We are offering our services remotely!
We offer Yoga and Meditation at the Boys Club on Raleigh Blvd via Zoom every Thursday at 5 pm for 30 minutes. The staff supports us and keeps the kids on task as they follow along, learning to calmly ground, breathe, stay present while strengthening and stretching their bodies.
Library of trauma-informed mindful practices for all! This page idea began from a request from the Director of InterAct’s domestic violence shelter. She asked for some recordings for the residents during Covid 19 social distancing since volunteers are unable to come in to the shelter in person. https://goldenhillcharity.org/trauma-informed-media/
Hunkered Down & Qierrific
Hello All,
How is everyone doing while hunkered down during this unprecedented Stay at Home Order? For coping and qierrific inspiration here are some online resources: Golden Hill Charity’s trauma-informed online media, Anisha Desai Fraser’s online offerings, Erin Tracy’s offerings, Paul Fraser’s online media, and Master Ou has scheduled the Pangu Shengong advanced condensed form class on Zoom, May 2nd.
I have spent so much of my time getting used to working from home for InterAct and excitedly “doing” Golden Hill Charity rearrangements that I have not updated anyone in a while. Sit down, pour yourself your favorite drink; here’s an update.
Evening meditations at InterAct’s domestic violence shelter stopped as well as yoga at the Girls Club once covid-19 hit NC. All plans for expansion of class offerings in person are on hold. (And boy, do we have some super-cool things in the works, but that is another update for when we re-emerge.) InterAct still has residents in the shelter. The Clubs are doing their best to serve their kids while the kids are at home with food and school supply drives. A Yogi named Melissa and I are working on 30-minute zoom classes for The Boy’s Club, The Girls Club, and their families. Our first class is scheduled for April 30th.
My supervisor at InterAct reached out for mindful practice resources for the shelter residents and that’s when Golden Hill’s media web page was created. If any of you have anything to add. Shoot me an email and I will post it to the site. I plan to add some kid stuff – may make them their own page.
Golden Hill donated 16 brand new still in the package yoga mats to InterAct’s shelter residents so they can practice yoga and mindfulness with yogis from the Blue Lotus for the next several weeks.
Wake County is providing a hotel shelter for at risk of contracting covid-19 folks experiencing homelessness. They have exercise classes offerings on the hotel TV’s. I have reached out to see if Golden Hill could possibly be part of the offerings. Fingers Crossed and Qi sends please!
Lastly, we are scheduled for a most likely on Zoom May 16th Golden Hill Cultivate the Heart Fundraiser. Details will be announced in the next few days; feel free to donate whenever!
With our skill-set, diligence, work ethic, Master Ou’s guidance and qi gong training, we seem to thrive when drawn to assisting those in the middle of difficulty. That place of transition where one can feel disoriented, discouraged, maybe even hopeless. We do our best to bring steady, calm and kindness, enveloped in hope and a much-needed injection of joy. Pangu Raleigh and Golden Hill are brighter than ever thanks to our community, volunteers, donors and instructors.
Peace, Love, and Happy Hunkering!
Cristen
PS Another way to serve – below are flyers with the Needs Lists of the Boys and Girls Club.
Service Projects Before Covid
We have made it our mission to provide Pangu Qigong, Yoga, Tai Chi and Meditation to children and their families, who may not have access otherwise due to socioeconomic and geographic limitations. YOUR DONATIONS help us remove barriers by providing instructors directly to these children and their families.
Please Note – Our Service Projects are on hold due to Coronavirus Outbreak
- Evening Meditation Sessions at Interact’s Domestic Violence Shelter Sunday – Thursdays
- Yoga Class at the Girl’s Club 701 Raleigh Blvd. Every Monday 5:30 – 6:30 pm
- Quarterly Community Mindful Practice at Pullen Memorial’s Poteat Chapel – Cultivate your Heart; Cultivate the World. #givelove All Are Welcome!
If you would like to connect us with families who need our services, please email goldenhillcharity@gmail.com. Thank you!
Qigongathon Gratitude
We are thrilled to share that we successfully raised money, hearts, and hope for the good of our community while practicing qi gong, tai chi, meditation, moving meditation, and yoga. Thank you so much for contributing to our mission of offering mindful practices to under-resourced kids and their families.
About 20 people participated in person and quite a few practiced remotely as we raised $1,705.00! Wonderful missions happen when people come together and believe that they can bring about change.
- Rainbow Meditation Lady by a Student.
Qigongathon & Updates
These past few weeks have been exciting times for Pangu Raleigh! Golden Hill Charity has been hard at work prepping for our annual Qigongathon Fundraiser and board members have been focusing on continuing education opportunities by attending trauma-informed trainings.
Erin Tracy and I attended The Connection Coalition 15-hour Trauma-Informed Mindful Practice Outreach training by Jodi Weiner at Raleigh’s Blue Lotus Yoga Studio.
We learned about:
- The science behind mindful practices and how they can benefit our under-resourced youth by soothing their nervous systems and neutralizing heightened emotional states like anger or anxiety.
- How to teach clients in a respectful and empowering manner.
- How we have at our fingertips a nationwide network of like-minded teachers for connection and collaboration.
I attended The Center for the Contemplative Mind in Society’s Webinar Trauma Sensitive Mindfulness by David Treleaven. The big take away for me was the idea of having tangible anchors present for clients to come back to if at any time they feel overwhelmed. On Friday I am taking an 8-hour Children’s Mental Health First Aid Training hosted by Youth Thrive in Downtown Raleigh. In December most of the board members will attend Pangu Shengong Advanced Retreat Training with Qi Gong Grand Master Ou Wen Wei in Fairfield, California.
Perhaps the most profound teachers have been the clients that I have already begun helping. The idea of an anchor proved its importance during the first session of Evening Mindful Meditation for Survivors of Domestic Violence. While their children sleep, survivors have the opportunity to gather and meditate 5 evenings a week with me as their guide.
Quiet breath and stillness are not always peaceful to those who suffer from PTSD or anxiety. Their trauma is just beneath “the busy” of everyday life. I observe that it weighs heavily on their hearts and bubbles up in moments of stress (expected) and surprisingly moments of quiet. How do we avoid a flashback or re-traumatization? I do not have all of the answers but the procedures that I use every second while working are – I do my best to be CAREFUL, thoughtful, respectful, quiet, observant, and kind. With this mode of operation, I zone in on my intuition or gut and ask for all the love and help from my higher-self. So now I have my anchors.
- The zone of utmost respect and care.
- Support from all the love, my higher self, the divine.
I am honest with clients about how quiet can be triggering. They are already familiar with the term trigger and I have never had to explain that quiet can be awful. They knowingly nod. We practice mindful grounding techniques like coming back to how the support of the chair they sit on feels. I assure them that they are welcome to take breaks (and they do), keep their eyes open, (open-eyed meditation works!) and we have a plant in the center of our circle and meditation music playing for clients to avert their attention to if necessary.
Boy do I have to keep my eyes and heart open. After 9 years of daily meditation and qi gong practice, thankfully I can sense if someone is agitated. Clients fidget or breathe a bit heavier as well. I repeat words like you are secure, safe, grounded, empowered, content. I suggest breaks or a time for everyone to take a mindful gaze at the plant. Each client has a donated knitted blanket that their hands rest on during meditation. I encourage them to explore the texture of the blanket. I have been thrilled to notice that clients do not really have to be prompted to step back from the mindfulness for a few moments. I usually notice their agitation and before I can advise they have already begun regrouping. When we wrap up, I observe a faraway yet satisfied looks on their faces.
The feedback has been inspiring. They tell me that they feel calm, peaceful, giddy, sleepy. Some go straight to bed. Others end up really opening up about their troubles. If sharing occurs, I interject a few breaks where I ask them how they feel right now in their heart, body, or mind. I feel honored that they allow me this space in their lives and thank, compliment them. A client told me the other day that she was arguing with her boyfriend and she started to breathe down through the soles of her feet so she could ground and stop her anger. Tears ya’ll tears!!!!!
My heart bursts with hope for her, all those who suffer without these empowering resources, and all the teachers ready to connect with students. We all win when we open our hearts to the power of hope.
Please consider attending and donating to this year’s qigongathon fundraiser. Bring friends! In addition to teaching survivors of domestic violence, we are in the planning stages of offering trauma-informed outreach internal martial arts, yoga, and meditation to our local under-resourced youth. Your donations help us remove any barriers by providing instructors directly to kids and their families.
Peace and Love, Cristen Bopp – President and Founder
Golden Hill Charity 501c3 