This program is being offered virtually through Zoom. In order to participate and receive the Zoom link, register by clicking the RSVP button above or by emailing programs@smithcenter.org.

You will receive the Zoom information no later than the morning of your program.

with Erin Price, LICSW, OSW-C and Rachel Ress, MSW, LICSW

This monthly virtual group is for Stage 0 – 3 Breast Cancer patients and survivors and is open to those newly diagnosed, in treatment, or in survivorship. Come join others dealing with the issues and impacts of a breast cancer diagnosis. All meetings are hosted using Zoom. This group is hosted in partnership with Medstar Washington Hospital Center , Cancer Support Community, and Smith Center for Healing and the Arts.

You can also register for this group by emailing programs@smithcenter.org.


The Breast Cancer Support Group meets Monthly on the 1st Tuesday from 6:00-7:00pm ET.


About Rachel Ress, MSW, LICSW

Rachel Ress

Rachel is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker serving as Cancer Support Community Washington DC’s (CSC DC) Community Navigator. Prior to working at CSC DC, Rachel was an oncology social worker with the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Medstar Georgetown University Hospital for three years. She earned her Master’s Degree in Social Work at the University of Pennsylvania School of Social Policy & Practice where she interned at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Rachel uses an eclectic approach in providing support and compassion to cancer patients and their families, and she is passionate about the intersection of chronic illness and mental health.

About Erin Price, LICSW, OSW-C

Erin Price

Erin serves as Smith Center’s Director of Young Adult and Psychosocial Support Programs. She is trained in Integrative Patient Navigation, a Project LEAD graduate, and holds a Masters in Social Work. A ten-year+ breast cancer survivor, Erin is passionate about providing support and community to other cancer survivors, especially young adults. She works with Smith Center’s DC Young Adult Cancer Community and is also actively involved in the cancer community through the Association of Oncology Social Workers, the Young Survival Coalition, the Georgetown Breast Cancer Advocates, and the National Breast Cancer Coalition.

This program is being offered virtually through Zoom. In order to participate and receive the Zoom link, register by clicking the RSVP button above or by emailing programs@smithcenter.org.

You will receive the Zoom information no later than the morning of your program.

with Kathleen O’Toole

Writing Through the Seasons

Breathe In All That Has Begun to Bloom

Kathleen O’Toole is a poet whose work with haiku and other short poetic forms is deeply rooted in attention to the natural world. In her Writing through the Seasons workshops (December 9, 2023 and March 30, 2024) she will guide participants through poetry forms and writing practices that invite us to pay attention to the ways season changes bring special opportunities for healing and creativity.

In this 90-minute session, just after the spring equinox, we’ll take stock of our own yearnings for hope and new life, as we name the hues, fragrance, and shapes of all that is blooming or coming to life in the world around us. We’ll look at some poems & poetic practices that emphasize resilience and attention to small things: the increased activity of birds, insects, and other creatures that invite our hearts to sing.

No previous poetry writing experience required, just an openness to playing with words. Bring an open heart, a notebook or sketchbook; whatever materials you need to respond to poetry and nature. (Previous participants have journaled, drafts of poems or sketches to capture what has surfaced in our sessions.)


Kathleen O’Toole is a poet whose work with haiku and other short poetic forms is deeply rooted in attention to the natural world. These three workshops will guide participants through poetry forms and writing practices that invite us to explore the ways season changes bring special opportunities for healing and creativity. The ancient Celts celebrated cross-quarter days as moments of magic and openings to spirit and ritual; we’ll mark our own seasonal awareness.

Writing Through the Seasons: The Healing Power of Nature will be offered as a program series, spread over the seasons.

Suggested Donation: $15/session


About Kathleen O’Toole

Kathleen O'Toole

Takoma Park Poet Laureate Kathleen O’Toole is the author of 4 books of poetry (find her at https://kathleenotoolepoetry.com). She has taught writing at Johns Hopkins University and the Maryland Institute College of Art. As evident in her longer work, she often seeks inspiration and consolation in nature. For more than thirty years she has been writing haiku as a spiritual practice of attention, and to deepen her experience of the natural world.

with Sara Kominers & Project Koru

Get Active on the Klingle Valley Trail | goDCgo

Join other young adult cancer survivors (those in their 20s, 30s, and early 40s) for a morning of hiking at Klingle Valley Trail and Tregaron Conservancy in DC.

The hike is suitable for all levels and will end with a bring your own picnic lunch – so pack something delicious to eat (we’ll have a cooler to store it). Plan to wear comfortable walking shoes, athletic pants, and non-cotton layers. Bring plenty of water and a hat and sunglasses for added sun protection, in addition to sunscreen.

The event will run until approximately 12:00pm (we plan to finish the hike around 11:00am and enjoy a picnic lunch for an hour). For more information about the meeting location, please RSVP.

*NOTE: This hike is open to young adult cancer survivors in their 20s, 30s and early 40s and their guests (friends and family welcome to attend with their loved one).


This hike is co-hosted by Project Koru.

Project Koru enriches lives through community and the outdoors as a way to move forward beyond cancer. Young adults diagnosed with cancer face a unique set of challenges. With the right support, the weight of these challenges can be mitigated; that’s why we exist!

This program is also offered in partnership with:

.    .   


Social Distance and Mask Policy

For this hike and picnic, we will be outside the entire time and encourage participants to maintain adequate physical distance during the program. We encourage those who are unvaccinated to wear a mask while participating in the hike. For those that are vaccinated, masks are optional based on your comfort level.

This program is being offered virtually through Zoom. Please click <here> to register for this circle.

with Paul Puccinelli & Mark Malinak

Grief Circle

Please join us in a series Healing Circles for Grief “to discover the extent and limits of what is lost, what is left and what is possible.”  – John Schneider

If you have lost a loved one, this is an opportunity to share what is on your heart and mind right now, to listen and be listened to deeply and generously. Together we create a safe space for listening to messages from our inner experience. 

Our healing circles are a safe and supportive space to walk with each other through these times. Each circle is a blend of sharing and silence, compassion, and curiosity. Our agreements ensure acceptance and confidentiality. We honor our own unique paths to healing and respect the choices of others.


Some Assumptions about Grief

  • The experience of grief is unique for each individual. While we can make some general assumptions, there is no template that describes the experience for all people.
  • Grief is cumulative. That is, each time loss is grieved, the grief encompasses the lifetime of loss and the remnants of each experience.
  • Grief following a significant loss is most often a lifelong process, with each pivotal point in life bringing the grief back up to be processed from a new perspective.
  • Grief, loss and suffering fundamentally changes and reshapes the individual.
  • Grief is not about forgetting or disconnecting. Rather, healthy grief is about remembering the parts of self that get lost amidst the experience and reorienting the individual in their relationship with self, the world and others.
  • Grief is a whole body experience: emotional, physical, spiritual and intellectual. Each have a wide range of expression which can cue us that grief is present.
  • While grief and trauma are often intertwined there are significant differences between them. Trauma should be addressed with trauma specific interventions that often go beyond what is possible in circles.

Adapted from Khris Ford


Grieving Together Healing Circle will meet Weekly on Saturdays from 11:00am-12:30pm EST for 6 weeks.

Grief Circle Dates:

  • Saturdays – March 16, 23, 30
  • Saturdays – April 6, 13, 20

About Paul Puccinelli

Since 2011, Paul has been providing counseling services to children, adults, and couples.   Paul received a strong educational foundation from his graduate degree program at Dominican University, as well as advanced training at University of California San Francisco’s School of Medicine, where he completed a program focused on Interprofessional Palliative Care Education. During the last four years, he has developed a special interest in supporting people and caregivers dealing with Parkinson’s Disease.  And for the last three years, he has been hosting Grieving Together and Living w/ Cancer healing circles.

About Mark Malinak

Mark is retired, having worked as a substance abuse/mental health counselor and wilderness counselor for 25 years. He lives alone with his yellow lab mix dog Buster in a small post and beam house in western Massachusetts. Mark’s wife Barbara passed away suddenly in October 2019. He loves poetry, writing, and tribal ambient music. Among other hobbies, Mark enjoys hiking and walking in the woods and the forests of the Berkshires.

This program is being offered virtually through Zoom. In order to participate and receive the Zoom link, register by clicking the RSVP button above or by emailing programs@smithcenter.org.

You will receive the Zoom information no later than the morning of your program.

with Simone Banks Mackey (They/Them/Theirs)

 

Using modern and ancient techniques of developing symbols allows your imagination to wonder and form a personal affirmation sigil. A Sigil, in a greater sense, is a symbol that represents a meaning. Where they differ is how/why we create them. This process is not only therapeutic but extremely individualized. Each sigil contains specific messaging that is meant to empower you. Using meditation, herbal teas, movement, food, music, and/or scents, we intentionally create an environment that empowers us to imbue our intentions into our sigil fully. A process that can result in the simplest of shapes to the most elaborate of forms.

After your affirmation sigil is created it is charged with your energy and can be used whenever you need to affirm your power. Whether that be on your hallway mirror, daily bag, passenger dashboard, clothes/shoes, or even yourself its intention will hold.

The theme of the month will be shared at the beginning of each session.

 

Suggested Materials: 

  • Writing utensils (pens, markers, paint, etc.)
  • Canvas (paper, book, hat, guitar, etc.)
  • Water (for drinking)
  • Set your “empowerment mood” (clothing, food, scents, lighting, etc.)

Suggested Donation: $10


This program is offered bi-monthly on the 1st Tuesday of the month from 6:00-7:30pm EST.


About Simone Banks Mackey

Since childhood, Simone Banks Mackey (They/Them/Theirs) has always been an eccentric being that had an insatiable passion for life and helping others. After attending undergraduate school to study multiple Studio Arts disciplines and nonprofit management they decided to continue community-centered work. Teaching preschool offered Simone the opportunity to creatively expose children to multiple forms of art. However, they realized the magnitude of how structural stability within the home affects both parents’ mental/emotional/physical wellbeing and the children’s cognitive development. Simone then decided to work with grassroots organization that provided families with tools to be self-sufficient. It was during this time Eccentric Whims was born. While creating and hosting programming to artistically teach parents and children, Simone realized how they could combine their passion for art with community uplifting. Eccentric Whims catapults love and healing into the world by using a multitude of traditional and nontraditional art forms to foster creative thinking and promote healing/wellness while building community. Through carefully crafted community events surrounding any range and of non/traditional art forms such as mixed media collages, decor/crafts, visual media, and movement Simone creates safe spaces for people to express themselves and/or learn. Art is universal and through Art, we can communicate, commune, and create a greater society.

This program is being offered virtually through Zoom. In order to participate and receive the Zoom link, register by clicking the RSVP button above or by emailing programs@smithcenter.org.

You will receive the Zoom information no later than the morning of your program.

with Erin Price, LICSW, OSW-C and Rachel Ress, MSW, LICSW

This monthly virtual group is for Stage 0 – 3 Breast Cancer patients and survivors and is open to those newly diagnosed, in treatment, or in survivorship. Come join others dealing with the issues and impacts of a breast cancer diagnosis. All meetings are hosted using Zoom. This group is hosted in partnership with Medstar Washington Hospital Center , Cancer Support Community, and Smith Center for Healing and the Arts.

You can also register for this group by emailing programs@smithcenter.org.


The Breast Cancer Support Group meets Monthly on the 1st Tuesday from 6:00-7:00pm ET.


About Rachel Ress, MSW, LICSW

Rachel Ress

Rachel is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker serving as Cancer Support Community Washington DC’s (CSC DC) Community Navigator. Prior to working at CSC DC, Rachel was an oncology social worker with the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Medstar Georgetown University Hospital for three years. She earned her Master’s Degree in Social Work at the University of Pennsylvania School of Social Policy & Practice where she interned at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Rachel uses an eclectic approach in providing support and compassion to cancer patients and their families, and she is passionate about the intersection of chronic illness and mental health.

About Erin Price, LICSW, OSW-C

Erin Price

Erin serves as Smith Center’s Director of Young Adult and Psychosocial Support Programs. She is trained in Integrative Patient Navigation, a Project LEAD graduate, and holds a Masters in Social Work. A ten-year+ breast cancer survivor, Erin is passionate about providing support and community to other cancer survivors, especially young adults. She works with Smith Center’s DC Young Adult Cancer Community and is also actively involved in the cancer community through the Association of Oncology Social Workers, the Young Survival Coalition, the Georgetown Breast Cancer Advocates, and the National Breast Cancer Coalition.

This program is being offered virtually through Zoom. Please click <here> to register for this circle.

with Kiersten Gallagher & Barbara Reid

Grief Circle

Please join us in a series Healing Circles for Grief “to discover the extent and limits of what is lost, what is left and what is possible.”  – John Schneider

If you have lost a loved one, this is an opportunity to share what is on your heart and mind right now, to listen and be listened to deeply and generously. Together we create a safe space for listening to messages from our inner experience. 

Our healing circles are a safe and supportive space to walk with each other through these times. Each circle is a blend of sharing and silence, compassion, and curiosity. Our agreements ensure acceptance and confidentiality. We honor our own unique paths to healing and respect the choices of others.


Some Assumptions about Grief

  • The experience of grief is unique for each individual. While we can make some general assumptions, there is no template that describes the experience for all people.
  • Grief is cumulative. That is, each time loss is grieved, the grief encompasses the lifetime of loss and the remnants of each experience.
  • Grief following a significant loss is most often a lifelong process, with each pivotal point in life bringing the grief back up to be processed from a new perspective.
  • Grief, loss and suffering fundamentally changes and reshapes the individual.
  • Grief is not about forgetting or disconnecting. Rather, healthy grief is about remembering the parts of self that get lost amidst the experience and reorienting the individual in their relationship with self, the world and others.
  • Grief is a whole body experience: emotional, physical, spiritual and intellectual. Each have a wide range of expression which can cue us that grief is present.
  • While grief and trauma are often intertwined there are significant differences between them. Trauma should be addressed with trauma specific interventions that often go beyond what is possible in circles.

Adapted from Khris Ford


Grieving Together Healing Circle will meet Weekly on Wednesdays from 12:30-2:00pm EST for 6 weeks.

Grief Circle Dates:

  • Wednesdays – 2/7, 2/14, 2/21, 2/28, 3/6, 3/13

About Kiersten Gallagher

Kiersten Gallagher – Cancer Support Programs Director

Kiersten has served as the Cancer Support Program Director for Smith Center since 2014. Before coming to Smith Center, she had the privilege to serve individuals and families living with cancer at Wellness House of Annapolis. Kiersten aims to offer programs to reduce stress and help participants to see the world we live in from different perspectives. She thoroughly enjoys teaching yoga and creativity classes at Smith Center and encourages gentle movement and creativity in the healing process. Kiersten is a certified yoga instructor through Yoga Alliance and also has her YCAT (Yoga Therapy in Cancer and Chronic Illness) Professional Certification through the Integral Yoga Academy. She has completed Patient Navigation training through Smith Center’s Institute for Integrative Oncology Navigation and has also completed the Commonweal Healing Circles: Advanced Cancer Support Training. Kiersten is also certified in CLIMB®(Children’s Lives Include Moments of Bravery) a program that aims to build upon the strengths of children and increase his/her ability to cope with stress associated with a parent’s illness. She believes in a holistic approach to healing, human relationships and is grateful for each and every day. Kiersten has also completed the Compassion Cultivation Training – CCT™ an 8-week program, developed at Stanford University, with insights and techniques from psychology, neuroscience, and contemplative practice. In her spare time, you may find Kiersten laughing with friends, cycling, taking art classes, practicing yoga and spending time with her husband Shane, son Liam, and dogs Beans and Pablo.

About Barbara Reid

Barbara lives in the U.K. and has her own supervision, facilitation and training practice. The wonder of Zoom has enabled her to partner with others over long distances. She draws on contemplative approaches and reflective practices to support people through life passages and transitions, also offering services and programs to companies, non-profits, community groups and individuals. She is a committed mindfulness practitioner and meditator and enjoys introducing people to the practices of self-care and self-compassion that characterise this way of being in the world. She also likes to bring ‘talking circles’ into her practice and her work, nourishing the qualities of deep listening and attending to our inner voice through creative reflection on poetry, music, journaling and art. Barbara is an accredited facilitator of Circles of Trust with the Center for Courage & Renewal in the U.S., and is part of the ‘Grieving Together’ circles facilitation team with Healing Circles Global, also based in the U.S. She is also an accredited teacher of Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction and Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy programs in the U.K., and in addition is an experienced teacher trainer for people seeking to do this work, having served at the University of Bangor’s (Wales) Centre for Mindfulness Research & Practice for a few years. She recently completed training with David Kessler Training and is certified as a grief educator. Barbara likes to have joy in her life, and finds this in her circle of friends, in the world of folk music, working with textiles, Nordic walking and t’ai chi, and of course her cats Mizzle and Perkin.

This program is being offered virtually through Zoom. In order to participate and receive the Zoom link, register by clicking the RSVP button above or by emailing programs@smithcenter.org.

You will receive the Zoom information no later than the morning of your program.

with Erin Price, LICSW, OSW-C and Rachel Ress, MSW, LICSW

This monthly virtual group is for Stage 0 – 3 Breast Cancer patients and survivors and is open to those newly diagnosed, in treatment, or in survivorship. Come join others dealing with the issues and impacts of a breast cancer diagnosis. All meetings are hosted using Zoom. This group is hosted in partnership with Medstar Washington Hospital Center , Cancer Support Community, and Smith Center for Healing and the Arts.

You can also register for this group by emailing programs@smithcenter.org.


The Breast Cancer Support Group meets Monthly on the 1st Tuesday from 6:00-7:00pm ET.


About Rachel Ress, MSW, LICSW

Rachel Ress

Rachel is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker serving as Cancer Support Community Washington DC’s (CSC DC) Community Navigator. Prior to working at CSC DC, Rachel was an oncology social worker with the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Medstar Georgetown University Hospital for three years. She earned her Master’s Degree in Social Work at the University of Pennsylvania School of Social Policy & Practice where she interned at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Rachel uses an eclectic approach in providing support and compassion to cancer patients and their families, and she is passionate about the intersection of chronic illness and mental health.

About Erin Price, LICSW, OSW-C

Erin Price

Erin serves as Smith Center’s Director of Young Adult and Psychosocial Support Programs. She is trained in Integrative Patient Navigation, a Project LEAD graduate, and holds a Masters in Social Work. A ten-year+ breast cancer survivor, Erin is passionate about providing support and community to other cancer survivors, especially young adults. She works with Smith Center’s DC Young Adult Cancer Community and is also actively involved in the cancer community through the Association of Oncology Social Workers, the Young Survival Coalition, the Georgetown Breast Cancer Advocates, and the National Breast Cancer Coalition.

This program is being offered virtually through Zoom. In order to participate and receive the Zoom link, register by clicking the RSVP button above or by emailing programs@smithcenter.org.

You will receive the Zoom information no later than the morning of your program.

with Simone Banks Mackey (They/Them/Theirs)

 

Using modern and ancient techniques of developing symbols allows your imagination to wonder and form a personal affirmation sigil. A Sigil, in a greater sense, is a symbol that represents a meaning. Where they differ is how/why we create them. This process is not only therapeutic but extremely individualized. Each sigil contains specific messaging that is meant to empower you. Using meditation, herbal teas, movement, food, music, and/or scents, we intentionally create an environment that empowers us to imbue our intentions into our sigil fully. A process that can result in the simplest of shapes to the most elaborate of forms.

After your affirmation sigil is created it is charged with your energy and can be used whenever you need to affirm your power. Whether that be on your hallway mirror, daily bag, passenger dashboard, clothes/shoes, or even yourself its intention will hold.

The theme of the month will be shared at the beginning of each session.

 

Suggested Materials: 

  • Writing utensils (pens, markers, paint, etc.)
  • Canvas (paper, book, hat, guitar, etc.)
  • Water (for drinking)
  • Set your “empowerment mood” (clothing, food, scents, lighting, etc.)

Suggested Donation: $10


About Simone Banks Mackey

Since childhood, Simone Banks Mackey (They/Them/Theirs) has always been an eccentric being that had an insatiable passion for life and helping others. After attending undergraduate school to study multiple Studio Arts disciplines and nonprofit management they decided to continue community-centered work. Teaching preschool offered Simone the opportunity to creatively expose children to multiple forms of art. However, they realized the magnitude of how structural stability within the home affects both parents’ mental/emotional/physical wellbeing and the children’s cognitive development. Simone then decided to work with grassroots organization that provided families with tools to be self-sufficient. It was during this time Eccentric Whims was born. While creating and hosting programming to artistically teach parents and children, Simone realized how they could combine their passion for art with community uplifting. Eccentric Whims catapults love and healing into the world by using a multitude of traditional and nontraditional art forms to foster creative thinking and promote healing/wellness while building community. Through carefully crafted community events surrounding any range and of non/traditional art forms such as mixed media collages, decor/crafts, visual media, and movement Simone creates safe spaces for people to express themselves and/or learn. Art is universal and through Art, we can communicate, commune, and create a greater society.

This program is being offered virtually through Zoom. In order to participate and receive the Zoom link, register by clicking the RSVP button above or by emailing programs@smithcenter.org.

You will receive the Zoom information no later than the morning of your program.

with Erin Price, LICSW, OSW-C and Rachel Ress, MSW, LICSW

This monthly virtual group is for Stage 1 – 3 Breast Cancer patients and survivors and is open to those newly diagnosed, in treatment, or in survivorship. Come join others dealing with the issues and impacts of a breast cancer diagnosis. All meetings are hosted using Zoom. This group is hosted in partnership with Medstar Washington Hospital Center , Cancer Support Community, and Smith Center for Healing and the Arts.

You can also register for this group by emailing programs@smithcenter.org.


The Breast Cancer Support Group meets Monthly on the 1st Tuesday from 6:00-7:00pm ET.


About Rachel Ress, MSW, LICSW

Rachel Ress

Rachel is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker serving as Cancer Support Community Washington DC’s (CSC DC) Community Navigator. Prior to working at CSC DC, Rachel was an oncology social worker with the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Medstar Georgetown University Hospital for three years. She earned her Master’s Degree in Social Work at the University of Pennsylvania School of Social Policy & Practice where she interned at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Rachel uses an eclectic approach in providing support and compassion to cancer patients and their families, and she is passionate about the intersection of chronic illness and mental health.

About Erin Price, LICSW, OSW-C

Erin Price

Erin serves as Smith Center’s Director of Young Adult and Psychosocial Support Programs. She is trained in Integrative Patient Navigation, a Project LEAD graduate, and holds a Masters in Social Work. A ten-year+ breast cancer survivor, Erin is passionate about providing support and community to other cancer survivors, especially young adults. She works with Smith Center’s DC Young Adult Cancer Community and is also actively involved in the cancer community through the Association of Oncology Social Workers, the Young Survival Coalition, the Georgetown Breast Cancer Advocates, and the National Breast Cancer Coalition.