Schedule - Events & Media Interviews

Museo Gallery Winter Show 2018

Museo Gallery Winter Show 2017

2017

More art HERE

Three Graces (6'-7+' tall)

  MUSEO GALLERY
Opening Saturday, January 25, 2014

Jerry will be exhibiting his latest,  "Three Graces," at Museo Gallery's Winter show.   "Three Graces" can be seen in more detail in the "Woman Standing" series. 

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Rebelle Society 

"A Loss of Power and Freedom just before an Inspiring Breakthrough" 
Interview by

 Brian Alger

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UPCOMING  RADIO
Interviews with Jerry Wennstrom 

*

Michelle Bond Radio Show

WBLQ 1230 (Rhode Island, Connecticut and New York)

Currently on line, listen  HERE

*

Dr. Jen Royster Radio

August 29th 8:00am PST
Currently on line HERE 

*
 

Ask Sarah Radio

 "CONSCIOUS CREATIVITY"

Currently on line HERE

*

Rebecca Norrington Radio

 *

 
 Sheryl Glick Radio

Monday March 24, 2014 at 2:30 pm PST

*
 

Dr.Lisa Hurtt Radio  
Thursday 3:00pm PST (date to be announced)

*

Museo Gallery Art Show 

http://www.museo.cc/exhibits.html

Komikon - January/February 2013

Brightening up the cold days of January, Museo’s iconic winter show “Komikon” seeks to explore the impact comic books, cartoons, graphic novels and various forms of computerized animation have had on the arts. 
Be prepared to see superheros never before revealed.  Creatures, both known and unknown, will festoon the gallery walls.  Is there a dark side to Mickey Mouse, will the Queen of Hearts prevail over Alice,  can White Out Man erase past mistakes?  Twenty-five artists will contribute to the exhibit.
Don your costume and head down to Museo on January 19th for the opening reception.  Expect surprises and come ready for fun from 5 to 7 PM. This opening will replace the February 2 usual opening date.
The gallery will be closed January 1 through the 18th to prepare for this exciting show.
215 First Street/P. O. Box 548
Langley, WA 98260
360.221.7737
http://www.museo.cc Open 11-5, Tuesdays by appt.


 "Just Art" - A New Video
Music by Susan McKeown, Natalie Merchant and Marilyn Strong
(Thank you for allowing us to use your music.)

Chazen Museum of Art

In the Hands of Alchemy:

The Art and Life of Jerry Wennstrom

www.handsofalchemy.com
Jerry Wennstrom's Art 
New Art

Madison, Wisconsin Visit June 14-17,  Public Events

Lecture and Museum Tour at the Chazen Museum of Art

Thursday, June 14, 5:30 p.m., Chazen Museum of Art, 750 University Avenue, Auditorium

A lecture with images of Jerry’s visionary multi-layered, interactive sculptural figures, gleaned and transformed from found and created objects, followed by a discussion of artworks in the Chazen permanent collection that make similar use of found/recycled/reclaimed objects.

Hands-on workshop at the Children’s Museum

Friday, June 15, 1:00-3:00 p.m., Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street

Join Jerry in a fun and fascinating process of creating an art piece from recycled and repurposed materials. You can bring some of your own objects to add to the museums rich supply.

Children and adults are invited.

UW Arboretum

Life on the Threshold

Presentation and Dialog: Jerry’s Journey

Saturday, June 16, 2:00-4:00 p.m. UW Arboretum McKay Visitor Center Auditorium

1207 Seminole Highway

Jerry is an artist who found the courage to base his life on following the truth of his creative spirit. Through a cycle of death and rebirth of his creative vision, Jerry has been initiated into a place of mystery that is reflected in his artwork and his life, touching the vast complexities of the collective unconscious. His stories and insights deeply move and inform.

A donation of $10-$25 is requested.

Events sponsored by Art at the Threshold (www.artatthethreshold.org), UW-Madison Office of Human Resource Development and UW-MANIAC (Madison Area Network for Innovation and Collaboration)


WORT Madison Radio Interview with Jerry
 “Eight Oclock Buzz”
with Jonathan Zarov
Friday, June 8th, 10:00PT
http://www.wort-fm.org

St Michaels Church Barrington, Ill

www.stmichaelsbarrington.org

( THE CENTER HEART EVENT IS BEING RESCHEDULED)
June 23-24 Center Heart

Presentation and Dedication

Jerry's Art Piece Entitled "Center Heart" Moves into 

Center Heart's New Facility

4438 Rt 27, 2nd Floor
Kingston, NJ
For more information
www.centerheart.org



Steampunk Art Show

2012 Museo Gallery Steampunk

2012 Museo Gallery Steampunk

Videos by Robbie Cribbs

Here is a little about an art show Jerry is participating in this month.

January at Museo Gallery

Steampunk

Gala Opening ~ Saturday, January 28th, from 5 to 7pm

This January and February MUSEO will feature works primarily by local artists during its “Steampunk” show.

The Art works are both two-dimensional and sculptural, reminiscent of the spirit of adventure, invention, and craftsmanship of the early 19th century.

These themed shows are intended to be inspirational to artists, have a dark and light side, and inspire costumes and performance art during the artist’s reception.

Don your top hat, Victorian clothing and jewelry, and head on down to Museo for this gala opening on Saturday, January 28st from 5 to 7 pm.

The show will run through February 27th.

(360) 221-7737
215 First Street
Langley, WA 98260
museo@whidbey.com
http://www.museo.cc/index.html

Winter hours at the gallery are:

Thursday through Monday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Steampunk is a sub-genre of science fiction, fantasy, alternate history and speculative history. Steampunk involves a setting where steam power is still widely used—usually Victorian era Britain or “Wild West”-era United States—that incorporates elements of either science fiction or fantasy. Works of steampunk often feature anachronistic technology or futuristic based on a Victorian perspective on fashion, culture, architectural style, etc.
Various modern utilitarian objects have been modded by individual artisans into a pseudo-Victorian mechanical “steampunk” style, and a number of visual and musical artists have been described as steampunk.

The Alchemist

Jerry Wennstrom

9’ X 2 ‘X 2’

The Alchemist has several lighted chambers and a windowed door that accesses a working steam engine.

There is a lighted red crystal slowly spinning behind a brass chambered nautilus in the heart area of the piece. In what would be the pubic area of the Being, there is a bronze door with a 3 dimensional skull cast into it.

Inside the door is a gas burner. When a fire is lit in this chamber, a small boiler is heated, which activates a steam engine situated just below the heart area of the Being. Once the steam engine is running, the piece comes alive. A small Goddess dances in the compartment where the steam engine is housed. The exhaust from the steam engine comes steaming out of the mouth of a carved face in the middle of the art piece. The steam that condenses into water drips into a brass funnel and is recycled into the steam boiler.

In the right hand of the Being is a glass crystal. Turning the crystal opens the upper chamber revealing a carved mask with wild hair. When the door opens the mask comes out of its chamber, looks around and then returns to the box. There is a hidden control panel on the side of the piece with buttons on it. When a button is pushed, the Being does something that sounds like Tibetan chanting. The sound is made from a series of 12 buzzers placed in sets of 2 that run the full length of the piece. The buzzers go off in sequence up and down the length of the box. Because of the overall “V” shape of the piece the buzzers resonate at a slightly different pitch in the different areas of the box.

Here are a few other items you might be interested in:

In the Hands of Alchemy

is currently featured in

CULTURE UNPLUGGED

Spirit Enlightened Film Festival

HERE

&

Art Mystery and the Creative Life

HERE

*

Oasis TV

Features several of our video excerpts

on an inspirational series called Bliss Breaks

HERE

*

German Artist Alex Zondro creates images

using Jerry’s art “Nurse Log” 

See Alex’s amazing creation

HERE
&
HERE 

*

Spiritual Media Blog

Features Pacifica Video Lecture

HERE

*

Selfless Being Blog

The Inspired Heart and video features

HERE

*

Pacifica Graduate Institute

Santa Barbara, CA"Engaged Humanities and the Creative Life"
A lecture and media presentation by Jerry Wennstrom
Depth Psychology Program
Contributing Faculty Lecturers include:
Stephen Aizenstat, Ph.D., Ph.D., Evans Lansing Smith, Ph.D., Robert D. Romanyshyn; Allen Bishop, Ph.D., Carol S. Pearson and Jerry Wennstrom
NEW VIDEO
PACIFICA LECTURE AND SLIDE SHOW




Listen
to a past lecture with theResidential Humanities
Program lecturers include:
Rick Tarnas, Marion Woodman, Jerry Wennstrom, and Evans Lansing Smith.

Non-Duality Magazine
Interview and Art Feature with Jerry Read on line HERE

THERE'S A NEW FEATURE FILM ABOUT JERRY'S LIFE

It is not a documentary this time but a feature length film, done with actors. The film is being directed by award winning Danish film director Hans Fabian Wullenweber.

See film trailers and

MORE HERE

Recent Past Event & Media Interviews

                                  www.Awakin.org 

Global Forest Interview

Jerry Wennstrom's - Interview with Richard Whittaker of Works & Conversations is

currently on line.

  Listen to Interview HERE 

"Artist Interviews"

Interview and Art Feature with Jerry

A.I. is a Hollywood Based Celebrity Magazine
which also celebrates the life and art of its late Uruguayan cofounder

Mauricio Savaria

More on Mauricio HERE

Jerry got to know Mauricio over the last years of his extraordinary life.

He was a gentle, loving and brilliant man -- creative in every way.

His work lives on through the dedicated efforts of his loving mother, Marisa Darnel.

http://www.artistinterviews.com

All Things Healing
 is doing a major feature of Jerry's work, which will include Interviews, video, articles and a review of The Inspired Heart.

Here are a few of items recently posted:

NEW

Art feature, article and interview with Jerry
HERE
Log in:
soluna@whidbey.com
Pass Word - pure

"Conversation with Jerry Wennstrom"
Interview by Marie Sakai

Art:"Angels & Demons"

Articles:

"Reverent Generosity"
"What is Your Intent"Video:
Creative Imperative
Video with David Whyte and Jerry Wennstrom

Creation's Quiet Whisper

by Jerry Wennstrom

Article and art feature

Currently on the Soulful Living web site

HERE

click on image to enlarge
Light of Consciousness Magazine
November 2010 IssueArticle and Art Feature
"In the Hands of Alchemy"

by Jerry Wennstrom
www.light-of-consciousness.org

1- NEW on Non-Duality Street
"Nurse Log" an article and art piece by Jerry
HERE


2- Non-Duality Street
"The Singular Requirement of Grace"
An Interview and are feature with Jerry
Read on line HERE



Buddhimudrah
Interview with Jerry
Read On line HERE


Agora Magazine
"Creative Wandering: A Deeper Service"
Feature Article by Jerry in the April-May Issue
A Canadian Publication
www.agoranews.org

click on poster to enlarge

The Mythic Journeys Film Features
Jerry's sculptures and early paintings.

click on image to enlarge


Role of the Artist in Society
Deepak Chopra and Jerry Wennstrom
A Video Excerpt Showcasing Jerry's Art



The Creative Imperative
(Video by Richard Miller)





Evita Ochel Interviews Jerry
www.Evolving Beings.com
Also on YouTube




Bela Sparks Magazine
"Surrendering to the Mystery:
An Interview With Artist Jerry Wennstrom"
March/April Issue
You Can Read the Article on Line HERE
www.healingpath.com

The Magic of Being Magazine

Feature Article "Creative Wandering: A Deeper Service"

by Jerry Wennstrom

Currently on line HERE

WORT Madison, Radio Interview with Jerry
 “Eight Oclock Buzz”
with Jonathan Zarov
Friday, June 8th, 10:00PT
http://www.wort-fm.org

Recent Past Event & Media Interviews

WORT Madison Radio Interview with Jerry
 “Eight Oclock Buzz”
with Jonathan Zarov
Friday, June 8th, 10:00PT
http://www.wort-fm.org

"Fire it Up With CJ"

March 18th at 1:00pm PST

http://www.fireitupwithcj.com

Jennifer Howard

Interviews Jerry

http://www.drjenniferhoward.com/
Currently on line HERE

Author Jerry Katz Interviews Jerry on his Radio Show

"Nonduality Street" CKDU 88.1 Halifax

Currently on Line HERE

The Wizard Radio
Trip Overholt Interviews Jerry

www.thewizardllc.com

Listen HERE

Host Nancy Wallace

Interview with Jerry

"Adventures In Density & Effort"

Joan M. Newcomb Interviews Jerry

Listen HERE

"Fine Tune You Radio"

Helen Smalley-Bower's Interview with Jerry is Being Rescheduled for October

Please Check HERE for Updates

"Making it Out Alive"

Radio Interview with Jerry

Streetwise Spirituality

Radio Interview with Jerry

"What We're Thinking About"

Radio interview with Jerry (Live show)

"Emotional Pathways" Radio Juliet Rohde-Brown interview with Jerry

HERE 

BBS Radio's Spirit of the New Dawn
 Listen to Interview  Here

Marilyn's feature article in the Whidbey Record is now on line
HERE

An Interview and Art Feature with Jerry on Creativity Portal

HERE

&

Creative Slush

"Where Writers Work" "Where Writers Work"

Jerry's Desk

~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~
Marilyn's feature article in the Whidbey Record is now on line
HERE

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"Resourcefulness"
Inferential Focus - New York City

A presentation with Vicki Robin and
Jerry Wennstrom
Vicki is best selling co-author with Joe Dominguez of "Your Money or Your Life"

Read the response by Inferential Partner, Ken Hey to the event on Vicki's Blog~~~~~*~~~~~

Stay Inspired “Friend Raising” Event

March 25th at the Tibet House, 22 West 15th St. , New York City 6 - 9 PM. The event is in the lovely Art Gallery on the second floor. Jerry Wennstrom, artist and noted speaker will be on hand to share his inspiring story. Storyteller Laura Simms, singer Marilyn Strong and Stephen Roues will perform.

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The Inside Edge Foundation for Education, University of C.A. Irvine
A Creative Experience With Marilyn Strong and Jerry Wennstrom

Matt Welsh Interviews Jerry on Spiritual Media
See Google Video HERE

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Mariel Hemingway
interviews Jerry on Healthy Life Radio
Listen HEREFeatured on Anameka's Radio Show

~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~

New Dimensions Radio
Hosts of New Dimensions Radio Justine and Michael Toms
(Listen to Interview with Marilyn & Jerry HERE)

~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~

Lynn Andrews interviews Jerry on Kindred Spirits Radio

Listen HERE
~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~

Dr. Pat interviews Marilyn Strong
FM 98.9 HD 3 and KKNW AM 1150 Seattle
Also on BBS RADIO
Listen Here
www.thedrpatshow.com

The Dr. Pat Radio ShowListen HERE

Margaret Wendt Radio Show
"Jerry Wennstrom - One Man on a Spiritual Journey"
Listen HERE

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Kaleah interviews Jerry
Sedona Talk Radio
Listen HERE

Maryann Live Radio interview with JerryListen HERE

Nora Klaver
Interviews Jerry on Brainstorms Radio
Listen on Line
HERE

Wisdom of the Labrynth Radio
Robin Bradley-Hansel's interview with Jerry
Listen on Line HERE

Kimberly Schneider
Interviews Jerry on Conscious Manifesting
Currently on Line
HERE

Jordan Mercedes interview with Jerry on
Thrive In Balance Radio

Listen HERE

Interview with Jerry on
PSYCHOLOGY OF CONSCIOUSNESS
w/ Juan P. Girardi
Listen HERE
www.healthylife.net

Deborah Beauvais interviews Jerryhttp://www.wbnw1120.com/Listen HERE

Explore Your Spirit Radio

Kala Interviews Jerry
Listen HERE
www.exploreyourspirit.com

Gail Bongalis interviews Jerry
Universal Hope Radio
www.spiritquestradio.com

Catherine VanWetter Interviews JerryInspirations of the Heart Radio
Listen HERE
Heart of the Matter Blog Feature

Host Joe Carroccio

Interview with Jerry Achieve Radio

The Law of Distraction and Interruption Radio
Listen HERE

Dr Ed Poole
The Lessons Guy
Radio interview with JerryListen HERE

And Now We Talk Radio
June 22nd 2009 at 7:00pm (pst)
Hannah Shears and Marlene Chapman Interview Jerry
Listen HERE

The Dr. Kim Show
Healthy Life.net Radio
Dr. Kim author of "Healing the Rift" interviews Jerry
Listen HERE

Laura Moon Interviews Jerry On Full Moon Radio
Listen HERE

Fog Horn Radio
Jim Nebel ("The Detox Guy") interviews Jerry
www.spiritquestradio.com
Listen HERE

Nancy Lee's interview with Jerry on
Lights on Radio
Listen on line HERE

Wendy Garrett interviews Marilyn
Listen HERE

Laurie Huston Interviews Jerry on Intuitive Soul Radio
Listen HERE

Radio - A Fresh Start with Sally Felton

Planetary Spirit Radio - (Interview with Marilyn and Jerry)

Turning of the Wheel Radio Chris Flisher

Listen HERE

Dr. Nicki’s Stuck No More Radio

Interview With Jerry on Internet Voices Radio with Lilianne Caldwell
Listen- HERE
http://internetvoicesradio.com/

Future Primitive Radio- Gaialogues Interview with Marilyn and Jerry
Listen HERE

Judyth Piazza
Interviews Jerry on "The American Perspective"

www.thesop.org (also on WTTB)
Listen HERE


Conscious Manifesting Radio
With Kimberly SchneiderThe Interview with Jerry is onCurrently on LineHERE

 Michelle Vandepass

Interviews Jerry on

Live Your Purpose Radio 

Interview With Carolin Ra

 HERE

The People Speak Radio

With host Basima Farhat

Interview With Jerry

Listen HERE

Live Radio Interview with Marilyn and Jerry
Good Vibrations with Tracey Schavone
KKCR Kaua`i Community Radio
Hanalei, Kauai, HI
http://www.kkcr.org/

Dream Walker Group Interview With Jerry

Jamie Ridler Interview with Jerry
www.openthedoor.ca

Conscious Living Radio Interview with Jerry hosted by Sandy Jorgensen is currently available on Podcast-
LISTEN HERE

October 8th 2008 9:00pm EST (6:00PST)
A1R Radio With David James
Interview with Jerrywww.ask1radio.com


Past Events

www.yogasoup.com
Art as a Spiritual Practice
Unitarian Universalist Church
Whidbey Island, WA
A lecture by Jerry with music by Marilyn

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Women of Wisdom"Descent to the Goddess: Reclaiming our Creative Depths"
with Marilyn Strong
http://www.womenofwisdom.org/

~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~
Art Spirituality and the ArtistThe Artist Trust
A film Event and Talk
Eileen Day
and
Jerry Wennstrom

Artist Trust
1835 12th Avenue
www.artisttrust.org

~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~

Click on image to enlarge
RADICAL DEPARTURES

Exploring the meaning, paradox & ultimate gift in the
EXPERIENCE OF DEATH
An Evening of Music, Film and Inspiring Dialogue
With Sarah Blum, Marilyn Strong,
Bette Joram & Jerry Wennstrom

www.whidbeyinstitute.com


THREE FEATURED FILMS

“Appointment with the Wise Old Dog” By David Blum (29-min) With introduction by Yo-Yo Ma (David’s widow Sarah Blum will be present to speak about the film.)

I have studied and meditated on David Blum’s extraordinary documentation of his dreams and inner work – the immense gifts that were given to him from his unconscious and poured into images and music. We are intrigued on all levels – emotional, imaginal, intellectual. Our hearts are split open as we watch the process of the inner marriage. - Marion Woodman.
David Blum had given a wondrous gift to the world with this film. Here is astounding evidence that as a body recedes, soul carries on sustained entirely by images. -Robert Sardello, Ph.D


“In the Hands of Alchemy: The Art and Life of Jerry Wennstrom”
(29-min) By Phil Lucas & Mark Sadan

There is a real difference in human beings who have let themselves be thrown to the ground by life. Jerry did that with an intentional act with his art. He is on the other side of that kind of psychic death and renewal. He really is a kind of phoenix who has risen from the ashes. -Christina Baldwin

"In the Hands of Alchemy is a delightful film, an alchemical mixture in itself of inspiration, spirituality, art and the story of a remarkable human being." -David Spangler


“A Family Undertaking” by Elizabeth Westrate
Excerpts from this special PBS film will be shown during Marilyn Strong’s presentation.

What is old is often new again. Elizabeth Westrate's "A Family Undertaking" uncovers a growing social trend: the home funeral movement. - PBS

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Kauai Museum

Click on image to enlarge

Kauai Museum in Hawaii
In the Hands of Alchemy
Film Presentation and Lecture by Jerry Wennstrom
Live Music By Marilyn Strong

www.kauaimuseum.org~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~

Art as Meditation with Jerry Wennstrom and Marilyn Strong
www.wisdomuniversity.org

~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~

Peace Abbey
www.peaceabbey.org

~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~

Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies/Western Washington University
May 7th Film Presentation, Music and Lecture with Marilyn and Jerry
Thank you to our host - Dana Crowley Jack

~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~
The Following is a lecture Jerry gave at The Inside Edge Foundation for Education, University of C.A.
You can see a video of Marilyn's Introduction and song on their web site HERE.~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~

Click on images to enlarge
The Light that Never Dims - A former story, music and art event with Vi Hilbert at the Whidbey Institute (from left to right) Christina Baldwin, Laura Simms, Allison Cox, Rebecca Chamberlain, Vi Hilbert, Jerry Wennstrom and Marilyn Strong


~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~

"E" Magazine Interview with Jerry - Here

And Other Tidbits

Oasis TV Features - "In the Hands of ALchemy

Jerry Writes monthly articles for Inferential Focus, a NYC think tank/consulting firm. Mythic Passages Ezine features many of the articles HERE as well as an interview with Jerry.

The Piano

The Piano

(Click on Pictures for to Enlarge)

The Piano by Jerry wennstrom
Video by Carol Wright

The Piano began as an old Kemble baby grand piano that was given to me by friend Judith Adams. I gutted the piano and cut it down to create a smaller inside compartment. I then flipped it on its side so the keyboard runs vertically.

The entire piece stands 8 feet tall and is 24 inches wide and deep. There is a 5-foot carved cedar figure inside. The face of the figure can be seen through the round window cut in the door of the piece. The piano’s original hammers have been dyed and painted and now adorn the top. There are lights and many brass and copper adornments as well.

The original pedal mechanism from the piano has been mounted at the bottom; acting as one of two legs the piece stands on. The second leg (behind) is one of the original piano legs.

Pressing one of the two foot pedals turns the figure’s head. On the back of the head is a small, rounded double door. Behind the door is a skull, carved into the inside wood of the head.

The second foot pedal activates the hands. When the pedal is pressed the hands open slowly (like a book.) Stamped into the copper plates, mounted on the palms of the hands is a poem:

gutted and hammered
the piano stands mute

paradox nailed shut

dead weight waiting

widows walk
and pray
without a peep

Can’t dance? Buzz God!

…and, the sculpture offers a way to Buzz God! Four of the ivory piano keys have brass plates with words stamped into them. The first key says, “Off Key” the second, “Buzz God,” the third, “Sound of Silence,” and the fourth, “One Hand Clapping.” Pushing the “Buzz God” key activates a loud buzzer.

Piano Keyboard with Option to "Buzz God"

Face of Inner Figure


Top with Hammers


Hammers


Detail

Head - Inner figure

5-ft Tall Inside Figure


Inner Figure

Inner Figure and Keyboad

Dyed and Painted Piano Hammers Adorning Top

Feet and light of Inner figure

Hidden Compartment on Back of Head

Skull at back of Head Seen Through Doors Opening

Hands Closed

Hands Beginning to Open

Open Hands Present the Poem:

hammered and gutted
the piano stands mute

paradox nailed shut

dead weight waiting

widows walk
and pray
without a peep

Can't dance? Buzz God

Foot Pedals that Turn Head and Open Hands

Marilyn Strong's Death Work

Marilyn Strong

Death, in a sense, is a denouement. It follows the climax of life.
In it, a person plays out the final act of one’s existence before his or her exit out of this world.
Strange, then, that many families in American society allow a beloved’s body to be taken immediately away; whisked off to a mortuary for embalming and laid out in an unfamiliar funeral home before being buried or cremated.
No final curtain. No long moment in the spotlight of one’s death to allow a family the time to give those they love an ovation; a curtain call for which they may honor the dead with appreciation and love.
One South Whidbey woman would like to give families the chance to change all that.
Marilyn Strong is the founder of Soul’s Journey Services.
Strong is a certified death midwife and is part of a new movement that aims to restage life’s final act with an intimate, sacred and gentle transition from life to death. It’s an alternative to funeral homes.

Marilyn Strong holds a BA in Religion and Adult Education and an MA in Spirituality and Culture. She is a skilled creator and facilitator of adult spirituality programs and workshops. She also performs weddings as a non-denominational minister, is a vocalist and a Certified Death Midwife. She provides coaching and information on natural death care and services to families as a home funeral guide, including memorial services . She also offers informational workshops on "Befriending Death." For a brochure or further information, email her at lapis@whidbey.com

NEW
Home and Family Funeral Article
Features Marilyn's Work
In The Whidbey Record
HERE


Little Known Facts:

~ Caring for your own dead and creating a home funeral is completely legal in Washington, and in most states in the U.S.

~ Embalming is not essential.

~ A family member or Advanced Health Care Directive Agent can:
· Act in lieu of a funeral director to facilitate all arrangements and carry out all decisions.
· Fill out and file end-of-life documentation.
· Transport the deceased in any vehicle to a home, place of ceremony, crematory or cemetery.

~ A loved one can lie-in-honor in the home of family or friends. One to three days is customary.

~Friends and family can create an atmosphere that reflects cultural and personal beliefs, including casket decoration, ritual and storytelling.

~The average cost of a funeral in the U.S. is $8,000. A loving and meaningful ceremony can be created to honor someone’s life for a very small cost.

~You can hire Marilyn Strong to facilitate, assist or as a consultant for your home and family funeral.

Email - lapis@whidbey.com
Call- 360-341-3382

Click on brochure to read

Click on brochure to enlarge

An Alternative for Families of the Dead
By Patricia Duff
South Whidbey Record Arts & Entertainment, Island Life
May 09 2009, 8:00 AM

Marilyn Strong

Bringing Death Back Home

By Marilyn Strong

Currently Published in Mythic Passages

In July, 2006 I returned from a gathering at Mountain Home Ranch Resort, located in the hills of wine country between Napa and Sonoma Valleys in northern California. The focus of this gathering was a training called “Honoring Life’s Final Passage with Love and Compassion: Death Midwifery Level III”. It was taught by Jerrigrace Lyons, Founder and Director of Final Passages, an educational non-profit program founded in 1995 and dedicated to dignified and compassionate alternatives to current funeral practices. For eleven years she has offered her services to the community and beyond, helping over 250 families plan and create their own home funerals. She also teaches workshops, consults and sells informative guides and pamphlets. Thirty-five of us from six different states gathered at a most appropriate time of year for this training - early November, during what the Mexicans call “Los Dias de Muertos” or “Days of the Dead”, Mexico’s traditional holiday honoring departed ancestors, friends and family. This is a time in the wheel of the year when the “veil between the worlds is thin”, and I felt it to be an auspicious time to further my training in Death Midwifery!

I remember the first time I became aware of the reality of death. The year was 1962; I was in second grade, and not more than seven years old. I would walk twelve blocks to my grade school, outside the city limits north of Spokane, WA, and was often accompanied by my older sister, Cheri. During this walk I would always see a young girl, about my age, from a distance, walking with a nurse or a nanny. What first caught my eye was her size; she was unusually overweight for a girl her age. There was also something mysterious about her, for she lived in my neighborhood and yet I never saw her at school. She was never alone on these walks, in that she always had an adult with her; and yet she was always alone, in that I never saw her with other children. I often thought about her, and wondered if she was lonely, but I was too timid a child to introduce myself and befriend her. I eventually discovered that she suffered from leukemia, and that the medicines she took caused her to gain the weight. I never knew her name, and only saw her on her walks, on my way to and from school.

One day I realized that I had not seen her walking for several days in a row. I don’t recall how I found out, but word came that she had died. The finality of it began slowly sinking in and my innocent sense of well-being came crashing down around me. Death did not just come to old people! Someone my age could, and has died! Suddenly, I realized that it could also happen to me. I remember going to my mother in her bedroom, lying on her bed, sobbing, and trying to explain to her what was wrong, longing for consolation that I knew in my heart of hearts she could not give. This was a hurt she could not kiss away. The world shifted for me that day in an irrevocable way. I was crying, not only for the unnamed, unknown girl; but I was crying for the recognition that some day I, too, would be no more on this earth, and I was afraid.

That fear of death stayed with me throughout my childhood and into my middle adulthood, primarily because, like most of us in this culture, I was not taught experientially about the natural cycles of life and was protected from any direct contact with human death. The first funeral I attended was for my paternal grandmother when I was 14. I could have looked at her in the open casket, but was too afraid. Death was such a scary thing precisely because it was so mysterious and unknown to me, and I was so inexperienced with it. We humans tend to be afraid of things that we don’t know, and therefore don’t understand. The truth is that our culture teaches that death is something to be ignored, denied, feared and avoided as much as possible. We try to insulate ourselves from the reality that death is a natural part of the cycle of life.

As a young adult I moved to Whidbey Island, WA and studied Native American and European earth-based spiritualities. Through the teachings of the Medicine Wheel I came to know more intimately about the life-death-life cycle, ever present in the seasons of the year. In my mid-thirties I experienced a metaphorical death through the loss of a 10-year marriage that I valued. This shattering led me to explore many of the classic descent myths. The myths helped me, after much resistance, to eventually befriend the surrender and letting go process that is inherent in any death, be it physical or metaphorical. Although it took me many years to heal from that experience, I did emerge with a stronger sense of Self and a belief in and a deeper understanding of the promise of renewal that follows any death. I eventually came to see the divorce as one of the most valuable experiences of my life because of the wisdom I gained through it. I was becoming more familiar with the territory of death. However, it wasn’t until I was in my early 40’s that I had the privilege of being present at the death of a dear friend, Sara, in 1997 and my fear of death completely fell away.

Sara had been a participant in the first year of a women’s spiritual growth group that I co­-created and co-facilitated with my friend and business partner, Renie Hope, called “Gaia Spirit Rising”: Healing Ourselves, Healing the Earth.” From the fall of 1989 to the spring of 1990, Sara, along with 15 other women that year, gave herself fully to nine months of gathering weekly together, sitting in circle, exploring issues of spiritual, cultural and personal transformation through study, discussion, movement, creative expression, drumming, chanting, and sacred ceremony. Sara, like most of us, had grown up a daughter of the patriarchy, in a male-defined religious institution and identified fully with masculine ways of being successful in the world. Like many women, Sara was searching for a “God who looked like me” and she used the Gaia curriculum and experience to find a new source of empowerment for the second half of her life. Sara especially loved the chanting and drumming that I would lead at the beginning of each gathering.

Renie and I had created the Gaia program from the ashes of our failed marriages and the ending of our close association with the Chinook Learning Center. We had been covenant members of the Chinook community on the south end of Whidbey Island for many years, and had worked together on the educational staff, facilitating both residential and non-residential, nine-month long programs. Major changes at Chinook, including the disbanding of the membership, closely followed the exodus of our husbands from our marriages (ironically, within two months of each other). Our lives as we knew them were suddenly and irretrievably over. We were being kicked out of the “nest” and needed a new way to support ourselves financially. We also wanted to continue our in-depth educational work and have the opportunity to teach others how to create community, even as we sought to recreate it for ourselves. Being participant-leaders, Gaia became a crucible not only for the healing and support of the women who came to us, but for our own healing as well. We went on to facilitate the Gaia program for seven more years, but there was something about that first group that bonded especially deeply. After the official end of Gaia 1, they continued meeting without us through the years, with Sara emerging as one of their strongest leaders.

Then, in the fall of 1993, Sara was diagnosed with cancer. We were informed that her prognosis was not good and her doctors gave her 3 to 6 months to live. Sara’s one wish, at that point, was to live to see the birth of her grandchild. Her daughter, Jennifer, was newly pregnant at the time of her diagnosis. Her Gaia group and the extended Gaia community rallied around to support her and her husband, Allen. Our support included hospital visits during her many surgeries, emotional support, healing ceremonies - creating ways to uphold Sara and to hold our own sense of shock and disbelief that this was happening to one of us, so young. Months went by slowly as Sara grappled with the multitude of issues and decisions facing her. I had no easy answer for her when she asked my advice on whether to do chemotherapy or not. Initially she did do chemo, but soon wearied of the negative impact it had on her body and spirit. She then courageously chose to leave that known path sanctioned by western medicine and began to trail-blaze one of her own. She began working with a medical doctor who offered alternative treatments for cancer. More months passed. Sara’s granddaughter was born, and she was overjoyed to have made it that long. Never once did I see Sara get caught in self-pity. She lived on, beating her doctors’ timeline by three and a half years.

However, in the spring of 1997, I received a phone call from one of the Gaia women telling me that Sara was well into her dying process, and that if I wanted to come to Seattle and say goodbye to her, I should do it soon. I was also informed that Sara had requested that I facilitate her memorial service. When I arrived at Sara’s home, she was surrounded by the sounds of life; her hospital bed was in her living room, a makeshift altar nearby, candle flickering, casting shadowed light on fresh spring flowers, pictures of her loved ones and her special, sacred objects. The exquisitely beautiful and lovingly hand-crafted quilt made by her women’s group hung nearby, each square a testimony to Sara’s bright and giving spirit, and how cherished she was by each woman. Her family was there in support of her process and to grant her last wish – to die at home. There was a surprising lack of machines or medical equipment, save one computerized unit that served to dispense pain medication slowly to Sara through an IV drip. At this point she was refusing fluids and intravenous feeding, but the pain medication, given at regular intervals, helped her to rest more comfortably.

At first the everyday atmosphere seemed to contradict what was happening. Amidst a backdrop of Sara’s family chatting away over a supper brought in by another Gaia 1 participant, Sara’s slow, labored and uneven breath was taking her step, by invisible step, closer to her passing. There was incongruence here, and yet a lovely perfection -- for death is a part of life, as much as it may be denied by our culture. I was honored to be included in this sacred leave-taking. However, I was feeling awkward, as I had never been so close to human death before, and because there was no private space to express my personal grief. I leaned over to whisper my assurance to Sara that I would be honored to facilitate her memorial service. I wanted her to know so she would have one less worry. Yet, as I spoke the words, I realized in her semi-conscious state that she was beyond the concerns of this world. Still, she opened her eyes, silently communicating to me that she understood and knew that I was there.

I sat next to her, longing to help ease her transition. I had brought my drum. The thought of drumming and singing to Sara had crossed my mind, but it was edited out by the impracticality of doing so in an environment where it might not be understood. Within just a few minutes of having this thought, Sara’s husband, Allen, came to me and asked, “Would you be willing to sing some of the Gaia chants that Sara loves so much?” I was stunned, yet grateful for the synchronicity of the moment. I turned my attention briefly to Allen, acknowledging to myself what a fine, gentle and good husband he is and how supportive through this four-year process he has been to Sara. I watched him wipe her brow, lovingly caress her dry, chapped lips with a moist sponge, and check her IV.

Relieved to have an avenue of expression for the mixture of joy and pain, sorrow and love I felt for Sara all at once, I began to sing. Suddenly the words rang through with clarity and new meaning:

“Mother Earth, Birth and Death,
Come and hold me in your arms,
Mother Earth, Life and Breath,
Come and hold me in your arms.

Cradle me, Circle me, Hold me in your Mystery.
Challenge me, strengthen me, Hold me in your Heart”…1

Chanting, the repetition of simple words and melodies over and over
again, is an ancient practice developed to create sacred space. As I was chanting, I was struck with the realization that I had done this for Sara before, during the Gaia program. Through a ritual reenactment of the ancient Sumerian myth of Inanna’s descent to the underworld, I had stood by, chanting and holding the space consciously and with great care while she “died.” I had led her down through the seven gates to the underworld where she had released layers of her identity, one at a time, to each ritual gatekeeper. As Inanna, she had then “hung on a peg,” until her body turned to “green, rotting meat.” Although a metaphorical death, it had many of the same aspects of Sara’s physical death. The story of Inanna is a death and resurrection myth, similar to the Christian myth, yet it predates Christianity by 2,000 years. This ancient myth involves goddesses and is told from the feminine perspective. It was a fundamental aspect of the Gaia curriculum because it is such a potent template for a pattern of psychological and spiritual growth. Our hope was that by relating to this very early myth, from an age when the Great Goddess was still vital, that participants would be able to reclaim some connection to the archetypal feminine instinct and spirit that our culture sadly lacks.

“I am your child, oh Ancient Mother,
I am your child, oh Mother of the World.
I am your child, oh Ancient Mother,
I am your child, oh Mother of the World.

Ohhhh Inanna, Ohhhh Inanna, Ohhhh Inanna.
It is you who teach us to die, be reborn, and rise again.

Die, be reborn, and rise again, die be reborn and rise”…2

During Sara’s ritual death I had stood in support of her process just as Inanna’s trusted companion Ninshubur stood watch for her journey. During Sara’s ritual death, I had led her with chant, prayer and drum to help build a sacred container strong enough to carry her through. I could only pray that this small offering now would provide her some of the same for this, the literal death of her body. The difference was that this time l would not be there when and where she re-emerged to be reborn. I could only pray that there would be unseen and loving hands to greet her on the other side, for I knew in my bones that she would be reborn, just the same.

“Return Again, Return Again, Return to the Land of your Soul.
Return Again, Return Again, Return to the Land of your Soul.
Return to what you are, Return to who you are,
Return to where you are, born and reborn again.
Return again, Return again, Return to the Land of your Soul”…3

This took me more deeply into a place of communication and communion with Sara than merely speaking to her could have. Her breathing quieted and her pain and agitation seemed to ease for a while. After an hour or so I stopped. It was time for me to go. Remarkably, the rest of Sara’s family had retreated upstairs, and I was surrounded now only by the quiet of Sara’s breathing.

I returned the next day as soon as my schedule allowed. I arrived to find that Sara had died only twenty minutes prior, and Ruthe, another of the Gaia 1 group and a registered nurse, was there alone. It was time to bathe Sara’s body and to prepare for her lying-in-honor. We did this together, the silence occasionally broken through our chanting . Not only did I find my personal fear around death being released through this experience, but I also felt incredibly gifted by it. It was heart opening, healing and transformational.

When someone dies, the portal between the worlds opens, just as it does during a birth, and it is very powerful. I was transformed by being present to this energy, by touching, bathing and dressing this woman who had been my friend, but who was now in the process of leaving the shell that was her physical body. Some part of me mused that the patchwork of scars on Sara's belly from her many surgeries was reminiscent of the beautiful quilt that hung near by. Rather than being afraid, I found it to be a privilege and an honor to be able to tend to someone who has passed. Her spirit permeated the room during those initial hours after her death, and during the hours that she lay-in-honor in her bedroom, allowing friends and family to come and say their goodbyes. However, her spirit slowly diminished and when the family was ready, she was taken to cremation. Eventually, I felt Sara’s spirit dissolve into all of nature, into everything, including myself. I took part of her away with me, and, I no longer feared death. This was Sara’s gift to me.

A second gift would come from this experience, unbeknownst to me. At the time of Sara’s death I was grappling with another death – the ending of the Gaia program itself. We had created Gaia at the crest of the wave of the emerging women’s spirituality movement. Now, after riding it for eight years, this wave had expressed it’s fullness, splashed on the shore, and was receding back into deeper waters. Enrollment for the program was down, but I had also grown weary of the work, as fulfilling as it had been. I had been leading nine-month long groups for 16 years, and something else was calling me forward, although I had no name for it. At the time all I could feel was the grief of letting go. The form that enabled me to lead and participate in sacred ceremony, which had led me to my true vocation, was crumbling, and I had no idea whether or not a new form would take its place.

Eventually, the experience of Sara’s death and the facilitation of her memorial service were the transitional events that planted the seeds for a new expression of my work. For the first time, I experienced myself in the role of “priestess” in a more mainstream form. Shortly thereafter I became ordained as a non-denominational minister and have developed a small business facilitating weddings. Additionally, during these past ten years I have had several dreams about caring for the dead and have experienced the deaths of three more friends. These things have all brought me to my current sense of calling as a Death Midwife.

Conscious after-death care follows in the footsteps of home birthing, and conscious death and dying. Hospice has helped bring caring for the terminally ill back into the home with wonderful, loving care. However, once the person dies, most people call a funeral home. Strangers arrive; the deceased is zipped up into a body bag and immediately taken away. This can be a very impersonal, institutionalized process, and always includes embalming, which is an expensive, very violent and unnecessary process. Many faith traditions believe that it may take up to three days for the soul to leave the body. Is this how we would want our loved one’s body to be treated during this important transition? How much more wonderful for them to be at home, ritually washed and dressed by those who love them. What a gift it is for those left behind to be able to spend time with the body of their loved one, to create and hold sacred space for them to lie-in-honor, to have the time and privacy to do their grieving, and to perhaps transform their grief through the creative process of decorating the urn or casket (typically a pine or cardboard box.)

Caring for our loved ones after death is nothing new. It has only been three or four generations since everyone cared for their own at home in this country. Consciously tending the dead at home is reclaiming something very ancient -- something most cultures around the world still reverently do for their loved ones. It is only natural that we bring back this very personal, family involvement and participation in a way that becomes a simple, loving part of the cycle of our lives.
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TV Interview with Marilyn on "Being in Seattle" Part 1

TV Interview with Marilyn on "Being in Seattle" Part 2

TV Interview with Marilyn on "Being in Seattle" Part 3


John O'Donohue Speaks about Deathwork