Relationships, Inspiration, Education: B4Bc’s Chasing Sunshine Ocean Retreat 2016
Written by Megan Pischke
So many great things and relationships always come out of these weekends, our young women’s retreats, and it’s truly an honor for me to be hosting, and having an opportunity to be so inspired.
At our 12th B4BC Chasing Sunshine retreat, September 30-October 1, 2016, we had more than double the amount of applicants than ever before for the 10 Survivorship positions we had available. This shows the need for doing more!
We started by doing an event in British Columbia, Canada, my home, to raise funds for three local Sea To Sky ladies to be able to attend. Here’s what Sea to Sky means: The Sea to Sky Yoga Mala was held atop the Squamish Gondola (called Sea to Sky), and we did yoga for 2+ hours to fundraise for these women to come to this retreat.
Of course, given BC weather, it was a rainy one, but many showed up with smiles and yoga mats, none the less. Along with the online Facebook auction held for a week leading up to the event, we raised nearly $5,000, and were able to share that with The Sarah Burke Foundation.
For the 12th B4BC Chasing Sunshine retreat, we rented a house in beautiful sunny Encinitas, CA. I brought along a dear friend and an incredibly talented Doctor of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Dr. Kendra Starr. Kendra has been with us for a few years now, and through the retreats, she has been able to focus on breast health, cancer, and healing of our bodies, minds and spirits. She has even created her own herbal tincture to specifically nourish the breasts.
To start, the ladies were greeted with a delicious meal prepared by Nutritional Health Coach Moniqua Plante, of The Plante Life. Moniqua lives and works in LA, and offers much insight from meal preparation to making sure you are getting the proper nutrients with each meal.
We started each morning with yoga and inspirational writing exercises with local healer and yoga therapist Kimberly Ann Johnson. Kimberly brings a calm, steady, strong feminine presence. She teaches about healing the feminine aspects that can be overlooked, or even diminished during such harsh treatments of cancer, and reminds us how important it is to listen to our inner voices when healing on many levels.
We then headed to Ponto State beach to surf and play in the ocean with the boys at Surfin Fire. I have always been so confident, for these guys to show the ladies a good time in the ocean, and to help them feel safe and over come fears in the water. We had some ladies who didn’t think they would even get in a wetsuit, but they dropped-in on some waves, riding white water, and laughing all afternoon. As we all know, laughter can be a darn good medicine.
Chef Lance Roll of The Brothery and The Flavor Chef, drop-in each retreat with the BEST organic chicken bone broth coconut mint/lime reduction soup. He also does a bomb veggie broth, and speaks to all of us about the important nutrients in bone broth. Also, he speaks on the importance of clean water, clean food, and clean living.
And intertwined with all these activities, are personal experiences, relationships and bonds forming for a lifetime.
I have always said it’s not about standing up and telling your story in front of the group, but more of what you can take away, and bring home with you. I hope these weekends offer just that: A gift that can be referred upon for years to come. And each person this weekend has gifted me, something I will always be grateful for.
Thank you again to Kendra Starr, Moniqua Plante of The Plante Life, Kimberly Ann Johnson, Surfin Fire, The Flavor Chef, Mizu Life, Paul Mitchell, KIND Snacks, and all of our AMAZING retreat participants! We couldn’t do this without you!
