Community Meditation Circle

Community Meditation Circle has been hosting free, community group meditations in the city of Grand Rapids since 2022. We are excited to begin our 5th year hosting and teaching meditations as a tool to cultivate community and presence in our day to day lives.

When: Each month we meet on the 2nd Wednesday at 7pm at Fountain Street Church in the Chapel space.

Where: The address is: 24 Fountain St. NE, Grand Rapids, MI 49503.

The Who: You do not need to be an experienced meditator, you can be a novice or curious or occasional meditator. All ages are welcome; though we ask that children be able to sit or lie in circle quietly for a 35-minute period of meditation.

Why/Our purpose: The purpose of the Community Meditation Circle is to create safe and accessible spaces to meditate in trauma-informed ways. We understand the complex individual and societal barriers to meditation and mindfulness and believe in the value of group settings to help develop a more regular practice. Meditation can be a profound tool to manage day-to-day life stressors as well as points of crises in our lives. We are here to facilitate the development of this tool that we can all learn through practice.

Queer-centric: All of the events that we host through Community Meditation Circle are queer-centric: this means we identify as queer and we warmly welcome queer-identifying individuals into our carefully curated, trauma-informed spaces. Traditionally LGBTQ identifying individuals have been excluded from many private and public spaces and we seek to make changes in our community by explicitly stating this. Please ask if you have questions about this.

Consent-centric: All of our events are consent-centric: this means that consent is at the center of how we host our events and everything is to be considered an invitation. You are welcome to check out meditating with us in in all of your authentic expression, you can step outside of the meditation space any time you feel called to do so, or you may opt out of any of our invited practices (such as invitations to join us in grounding breaths at the start or end of meditations, same with the occasional OHM), you can sit in a chair, join on the floor, or lie on a yoga mat if you prefer. Whatever form will facilitate the most comfortable, accessible, and productive meditation for you during your visit with us.

What to expect at Community Meditation Circle:
- Each meditation is 35-40 minutes; arrive at least 5 minutes early to find a spot and get settled in
- We often begin meditation with an anchor (an idea, concept, or point of focus) to help guide our meditations; after that, there will be silence with ambient music and softened lighting to facilitate meditation
- There will be some time after the meditation to chat, with an invitation to share experiences and insights
- We also share upcoming similar events; we love hearing about what others are doing and hosting in the community

Recommendations: Dress comfortably. Seating and some meditation pillows and yoga mats are available, but you are welcome to bring your own if you prefer. The chapel space can run cold; we recommend if you also run cold to bring layers. We do have a few blankets available but you might prefer your own.

Cost: Our meditations are intentionally free and for the community. Our goal is to remove economic barriers to developing a meditation practice. We do, however, appreciate donations and suggest $1-5. Donations help with the Meetup platform expense as well as meditation supplies such as incense, mats, and cushions.

Forms of Donations accepted (never expected, always appreciated): Cash, Venmo @SatyaGR, CASH app $SatyaGR, items to share in the community (nonperishable foods, gently used clothing items, especially colder weather gear like gloves, scarves, and hats)

**Other Ways to Connect with Us: **Conscious Living Practices (linktr.ee) + Instagram