What to expect
in the program?
What is Included
Youth 1-1 Mentorship
Each youth participant has a 1-1 meeting with guides pre-group and once a month for the remainder of the program additional as needed/arranged (10 total sessions included)During these sessions, we offer youth personalized mentorship, supporting their unique needs for growth and DEVELOPMENT. Virtual sessions Scheduled at convenient time for PARTICIPANTs. Family Councils
These session will take place once a month, in-person for the duration of the program (8 total sessions included) During the family councils, the caretakers/parents of participating youth are invited to join for an evening of listening and learning. These group sessions offer support for parents with guided facilitation and OPPORTUNITIES for connection building and reflection.Youth Day-Long Outings
The youth + guides will meet once a month for a full day long outing. outings include nature-based learning, solo time, group process time, and fun! Possible day long-outings include: Guided plant walk/plant foraging Journey to the Mokelumne River WatershedVolunteer day with Sogorea Te’ Land Trust Bird Language Performance/Play Ecoplant dying Rock paint making Song/Dance Animal tracking Seaweed harvesting Acorn harvesting Forest Bathing Spoon carving
Youth will finish the program with a 3-day wilderness immersion. Families will be invited to join for our closing ritual together on the last day. Youth Councils
These session will take place once a month, in-person for the duration of the program (8 total sessions included)similiar to the family councils - but for youth only. a time for the youth to connect, engage, witness and support one another. to receive feedback and mirroring and be in a community of a peer-supported, growth orientated group space.Parent/Caretakers Sessions
these session will take place once at the beginning of the program, once in the middle and once at the completion These sessions will be hybrid (in-person and/or virtual) and scheduled at conveient times for parents Additional as needed/arranaged (3 total session included)these session will be for the immediate caretakers/parents of the participating youth. these individual sessions per family will provide mentorship and insight into ways to support the specific needs of their youth. with unique perspective as mentors, the guides tailor their support to those caring for youth in a way that can see the participant nested within their family unit. these sessions are tailored to meet the needs of those involved - that might be as navigatating co-parenting, non-traditional family raising, as a couple/partnership, etc. Additional Sessions
Additional Sessions are availabe for any of the above offered and can be arranged as requested with guides. if you want to meet as a family, couple/parents, or youth individually - we are here to support you. 
Sample Day
Long Itinerary
Morning Gathering8:45 amguided group activity 9–12:00pmLunch (participants bring) 12:00 pmyouth solo time 1 – 3 PMSkills + craft time 3:15 pmDinner (program provides) 5 pmEvening fire + sharing time 6 pmreturn home 7 pmWHAT IS COUNCIL
Council is the simple yet profound art of deep listening. counicl provides a foundational, nature-based practice of speaking and listening from the heart within an intentional, non-hierarchical circle. Serving as a core pillar of our rite of passage journey, Council removes daily social masks and creates a brave space for authentic self-expression, communal witnessing and deep reflection.In this space, the surrounding wilderness acts as a mirror and a witness to each individual's internal shifts.By stripping away modern distractions and rehearsed responses, Council allows initiates to cross the threshold into their next life stage. It helping participants discover their true voice, process their fears, and return to the community anchored in their purpose.During our council evenings, our guides will faciliate eco-therapy practices, activities for deepening connection and co-learning. We engage our senses and draw on the inherent knowledge from the world around us to see ourselves, each other and our processes through an eco-relational lens. These practices create coherence, structure and sense making for the individual and group nervous systems. In these times of great change, may we continue to practice of being human, together. RITE OF PASSAGE
In a world filled with disconnection, youth are challenged with facing the surmounting polycrisis, issues of isolation and challenges knowing how to proceed with their futures. This journey holds our youth through the messy business of staying open and alive in a world that may at times present as very challenging Coming of age is a time of great change - a time of unknown, a mystery in many ways. We offer this space to help usher youth into their purposeful placement in the collective by reflecting and mirroring their unique talents, gifts and passionsWe seek to reinspire our youth to be ready to harness their creative potential and become sovereign agents of their own imagination -- some of the greatest gifts offered during adolescenceRite of Passage specifcally referes to an acknolwedgement of a transtion, threshold crossing or a process to support and enter conscioulsy into a new stage of growth and developnment. During the teenager years, many young people are experienincing immense changes, coming from being entirley dependant upon their caretakes towards autonomous adults. This model of Family + Youth Rite of Passage supports and encourages the healthy and necessary individuation process, while also acknowledging the health of interconnectenedness by supporting the whole family unit.