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Jul 4, 20240 min read

Cultivating Goodwill & Democracy | John Fox, Erika Brown, Tony Vento

A flyer for Cultivating Goodwill & Democracy that reads: Cultivating Goodwill & Democracy with the Healing Help of Poetry and Poem-Making Presented by John Fox, Erika Brown, and Tony Vento Friday, August 2, 5:30-8:30 pm & Saturday, August 3, 9:30 am-3:30 pm Neighborhood Connections 1971 East 66th (near Euclid Avenue), Cleveland, OH Dinner, breakfast, and lunch will be served with coffee, tea and snacks. "Terry Tempest Williams calls the heart "the first home of democracy," the place where we can wrestle with democracy's basic questions, emerging with answers on which so much depends." ~ Parker Palmer (from "Healing the Heart of Democracy") In a political season that signals that all power is found elsewhere and beyond us, it is important for those who care--as citizens, as human beings--to explore opportunities that reclaim significant power by the individual--and by that we mean you. These days, and especially in this election year of 2024, we are aware that goodwill and democracy, facts and honesty, are not abstract considerations. They are on the ballot. They are a choice. For this reason we are providing a gathering place where we: - invite you into a circle committed to give voice to goodwill and democracy via poetry, - offer you the opportunity to tap into your power through creativity, - write, listen, and bear witness to ourselves and to one another in an act of community building for nourishing goodwill and democracy. Our footbridge to cultivating goodwill and democracy will be "Five Habits of the Heart" as described in Parker Palmer's superb book "Healing the Heart of Democracy: The Courage to Create a Politics Worthy of the Human Spirit". In combination with carefully chosen poems and writing prompts, we will explore how the following 5 "heart habits" are alive in each of us, in order to contribute to democracy: - We Are All in This Together - Appreciation of Otherness - Capacity to Hold Tension Creatively - Sense of Voice and Agency - Capacity to Create Community "Poetry allows one to speak with a power that is not granted by our culture." ~ Linda McCarriston Prior experience with poetry is not necessary. Please know we are committed to fun. Our intention is to surprise you in a good way! John Fox, Practitioner of Poetic Medicine, is a poet, author, and President of The Institute for Poetic Medicine, a nonprofit he founded in 2005. IPM brings poetic medicine to communities throughout the US and internationally. Erika Brown manages Training and Special Projects at Neighborhood Connections. She creates and maintains the integrity of welcoming spaces where people connect and discover what's most important to them. Tony Vento founded Purpose Matters to consult in civic life, education and social movements. A Courage & Renewal facilitator, he trained with Parker Palmer, holding over 70 retreats 2016.

Click Here to Register for Friday & Saturday

A flyer for Cultivating Goodwill & Democracy that reads: Cultivating Goodwill & Democracy with the Healing Help of Poetry and Poem-Making Inspired by Parker Palmer's book "Healing the Heart of Democracy: The Courage to Create a Politics Worthy of the Human Spirit" Presented by John Fox, Erica Brown, and Tony Vento Friday Evening Only, August 2, 5:30-8:30 pm Neighborhood Connections 1971 East 66th (near Euclid Avenue), Cleveland, OH Dinner will be provided. Please join us in this opening program where three "themes" are woven together by Erika, Tony and John: - What does a spirit of welcome, hospitality and expressions of goodwill have to do with democracy? - A choice between authoritarianism and democracy--living in a country where each voice matters equally, where the rule of law is honored and kept in place. - Making creativity accessible to each person--lifting up our unique stories that are the fabric of the sacred quilt of America. This two-part event begins Friday evening. Friday attendance is open to 40 participants. We will carry through on these themes the next day where attendance is limited to 18 participants. If you plan to attend Saturday, please, if possible, also attend Friday evening. "All great questions must be raised by great voices, and the greatest voice is the voice of the people--speaking out--in prose, or painting, or poetry, or music; speaking out--in homes and halls, streets and farms, courts and cafes. Let that voice speak and the stillness you hear will be the gratitude of mankind." ~ Robert F. Kennedy John Fox, Practitioner of Poetic Medicine, is a poet, author and President of The Institute for Poetic Medicine, a nonprofit he founded in 2005. IPM brings poetic medicine to communities throughout the US and internationally. Erika Brown manages Training and Special Projects at Neighborhood Connections. She creates and maintains the integrity of welcoming spaces where people connect and discover what's most important to them. Tony Vento founded Purpose Matters to consult in civic life, education and social movements. A Courage & Renewal facilitator, he trained with Parker Palmer, holding over 70 retreats since 2016.

Click Here to Register for Friday ONLY

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