Subject to change.

Friday, October 2: Exhale

TimeDescriptionAdditional Information
9:30amArrive at George Washington Bridge Bus TerminalAttendees will be meeting in the street level lobby on the west side of the station. (Enter at the doors between 178th and 179th Street on Fort Washington Avenue.)
10:00amBus DepartureAttendees will travel by charted coach bus.
11:30amCheck In and Luggage Drop OffCheck In will take place in the Evergreen Lobby. Luggage should be deposited in Maple Lodge.
12:00pmWelcome & LunchEvergreen
1:00pmInformation Session & Site TourTour will begin in Evergreen and end in the Maple Lodge where the info session will take place
3:00-5:00pmBreak & Room Check InParticipants are invited to unwind and get acquainted with their rooms and the grounds
5:00-6:00pmBWWR BuddiesParticipants will gather in Maple Lodge B for a BWWR activity
6:00-7:00pmDinnerEvergreen
7:00-7:15pmBreak
7:15-10:30pm Call-to-Gather: ExhaleMaple Lodge
7:30-9:00pm“The Cost of Caring”with Krystal Miller, LCSW of Melanated Masks, Maple Lodge B. Scroll down to learn more about this workshop.
9:00pmInformal NightcapJoin us by the Fire Pit for s’mores and community.

Saturday, October 3: Evolve

TimeDescriptionSession Information
7:00-8:00amSelf-Guided Morning OfferingsArts & Crafts Room, Evergreen
Stony Point Campus Exploration
8:00-9:00amBreakfastEvergreen
9:15-9:30amCall to Gather: EvolveMaple Lodge B
9:45-10:45am“Kitchen Medicine: Elevating Everyday Herbs for Healing”with Asari Beale, facilitated virtually in Maple Lodge A. Scroll down to learn more about this workshop.
11:00am-12:00pmGuided Meditation & Sound Bathing Workshopwith Grae Wellness, Evergreen Conference Rooms A & B. Scroll down to learn more about this workshop.
12:00-1:00pmLunchEvergreen
1:00-6:30pmTranquil Spa Zone & Free TimeTranquil Spa Zone will offer the following:
– Self-Guided Meditation & Quiet Zone, Meditation Space
– Massages (by appointment only), Maple Lodge B. Please Note: Even though massages will take place in Maple B, you should show up to Maple Lodge A for check in.
– DIY Face Masks, Nails, & Self-Care, Maple Lodge A

You can also use this time to explore the Stony Point Grounds.
6:00-7:00pmDinnerEvergreen
7:00-8:00pmBreak
8:00-10:30pmBlack Women’s Wellness Retreat Gala –
Metamorphosis: An Evening of Black Women in Bloom
Join us in celebrating YOU! Be sure to dress in a fun and festive outfit that expresses your bloom and metamorphosis. Maple Lodge A & B

Sunday, October 4: Elevate

TimeDescriptionSession Information
7:00-8:00amSelf-Guided Morning OfferingsArts & Crafts Room, Maple Basement/Magnolia
Stony Point Campus Exploration
8:00-9:00amBreakfastEvergreen
9:00amLuggage DeadlineLuggage must be left outside room door by this time if you’ve requested that staff transport it Maple Lodge for you. Otherwise, please drop off your luggage in Maple Lodge B before heading to the morning workshop.
9:15-10:30am“CLAIM IT!”with Dr. Theresa Buckson, Maple Lodge A. Scroll down to learn more about this workshop.
10:45-11:30amCall to Gather: ElevateMaple Lodge A
11:30am-12:00pmClosing Remarks and Retreat PhotoMaple Lodge A
12:00-1:00pmLunchEvergreen
1:15-1:45pmBWWR BuddiesMaple Lodge A
2:00pmBus Meet UpPlease report to the Evergreen Lobby with your luggage at this time to board the bus.
2:15pmBus Departure to NYCAttendees will travel by chartered coach bus back to NYC.

About the Workshops

The Cost of Caring

The Cost of Caring, is an experiential gathering for helping professionals, educators, caregivers, healers, and others who regularly hold space for their communities. Rather than approaching burnout as simply a problem of productivity, time management, or individual self-care, this experience invites participants to explore burnout through the body, relationships, culture, and the realities of the systems in which we work and care.

Together, we will explore burnout, compassion fatigue, secondary stress, racialized stress, and ally-focused stress while creating space to slow down, notice what the body has been communicating, and consider what sustainable care can actually look like. Through somatic practices, reflection, plant medicine, ritual, and community conversation, participants will be invited to move from simply enduring their responsibilities toward developing a deeper relationship with their own capacity.

Learn more about your facilitator: Krystal Miller

Krystal Miller is a clinical social worker and a spiritual herbalist that centers her practice on the balance of science and spirit while curating experiences for exploration within community and our inner world. Through her practice, Melanated Masks, she focuses on reconnecting us with our mind, body, soul and the core of our culture. This holistic healing practice includes movement through therapeutic yoga, integrative nutrition, connection to herbal allies and rebuilding the intuition that has always been within us for generations from our ancestors while embodying the energy of an old friend on the stoop. Walking in the spirit of “I am because We are,” she provides 1:1 services as well as intimate community conversations around holistic mental wellness, womb wellness and herbalism. Join her at the intersection of science and spirit, where the true magic lives.

Kitchen Medicine: Elevating Everyday Herbs for Healing

Working with herbs for health and healing doesn’t require exotic ingredients. Many remedies can be found right in your pantry or spice drawer! In this interactive, virtual workshop with Asari Beale, an herbalist in the Wise Woman tradition, you’ll learn some easy remedies to support your immune system, gut health, and nervous system. You’ll also have a chance to create your own herbal honey.

Learn more about your facilitator: Asari Beale

Asari Beale has been studying plant medicine informally most of her adult life and formally since 2020. She is in the 3rd year of a clinical apprenticeship with herbalist and author Robin Rose Bennet. She is a graduate of the Wild Ginger Community Herbalism program and studied briefly with Empress Karen Rose. She forages in and around New York City and has recently begun writing about herbalism and foraging on Substack at @eclecticbotanica. Asari is a writer and arts administrator at Teachers & Writers Collaborative. 

Guided Meditation & Sound Bathing Workshop

This deeply restorative workshop will create an intentional space for guests to settle into their bodies, quiet the mind, and connect with themselves and one another.

Learn more about your facilitators: Grae Wellness

At Grae Wellness, we’re redefining the way you think about massage therapy. More than just a relaxing spa treatment, we believe in its transformative power to heal the body and enhance overall health. Our approach combines expert therapeutic techniques with personalized education and guidance, empowering you to take control of your wellness journey.

Whether you’re recovering from injury, managing stress, or simply aiming for optimal health, Grae Wellness offers a holistic experience that supports your body’s natural ability to heal and thrive.

CLAIM IT!

Rather than simply discussing healthcare disparities, CLAIM IT focuses on what women can actually do when they are sitting in a healthcare setting and do not feel heard. The workshop gives Black women practical, tangible tools for navigating healthcare encounters, communicating concerns effectively, advocating for appropriate evaluation, and responding when they believe their symptoms or concerns are being dismissed.

My goal is for the women to leave this workshop feeling better prepared to speak up, ask the right questions, understand their options, and know what to do when they believe something has been missed. I want the participants to be informed, confident partners in their healthcare.

The workshop will also help women see their health as a continuum from the reproductive years and pregnancy, through midlife, menopause, and healthy aging. Participants will understand how what happens at one stage can affect the next and how all the stages are interconnected.

This workshop will be facilitated Dr. Theresa A. Buckson, MD, FACOG. (Facilitator bio coming soon!)


Black Women’s Wellness Retreat Information Hub