a mid-year and end-of-year showcase!
Track Leader: Ariella
A Note on Tracks
We have designed these two tracks to allow for small group intimacy and project focuses which highlights our two unique mentor’s gifts and passions. That said, all participants will experience both arts & leadership training, as well as mentorship by both Ariella & Sammy.
Why Initiation?
We believe that every young person deserves to be seen, supported, and celebrated as they embark on the exciting, challenging, and sometimes tumultuous journey of finding out who they are. By creating space through nature ritual and talking circles, Soul|Light mentorship invites true testimony to emerge… making space for powerful, life-affirming wisdom and creative life-force to take the stage!
Our Methodology
Our three core pillars of connection provide a strong foundation of support as we seek to find out who we really are and take our place in the delicate, interconnected web that makes up our lives.
SELF
We develop Self Knowledge through solo “sit spots,” fire-tending, ancestral connection, writing, and other nature-based practices that grant us insight into who we are.
We practice Self Care by learning to listen and tend to exactly what each part of our divine being is asking for: mind (thoughts), body (sensations), and soul (our inner voice/guide).
We cultivate diverse forms of Self Expression in order to tell our stories and transmute our pain, thus discovering meaningful gifts and new modes of communication.
COMMUNITY
We embody Community Care by practicing empathy, kindness, and deep listening… thus providing support and celebration for our individual and collective journeys!
We move toward Community Healing by making time and space to be together in rest, play, and creative connection!
We raise our voices and liberate our anger and grief in Community Action by showing up to take part in imagining and building the world WE want to live in.
NATURE
We develop Ecological Knowledge and intimacy by learning to track natural cycles and occurrences in our surroundings, which mirror those happening in our bodies.
We practice Ecological Care by finding ways to pause and learn to live more gently, attuned with the Earth, her cycles, and all the living beings who call her home.
We generate Ecological Healing by putting our hands on the Earth in ways that are loving, respectful, and restorative: undoing generations of colonial harm and working in solidarity with indigenous groups to reimagine the next 7 generations!
Parent Testimonials:
"My daughter has really blossomed this year, with Soul|Light! She has learned how to articulate her feelings in a more open and productive way, and it has been wonderful watching her fall in love with hiking and nature, giving her an outlet for healing and curiosity about the world around her."
— Michelle T
“I can’t even begin to express how happy I am that my daughter was a part of this group. I was so touched I was brought to tears more than once hearing her share about her experience. I see her light shining in a way I haven’t seen for a long time. What a gift you and the group have given her: I am certain that this experience has planted a seed for her that I will continue to grow for years to come. As a mom who has felt worry and hit roadblocks during this challenging time, I am in deep gratitude for the space you created for my daughter to feel good about who she is. And holy shit - she’s enjoyed nature like never before… Hallelujah!!
— Amber C
“I love the way you hold space with confidence and compassion. I am SO happy our girls get to work with you ... you are the biggest silver lining of COVID in our lives!”
— Jackie S
“Our daughter’s experience in outdoor mentorship has saved and transformed her life. As a kid struggling with anxiety caused by climate crisis and violence directed at girls of color, the care from Sammy & healing connection to nature — along with hearing the shared struggles of her peers — have allowed her to find her voice and heal from trauma. My hope for our daughter is that the kind of education Soul|Light provides could be the whole of her education, and not only a weekly gathering!”
— Taj J
REGISTER YOUR TEEN for 2023
About your Guides
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Sammy is a Bay-Area born nature-lover and guide, carrying a passion for ecological intimacy and youth empowerment that has been alive in her for over three decades. She is known by her community for her warm and inclusive facilitation style, and for her love of mentoring young people to feel proud of who they are: meltdowns and all!
Sammy holds a Bachelors degree in Environmental Analysis from Pomona College, a Certificate in Environment-Based Conflict Resolution from the Arava Institute, and a Certiicate in Ecopsychology from the Holos Institute. To this work, she brings 20+ years of experience in community building, nonprofit education, hands-on learning, leadership development, communication coaching, conflict mediation, mindfulness, yoga, reiki, 360 feedback, and ecopsychology.
Amidst her wide-ranging credentials and experiences, Sammy takes the most pride in learning to deeply love and listen to her self, the land, and other living beings. She created Soul|Light to draw from her overflowing cup in inviting others to find joy, peace, and belonging in nature.
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Mentor & Guide
Ariella grew up in the magical waters of the Yuba River.
She received a B.A. from the University of California at Berkeley and holds a counseling and life coaching certification from the state of California.
Ariella is passionate about Rite-of-Passage work and is committed to supporting the transition between adolescence into adulthood. She understands our culture to be in a crisis of adolescence and believes that initiation is one of the first steps to cultural healing.
Outside of mentoring young people, Ariella is a producer, jeweler and ritual artist.
Learn more at ariellapowers.com