Grief CeremonY - Eugene, OR
april 5-6, 2025
december 6-7, 2025
There is so much to grieve! Loss of a loved one, pain and illness, national and global crises, isolation, mass shootings, loss of a dream, environmental devastation, loss of place, anxiety-producing government and corporate pronouncements…all of these and more affect us physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. Places to be listened to deeply and compassionately are uncommon. Places to express the visceral sensations of grief in a safe, well-held communal context are even more rare.
Our Grief Ceremony is just such a space. It is a two-day, facilitated ceremony to cleanse the many aspects of grief and allow joy, aliveness, clarity, and strength to emerge. In this way we become ready to actively create a more sane, resilient, and healthy world. We hope that you will join us.
Click a dropdown menu below for more information or keep scrolling for program details and registration.
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These ceremonies are based on traditional patterns of ceremonial grieving brought to our community. They include talks about grief and its impact on individuals and the community, small-group sharing, an extended and cathartic grieving time, compassionate witness, song-sharing, and support in taking practical steps to make change.
The grief ceremonies we offer at Cascadia Quest are contemporary, bio-regionally appropriate grieving spaces. They are based on traditional patterns of ceremonial grieving. Though a unique creation, they are strongly influenced by the teachings of Sobonfu Somé, a pioneer in bringing African healing ritual to the Western World. These ceremonies allow for the safe, healthy expression and releasing of grief. Common results are feelings of ease, lightness, relief, empowerment and smiles.
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What is Grief? We define it quite broadly as the nexus of emotions, pains, woundings, traumas and more from our present, past and even future events. Griefs can be personal, communal or global, existential or philosophical, emotional, physical, or spiritual. They can be short-term, chronic, and even ancestral. Causes of grief include death of a loved one; accident or injury to self or others; loss of a job; divorce or separation; being the victim or perpetrator of violence; sadness about the environment; fears about the current socio-political situation; and feelings about the state of the world.
Grief affects us in as many ways as there are humans on the earth. Some common experiences are depression, anxiety, low self-worth, mental illness, emotional distress, spiritual crisis, difficulty sleeping, poor appetite or digestion, heart disease, high blood pressure, cancer, obesity, relationship difficulties, uncontrollable anger, violence, war, early death, even genocide. Unexpressed grief can gnaw away at our insides and shorten our lives.
In the past and even today, traditional cultures around the world have known that people need safe, effective places to let go of their grief. Some Native American tribes would dig a hole, cry and scream their grief into it, then bury it. Catharsis at South African funeral processions is well-known. Jews to this day have a practice of sitting shiva— visiting the bereaved for a week after a death— where expressions of grief are welcomed and expected. The Dagara people of Burkina Faso in West Africa have three-to-four-day long, continuous, village-wide Grief Rituals. Traditional cultures know that the health and happiness of the community is based on the health and happiness of each person. Grief must be expressed for the community's well-being.
Questions? Contact us at 458-201-2868 or center@cascadiaquest.org.
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“My faith in humanity is restored.” - Participant, 2022
“I had never participated in a grief ritual before. I did not know what to expect. I was also very stuck and unable to grieve. This journey was not easy. In fact, I wondered if I would come back the second day. But I felt welcomed and supported from the first communication I received and certainly during the ritual. I’m glad I returned. On the second day, my miracle occurred. I felt true healing of the ungrieved grief of my childhood— the deep, life-clenching grief. I am lighter, more free, and, paradoxically, more connected than before I arrived. Thank you!” —Participant, 2022
“You created a safe container, with clear healing intentions, in which I could sink into my feelings of loss, release some of them, and gain insights. The music deepened the process, creating connection with each other. I felt a great deal of communitas unfold within the liminal space you held for us.” —Participant, 2018
“I have decades of experience of attending and leading healing groups. The grief and song ritual was a gem of professionally done mastery. It was structured very well to be safe, educational, inclusive, and effective. I would recommend it to anyone who is a basically stable person and wants to heal any kind of loss in a supportive group ritual.” —Richard Grimaldi, Participant, 2017
Image by Surya Miller
DETAILS:
Next Date: April 5-6, 2025
Time: Saturday 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Where: Spencer Creek Grange, Eugene, OR
Tiered Cost: Price includes two days of event and a delicious, organic dinner on Saturday night. Participants are responsible for their own overnight accommodations and lunches.
Review our Tiered Equity Pricing page to understand which tier to pay. A short summary can be found at the bottom of this page.
Tier One: $200 - $399 (Fill out this form to be eligible.)
Tier Two: $400 - $599
Tier Three**: $600 - $899
Tier Four: $900 or more
**this is the average needed to continue running a healthy organization.
Participants: Ages 17 and older. Contact us for younger teens. Limited to 40 participants.
Guides: Rob Miller and Hanna Scholz and a seasoned team of grief tenders.
Covid protocols: Masking will be optional and your choice respected. Let us know as soon as possible if you have any covid-like symptoms or have been exposed to covid within ten days of the event.
Please take a moment to review our refund policy.
information on tiered pricing
Choosing Your Amount
Identify which of the statements below best reflects your financial reality. Compare that with your reflections from the questions and initiatives on the Tiered Equity Pricing page. Then choose the amount to pay by looking at the tiered pricing breakdown on the webpage of the program you would like to enroll in.
First Tier: It is important for me or my child to attend, yet paying Tier Two—even in several monthly installments— will undermine our household’s ability to pay our rent, clothe ourselves, buy medicine, and otherwise meet our basic needs for survival.
*Note that this tier is for those experiencing true financial hardship. If Tier Two was the fixed price and you could pay it, Tier One is not for you.
Second Tier: This expense does not jeopardize my ability to meet my basic needs. Rather, this amount will cause me to weigh between this and other discretionary spending (e.g. concerts, eating out, retreats, outdoor gear, updating household items, etc.) as I choose how to spend my limited income and savings.
Third Tier: I am sufficiently financially secure to pay this amount. It does not jeopardize my ability to meet my basic needs nor significantly limit my activities and purchases. I may have to account for it, but I can afford it.
*Note that this tier represents the average needed for this program to support Cascadia Quest’s basic health and maintenance.
Fourth Tier: I can pay this or more with relative ease. I have freedom when it comes to choosing how I spend my money. I rarely have to consider the price tag on something that I want, besides large ticket items. I am in a position to be generous with my money.
*Note that this tier supports Cascadia Quest’s basic health and maintenance while creating opportunities for other participants and our organization’s growth.
Equity, Marginalization, and Historical Oppression
We understand that for some peoples, the playing field is not and historically has not been level. It is always an uphill climb. In order to bring more equity to this situation, we offer those who identify as being in an historically marginalized or oppressed population to pay an amount in a tier lower than their current financial reality, if they choose to.
Still have questions?