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THANK YOU FOR SHARING!
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We hope you will forward this
e-mail newsletter to
friends and colleagues. Our upcoming programs are described in
an abbreviated form to make it
easy for you to “cut and paste” into your parish or
office newsletter. And handy links to our Web
site give you an easy way to quickly read more
details.
NOTE: To cut and paste, just highlight the
text you want to use and click “edit,” then “copy.”
Create a new e-mail or Word document, place the
cursor at the top and click “paste.” And there it is!
You might want to add: Transformations is located at
3427 Gull Road. To register call 269.381.6290 ext.
310.
Your help in sharing news about Transformations is
appreciated.
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Transformations' Positive Aging Program Begins Its Fourth Year
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 People of all ages
attend
Positive Aging Classes
More than 1,200 people have participated. The age
range is 39-81 and they come for many reasons.
Some attend because they have parents who are
getting on in years. Some come because they work
with older adults. Some are facing retirement and are
doing their research. Some have been retired for
some time and find themselves asking: "Why am I
here." Here’s what a few of them
say:
"It gave me a new sense of direction as I
age."
"This program helped to reflect on my past and plan
how I will live my future."
"It has changed my attitudes about getting
older."
"This program...helped me help my mother age and
offered me a purpose as I reach retirement."
"The reason I attend is that I work with elders as a
nurse and I have elder parents."
The fall Positive Aging
Sage-ing Circle begins on
Saturday, September 16.
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How To Register ...
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From Mystics to Corporate Greed:
New Fall Programs to
Guide Your Spiritual Journey
This fall brings an exciting mix of new
features and popular regulars.
A new series on the Christian mystics is
planned to fulfill the interest of our patrons to learn
from these spiritually enlightened historical figures.
Our very successful annual Community of Caregivers
conference will focus on “a spirituality of caring” for
those professional caregivers who want to learn
practical and healing ways to bring their spirituality
into their caring relationships. And a new film series is
being initiated to combine important films followed by
lively conversation. If we get a good response to the
film “Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room,” future
films will be offered.
Group spiritual direction and our Positive Aging series
continue to attract new participants as word spreads
about the benefits of these practical and, yes—
transformative—programs. Our “spiritual literacy”
series, 12-step programs, eco-spirituality and special
seasonal services will continue to please.
Here’s the first month or so in short form to whet
your appetite. Future newsletters will come to you
about once a month. Read on!
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Coping with Change and Deepening Your Spiritual Life—Any Time
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Saturday, August
26 9:00
a.m. – noon
 Seasons of a Restless
Heart
Elizabeth Tompkins, trained labyrinth and retreat
facilitator $20
Major personal disruptions and losses can leave us
feeling adrift. Debra Farrington’s book, The
Seasons of a Restless Heart: A Spiritual Companion
for Living in Transition, labyrinth meditation,
prayer and reflections will be used to face the
challenge of letting go, and the promise of moving
on.
Beginning Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Group Spiritual Direction
Gertrude Maurer, SSJ and Laura Smith, SSJ, certified
spiritual directors
If you are facing an important decision or transition
in your life, or searching for deeper spiritual insight,
consider spiritual direction. Transformations offers
spiritual direction for both individuals and groups.
Group spiritual direction provides the benefit of
shared insights and broadened perspectives. The
series is preceded by an introduction for new
participants and each series is five weeks in
length.
Free Introduction: (prerequisite for the
series below for new participants) - Tuesday 8/29 -
7-8:30 p.m. Choose one of the following:
Five Tuesdays
beginning
9/5 –1:30–3:30
p.m.
Five Tuesdays beginning 9/12 – 6:30–8:30
p.m.
Five Wednesdays beginning 9/6 – 6:30–8:30
p.m.
Five Thursdays beginning 9/7 – 1:30–3:30
p.m.
Fee: $75 for the five-session series.
The next group spiritual direction series begins
January 25, 2007.
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This Series Will Change Your Mind About Getting Older
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Begins Saturday, September 16, 2006
Positive Aging Sage-ing Circle® Series
Life doesn’t come with an instruction book. What
little we know about what lies ahead grows
particularly murky after middle age. Here is an
interactive guide to growing older that is both
practical
and transforming. Topics include life review and
repair, forgiveness, facing mortality, and much
more.
Introduction to the Sage-ing Circle® Series
Recommended (not required)
Introduction to the
concepts of Sage-ing,
a free preview of the Sage-ing Circle Series
9:30 a.m. – 11:15 a.m. No Charge
The Sage-ing Circle® Series
Facilitated by specially trained Sage-ing Circle
facilitators
Four Saturdays: September 23, October 21,
November 11, December 2.
Each from 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. $65 deposit due by
9/23 with $95 balance due by 10/21.
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Looking for Balance, Support, or Inspiration? You’ll Find It Here.
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Thursday, September 21, 2006
6:15– 7:15 p.m.
A Time of Balance: The Autumn Equinox
Ginny Jones, SSJ $10
suggested donation
Come celebrate and give thanks for the abundance
of Earth’s gifts and the spiritual blessings that
sustain and guide us. Meet at the Circle of Trees
behind Nazareth. If rain is forecast, call 381-6290,
ext. 308 on the day of the event for the alternate
location.
Friday, September 22–Sunday, September 24
7:00
p.m. Friday through 1:30 p.m. Sunday
Improving Our Conscious Contact: A Retreat for
Women in Recovery
Pat Underwood, CSJ
12-Step retreats are an opportunity to be in a safe,
trusting environment with other recovering women
trying to make more space for God in their busy lives.
The focus in this retreat will be on Steps 2, 3 and
11. Pat Underwood, CSJ, a Hazelden-trained,
certified pastoral addiction counselor, will lead the
group. Includes a double-occupancy room, meals,
snacks, materials and retreat. Fee: $165 if registered
by August 24; $180 thereafter. Visit Transformations
Web site at www.transformationscenter.org for
more registration information.
Seven Thursdays: September 21, October 19,
November 16, December 14, 2006,
January 18, February 15, March 15, 2007
Christian Mystics From Medieval to Modern
7:00–8:30 p.m. $7 per session
Facilitated by Marcella Clancy, SSJ
Christian mystics have experienced God in ways that
are open to us all, but lived by few. They perceive
and direct us to a deeper state of existence hidden
beneath our day-to-day routine. Learning about the
mystics can help us to be more open and attuned to
possibilities. Sr. Marcella Clancy has studied mystics
from medieval to modern. Her style is engaging, her
research extensive.
Thursday, September 21, 2006
St. Francis of Assisi and Pierre Teilhard de
Chardin
Thursday, October 19, 2006
Julian of Norwich and Mechtild of
Magdeburg
Thursday, November 16, 2006
St. Catherine of Sienna and St. Ignatius of
Loyola
Thursday, December 14, 2006
St. Teresa of Avila and St. John of the
Cross
Thursday, January 18, 2007
St. Theresa of Liseaux and St. Teresa Benedicta
of the Cross
Thursday, February 15, 2007
Simone Weil and Etty Hillesum
Thursday, March 15, 2007
The Song of Songs
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This Conference Has “Sold Out” in Each of the Last Five Years. Register Early.
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Friday, October 6, 2006
Registration 8:00 a.m.;
Program 9:00 a.m. to
4:30 p.m.
5th Annual Community of Caregivers
Spirituality of Caring: The Rewards and Risks
Dominic Vachon, M.Div., Ph.D.
 In the continual encounter
with human suffering,
helping professionals must find ways of responding to
pain that can help them avoid becoming demoralized,
emotionally detached and burned out. This workshop
explores how cultivating your spirituality of caring
helps to “metabolize” and transcend toxic encounters
with suffering and promotes healing in those we help.
Dominic Vachon M.Div., Ph.D. is the director of
Behavioral Medicine and Caring Science Training at
St. Joseph Regional Medical Center in South Bend,
Indiana. He is also the founder of the Institute for
the Support and Study of the Caring Professions, a
private consulting practice.
Early registration by 9/1 is $50; $65 thereafter.
Register early. Go to Transformations’ Web site at www.transformationscenter.org for the
day’s schedule and more information on registration
and refund policy.
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