Getting out in nature can be difficult for people who live in cities and spend their days plugged into technology.
To connect people with nature, the nonprofit Sista Sistah is partnering with Metro to put on its first collaborative holistic healing event, called Soul Food Family Gathering this summer at Blue Lake Regional Park.
Soul Food Family Gathering
When: Saturday, September 14, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Where: Blue Lake Regional Park
Cost: Free. No registration required
“To become one with nature, you connect more spiritually,” said Sah’Rah Bey, founder of Sista Sistah. “You’re more mentally focused. You can connect more with the people around you. It’s almost a form of meditation.”
The organization helps girls of African descent build self-esteem, self-awareness, spirituality and connections with their community.
“For us to be able to get a self-awareness and identity that connects us to our ancestral heritage and background, we as aboriginals and Indigenous people have a sense of belonging,” said Tim-Khdar Bey, Sah’Rah’s partner and co-founder of Sista Sistah. “Our belonging is through nature, through a space and area, and those things that connect us to the Earth and to the heavens because they become one in the same.”
The event will highlight communities of color, and numerous partners who are looking to connect with communities of color will offer yoga, sound vibration therapy, kemetic reiki and more. The partners include Ladies of the Light, Champions Barbering Institute, Kaiser Permanente and Brotha 2 Brothah.
In the Zone Outreach will also provide demonstrations to promote healthy eating.
“As people of African descent, we love soul food, so we are going to experiment with different ways on how to make it healthy,” Sah’Rah Bey said.
“Identifying ourselves is essential in how that connects us back to people who lived off the resources and lived in a way where we didn’t have to concentrate on recycling,” Tim-Khdar Bey said. “We lived in a circle so that everything we did allowed us to have sustainability.”
Metro has worked with Sista Sistah on previous events, but this event is planned by the community, which Loni Black, parks and nature event planner for Metro, says is her long-term goal for future events.
“Events like this one are exactly what communities have been asking for: events that are crafted for community members by community members,” Black said. “Community members are diving in to work together to deliver an event for people and families from all walks of life, and Metro gets to be a part of welcoming people into these spaces.”