Harvesting Hope: A Nature-Based Mandala Workshop for Grief

October 10, 2027 | 1:00–3:00 PM East Houghton Waterfront Park

Hosted by Danielle Foertsh Newman, C-IAYT, yoga therapist at Snowy Cedar Center for Wellness and Fresh Coast Yoga

Cost: $40 | Children welcome with a paid adult admission (Monthly unlimited pass holders at Fresh Coast Yoga can receive a $10 discount with pre-registration using code MANDALA).

Registration: https://www.freshcoast.yoga/workshops

Grief can disrupt the order we once knew. In the wake of death and loss, the world may feel unfamiliar, uncertain, and difficult to make sense of. Yet nature continually reminds us that life moves through cycles of change, beauty, impermanence, loss, and renewal.

Join Danielle Foertsch Newman of Snowy Cedar Center for Wellness and Fresh Coast Yoga for an afternoon of reflection, connection, beauty, hope, and an opportunity to remember that even in the presence of loss, new growth remains possible. Harvesting Hope: A Nature-Based Mandala Workshop for Grief is designed to take yoga off the mat and into life through an exploration of grief, healing, and letting go.

We will begin with meditation and centering, creating space to arrive fully in the present moment. Together, we will then gather natural elements from our surroundings and use them to create nature-based mandalas. As we construct mandalas, we will reflect on the impermanence of life, the beauty that can exist alongside grief, and the ways we sometimes resist acknowledging death and loss.

There is something soothing about making something orderly like nature-based mandalas after loss or death. Arranging leaves, stones, branches, and other natural elements into a mandala can offer a tangible reminder that, even after profound disruption, we can find a sense of order in life again. The mandala becomes both an expression of our individual story and a reflection of the larger cycles of nature.

We will have an opportunity to share our mandalas with one another, exploring the meaning behind what we have created and the stories that each composition holds in order to honor our grief. Through this process, we will open to healing at the root of our belonging - to ourselves, to one another, and to the natural world. No artistic experience nor experience with yoga is necessary. Whether your grief is recent or long-held, join to discover what nature, creativity, and community may offer along the path toward healing.

In case of inclement weather, event will be held under the pavilion at the East Houghton Waterfront Park.