Tag: Writing

Part 3/3. This program series is being offered virtually through Zoom. 

If you are interested in attending the next Ethical Will Writing Workshop Series, please email olivia@smithcenter.org.

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

with Mindy Brodsky, LCSWA

Give Your Voice Life After Death: An Ethical Will Writing Workshop

A typical legal will is about property and assets you will leave behind. But what about the intangible parts of you that you hope your loved ones will remember?

Join us for a program where you will create your own “ethical will,” also known as a legacy letter, love will, or life letter. Share wisdom and feelings with your next of kin, chosen family, or community in writing or any creative medium that speaks to you. These are nonlegal letters to people important to you that reflect your voice, your experiences, your personality and your values. We all experience thinking about and preparing for death in different ways. The ancient practice of crafting an ethical will can be a gift not only for the recipient(s) in the future, but also for you in the present in that it can provide sacred gifts of meaning and spirit.

This three-part workshop series aspires to create a safe space for you to gain confidence in your ability to share your values with loved ones in meaningful ways. Activities will include writing exercises, group discussion, reflective practices, and practical information to help ensure you complete the workshop with a beautiful product that will give your voice life long after death.

Participation is appropriate for adults of all states of health, ages, and faiths. You don’t have to consider yourself a “writer” to participate! Our activities will be fun, simple, and supportive.

Give Your Voice Life After Death: An Ethical Will Writing Workshop will be hosted in three parts. Participants must attend the first session and are encouraged to attend all three sessions. Upon completion of the three parts, participants will have developed a working ethical will. 
Program dates:
  • June 13, 20 + 27

Suggested Donation: $10/session or $25/series

About Mindy Brodsky, LCSWA

Mindy Brodsky

Mindy Brodsky specializes in trauma-informed, strengths-based counseling with a passion for integrative health and healing. Mindy honors her clients as the experts of their lives, and she strives to provide a supportive and safe environment.
After a career in social justice advocacy and her own challenging health journey, Mindy aspires to meet her clients where they are to help them achieve their goals.

Part 2/3. This program series is being offered virtually through Zoom. 

If you are interested in attending the next Ethical Will Writing Workshop Series, please email olivia@smithcenter.org.

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

with Mindy Brodsky, LCSWA

Give Your Voice Life After Death: An Ethical Will Writing Workshop

A typical legal will is about property and assets you will leave behind. But what about the intangible parts of you that you hope your loved ones will remember?

Join us for a program where you will create your own “ethical will,” also known as a legacy letter, love will, or life letter. Share wisdom and feelings with your next of kin, chosen family, or community in writing or any creative medium that speaks to you. These are nonlegal letters to people important to you that reflect your voice, your experiences, your personality and your values. We all experience thinking about and preparing for death in different ways. The ancient practice of crafting an ethical will can be a gift not only for the recipient(s) in the future, but also for you in the present in that it can provide sacred gifts of meaning and spirit.

This three-part workshop series aspires to create a safe space for you to gain confidence in your ability to share your values with loved ones in meaningful ways. Activities will include writing exercises, group discussion, reflective practices, and practical information to help ensure you complete the workshop with a beautiful product that will give your voice life long after death.

Participation is appropriate for adults of all states of health, ages, and faiths. You don’t have to consider yourself a “writer” to participate! Our activities will be fun, simple, and supportive.

Give Your Voice Life After Death: An Ethical Will Writing Workshop will be hosted in three parts. Participants must attend the first session and are encouraged to attend all three sessions. Upon completion of the three parts, participants will have developed a working ethical will. 
Program dates:
  • June 13, 20 + 27

Suggested Donation: $10/session or $25/series

About Mindy Brodsky, LCSWA

Mindy Brodsky

Mindy Brodsky specializes in trauma-informed, strengths-based counseling with a passion for integrative health and healing. Mindy honors her clients as the experts of their lives, and she strives to provide a supportive and safe environment.
After a career in social justice advocacy and her own challenging health journey, Mindy aspires to meet her clients where they are to help them achieve their goals.

Part 1/3. This program series is being offered virtually through Zoom. 

If you are interested in attending this series please register by clicking the RSVP button above or by emailing olivia@smithcenter.org.

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

with Mindy Brodsky, LCSWA

Give Your Voice Life After Death: An Ethical Will Writing Workshop

A typical legal will is about property and assets you will leave behind. But what about the intangible parts of you that you hope your loved ones will remember?

Join us for a program where you will create your own “ethical will,” also known as a legacy letter, love will, or life letter. Share wisdom and feelings with your next of kin, chosen family, or community in writing or any creative medium that speaks to you. These are nonlegal letters to people important to you that reflect your voice, your experiences, your personality and your values. We all experience thinking about and preparing for death in different ways. The ancient practice of crafting an ethical will can be a gift not only for the recipient(s) in the future, but also for you in the present in that it can provide sacred gifts of meaning and spirit.

This three-part workshop series aspires to create a safe space for you to gain confidence in your ability to share your values with loved ones in meaningful ways. Activities will include writing exercises, group discussion, reflective practices, and practical information to help ensure you complete the workshop with a beautiful product that will give your voice life long after death.

Participation is appropriate for adults of all states of health, ages, and faiths. You don’t have to consider yourself a “writer” to participate! Our activities will be fun, simple, and supportive.

Give Your Voice Life After Death: An Ethical Will Writing Workshop will be hosted in three parts. Participants must attend the first session and are encouraged to attend all three sessions. Upon completion of the three parts, participants will have developed a working ethical will. 
Program dates:
  • June 13, 20 + 27

Suggested Donation: $10/session or $25/series

About Mindy Brodsky, LCSWA

Mindy Brodsky

Mindy Brodsky specializes in trauma-informed, strengths-based counseling with a passion for integrative health and healing. Mindy honors her clients as the experts of their lives, and she strives to provide a supportive and safe environment.
After a career in social justice advocacy and her own challenging health journey, Mindy aspires to meet her clients where they are to help them achieve their goals.

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 Mindy Brodsky, LCSWA

Radical Writing Space

Wherever you are on life’s journey, there are times when it can feel impossible to commit to a recurring program like a workshop series. Radical Writing Space is our answer to this conundrum of wanting to attend for some radical self-care, but struggling to commit.

 

Clinical studies have documented the healing psychological and psychical impacts of writing within a safe and sacred space. On the second Friday of each month, drop in for one hour for Radical Writing Space and join us for inspiring writing prompts, time to write, and time to share with one another about your experience of putting your most radical emotions, feelings, and experiences on paper.

 

The part that makes this writing so “radical” is that we create a safe space for it all — raw feelings, emotions, experiences — and, together, we give voice to them in a supportive, nonjudgmental environment.

 

This healing program offers a place for supporting one another and we stay clear of writing critique. Come and experience writing and sharing together.

Radical Writing Space will be hosted Monthly on the 2nd Friday from 11am – 12:30pm ET. No previous writing experience necessary. Drop-ins welcome!

Upcoming Dates: 

  • May 12
  • June 9

About Mindy Brodsky, LCSWA

Mindy Brodsky

Mindy Brodsky specializes in trauma-informed, strengths-based counseling with a passion for integrative health and healing. Mindy honors her clients as the experts of their lives, and she strives to provide a supportive and safe environment.
After a career in social justice advocacy and her own challenging health journey, Mindy aspires to meet her clients where they are to help them achieve their goals.

PART 4/4. This program series 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 Mindy Brodsky, LCSWA

SC Writes for YACS

SC Writes for YACS

Welcome back to SC Writes for YACS, where we will deepen our writing and sharing in a safe and supportive environment. No writing experience required. Activities will include mindfulness practices, writing exercises, and reflective practices.

 

Stay tuned for the theme of this SC Writes series.

Group members are encouraged to attend all sessions, but missing one session is fine. This series has limited capacity and therefore attendance is important. To illustrate, we use all sessions to foster community and build an open space for sharing.

SC Writes for Young Adult Cancer Survivors (YACS) is a 4-part program series. We will meet starting on May 9th, 2023.

Upcoming Program Dates:

  • June 6th

Suggested Donation: $10/session or $35/series

About Mindy Brodsky, LCSWA

Mindy Brodsky

Mindy Brodsky specializes in trauma-informed, strengths-based counseling with a passion for integrative health and healing. Mindy honors her clients as the experts of their lives, and she strives to provide a supportive and safe environment.
After a career in social justice advocacy and her own challenging health journey, Mindy aspires to meet her clients where they are to help them achieve their goals.

PART 3/4. This program series 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 Mindy Brodsky, LCSWA

SC Writes for YACS

SC Writes for YACS

Welcome back to SC Writes for YACS, where we will deepen our writing and sharing in a safe and supportive environment. No writing experience required. Activities will include mindfulness practices, writing exercises, and reflective practices.

 

Stay tuned for the theme of this SC Writes series.

Group members are encouraged to attend all sessions, but missing one session is fine. This series has limited capacity and therefore attendance is important. To illustrate, we use all sessions to foster community and build an open space for sharing.

SC Writes for Young Adult Cancer Survivors (YACS) is a 4-part program series. We will meet starting on May 9th, 2023.

Upcoming Program Dates:

  • May 23rd
  • June 6th

Suggested Donation: $10/session or $35/series

About Mindy Brodsky, LCSWA

Mindy Brodsky

Mindy Brodsky specializes in trauma-informed, strengths-based counseling with a passion for integrative health and healing. Mindy honors her clients as the experts of their lives, and she strives to provide a supportive and safe environment.
After a career in social justice advocacy and her own challenging health journey, Mindy aspires to meet her clients where they are to help them achieve their goals.

PART 2/4. This program series 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 Mindy Brodsky, LCSWA

SC Writes for YACS

SC Writes for YACS

Welcome back to SC Writes for YACS, where we will deepen our writing and sharing in a safe and supportive environment. No writing experience required. Activities will include mindfulness practices, writing exercises, and reflective practices.

 

Stay tuned for the theme of this SC Writes series.

Group members are encouraged to attend all sessions, but missing one session is fine. This series has limited capacity and therefore attendance is important. To illustrate, we use all sessions to foster community and build an open space for sharing.

SC Writes for Young Adult Cancer Survivors (YACS) is a 4-part program series. We will meet starting on May 9th, 2023.

Upcoming Program Dates:

  • May 9th
  • May 16th
  • May 23rd
  • June 6

Suggested Donation: $10/session or $35/series

About Mindy Brodsky, LCSWA

Mindy Brodsky

Mindy Brodsky specializes in trauma-informed, strengths-based counseling with a passion for integrative health and healing. Mindy honors her clients as the experts of their lives, and she strives to provide a supportive and safe environment.
After a career in social justice advocacy and her own challenging health journey, Mindy aspires to meet her clients where they are to help them achieve their goals.

PART 1/4. This program series 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 Mindy Brodsky, LCSWA

SC Writes for YACS

SC Writes for YACS

Welcome back to SC Writes for YACS, where we will deepen our writing and sharing in a safe and supportive environment. No writing experience required. Activities will include mindfulness practices, writing exercises, and reflective practices.

 

Stay tuned for the theme of this SC Writes series.

Group members are encouraged to attend all sessions, but missing one session is fine. This series has limited capacity and therefore attendance is important. To illustrate, we use all sessions to foster community and build an open space for sharing.

SC Writes for Young Adult Cancer Survivors (YACS) is a 4-part program series. We will meet starting on May 9th, 2023.

Upcoming Program Dates:

  • May 9th
  • May 16th
  • May 23rd
  • June 6

Suggested Donation: $10/session or $35/series

About Mindy Brodsky, LCSWA

Mindy Brodsky

Mindy Brodsky specializes in trauma-informed, strengths-based counseling with a passion for integrative health and healing. Mindy honors her clients as the experts of their lives, and she strives to provide a supportive and safe environment.
After a career in social justice advocacy and her own challenging health journey, Mindy aspires to meet her clients where they are to help them achieve their goals.

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

 

100,000+ Best Spring Images & Free HD Stock Photos - Pixabay

Writing Through the Seasons

Breathe in All That’s Blooming

There’s a reason that the ancient Celts celebrated Bealtaine (Beltane: May 1, or Mayday) which falls halfway between the Spring Equinox and Summer Solstice. For us in the northern hemisphere, the turn from late April to early May ushers in our weeks of greatest light. While we may be rejoicing in the light, and all that’s green and blooming around us, we may be weighed down by the violence in the world around us, and the lasting effect of a worldwide pandemic, including our own vulnerability, or the fate of our planet in the face of climate change.

In this 90-minute session, we’ll take stock of our own yearnings for hope and new life this time of year, name the hues, fragrances and shapes of all that is blooming and 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, and maybe a photo or sketch of something you’ve noticed this spring that gave you joy.

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: $10/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.

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 Kiersten Gallagher & Mindy Brodsky, LCSWA

Radical Writing Space

Wherever you are on life’s journey, there are times when it can feel impossible to commit to a recurring program like a workshop series. Radical Writing Space is our answer to this conundrum of wanting to attend for some radical self-care, but struggling to commit.

 

Clinical studies have documented the healing psychological and psychical impacts of writing within a safe and sacred space. On the second Friday of each month, drop in for one hour for Radical Writing Space and join us for inspiring writing prompts, time to write, and time to share with one another about your experience of putting your most radical emotions, feelings, and experiences on paper.

 

The part that makes this writing so “radical” is that we create a safe space for it all — raw feelings, emotions, experiences — and, together, we give voice to them in a supportive, nonjudgmental environment.

 

This healing program offers a place for supporting one another and we stay clear of writing critique. Come and experience writing and sharing together.

 

This month’s Radical Writing theme is “Calm” – What does it feel like? How do we tap into it?

When the sunset and the twilight in mingling hues are bent,

I can sit and watch the shadows

with my full heart all content.

-Mary E. Nealey

Radical Writing Space will be hosted Monthly on the 2nd Friday from 11am – 12:30pm ET. No previous writing experience necessary. Drop-ins welcome!

Upcoming Dates: 

  • April 21
  • May 12
  • June 9

About Kiersten Gallagher

Kiersten Gallagher

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. 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 Mindy Brodsky, LCSWA

Mindy Brodsky

Mindy Brodsky specializes in trauma-informed, strengths-based counseling with a passion for integrative health and healing. Mindy honors her clients as the experts of their lives, and she strives to provide a supportive and safe environment.
After a career in social justice advocacy and her own challenging health journey, Mindy aspires to meet her clients where they are to help them achieve their goals.