Denise Ottoson and Alex Kirby (CPLC Coordinators)
As many of you know, the Cascadian Pagan Leadership Conference was held October 20-22 at the Crossroads Learning Center. By all reports, it was a success in providing a place for people to refresh themselves, network and acquire knowledge and skills to assist them in meeting the challenges they face in their communities.
The 50-plus participants and facilitators exhibited good energy and focus throughout the conference. A number of people had traveled from afar - Vancouver, Wenatchee, Portland, Las Vegas and Phoenix (as well as other places in the Pacific Northwest). With workshops as varied as "Pagan Parenting," "Wealthy Work," "Ecological Religious Ministry," "Sex and Gender Issues," "Pagan Philosophy and Ethics," "Community Building," "Reaching Out to Solitaries," "Handling Conflict," "Going Public" and "Death and Dying" - people complained mostly about having to make a choice between concurrent sessions. A highlight of the conference was Sunday morning's workshop on "Artful Ritual," done appropriately on a Samhain theme.
Another highlight was Saturday night's entertainment by Wicked Celts, who gave a spectacularly strong performance of traditional Irish and Scottish music with a modern American twist or two.
We on the conference planning committee would like to offer our thanks to the pagan communities for supporting and attending this event. We realize there are many folk who offered their well wishes and good energy even though they were unable to attend. We particularly want to thank the core volunteers, especially Angie Kantola, Marshall Freeman, John Beowulf Pearce, Joanna Schoettler and Dorothy Lundeen; caterers Simply Elegant for a lunch people raved about; the vendors who provided a place to shop, browse and gossip; and of course the facilitators: Peter Barry, Paul Beyerl, Karen Bruner, Louise Candage, Dana Corby, Jen Domeier, Merrie Foerster, Mara Grey, Rich Hill, Corby Ingold, Erynn Rowen Laurie, Herb Mitchell, Fritz Muntean, Norma Reiss, Sam Wagar and Carin Willette. The advice and inspiration given by Haragano, Leon Reed and Steve Wells was invaluable in creating this event.
In response to numerous requests, plans are in the works to create a second conference. Keep your eyes on Widdershins for announcements as those plans unfold.
The 1996 Spring Mysteries Festival (SMF), to be held April 4 through 7, is looking for a few good volunteers. SMF celebrates the Eleusinian Mysteries and includes ritual, a talent show, workshops, classes, ritual drama, vendors and much more. An SMF staff meeting will be held at 3 p.m. Saturday, January 20, at the Aquarian Tabernacle Church in Index, prior to the Diana's Bow ritual; for information, please call Debbie at 881-7406.
SMF is a jewel of a festival, the closest you'll get to being in a pagan universe. Even if you can't volunteer - and volunteers say it's a great experience - start planning now to attend.
Body-positive groups and individuals are invited to join in the planning and participation of a celebration of our joyful diversity. The celebration will be held in a large facility with pool, hot tub, dance floor, workshop spaces and play spaces. It will be clothing-optional with imaginative states of body decoration and display appreciated and, at attendees' discretion, will include sexual play. If your group, or you, wish to be involved in the planning, or wish to attend, call 525-1093 and leave your name and number for more information.
This celebration will probably cost in the $25 to $35 range per person, depending on how many people attend and how elaborate the food and other amenities are. This is a not-for-profit venture, and all money collected will go to party costs. The celebration will be held March 3 in the afternoon. This is an opportunity for all sex-positive groups and individuals to meet each other, play and create future possibilities together.
In the Samhain issue of Widdershins, we attributed to Changing Woman the quotation in the lower-left corner of Page 14: "In the 70s, we made the word 'witch' a cause celebre. But does that really define us? Or does that embrace an identifiable battle? Because sometimes you need to embrace an identifiable battle, just to get the frustration out." That attribution was wrong; the quote was actually from Haragano. Widdershins regrets the error.
The Widdershins writer formerly known as Asherah will now go by the pen name Levana Lindentree, by her request.
Levana Lindentree and NightOwl have been duly initiated into the First Degree of the Sylvan Tradition by Ash and Lady Sylvana. This took place on the day of Pisces Moon, Sagittarius Sun.
Congratulations from Sylvan Grove and friends!
We are fortunate to have in our midst some very generous and talented people. We wish to thank them publicly for all their help and generosity.
We have been overjoyed to receive numerous gifts over the past six weeks, including a fast (28,800-baud) modem: Thank you to the great computer god Greg Gallacci! Greg also provided a World Wide Web program and hours of his time and expertise; for these also, many thanks.
Harold S. Henry contributed an additional 386-based computer and a copy of Windows 95; thank you very much, Harold! There was another person involved in these gifts, who wishes to remain anonymous (she knows who she is!). Thank you very much, anonymous donor!
Thank you to Greg, Sharma and all of you who work on the Widdershins computer and who help in your many valuable ways. We worship all of you!
Thank you very much to Dedric for all his energy and many hours spent uploading the paper to the World Wide Web.
Thank you also to Miriam, who spends hours of her valuable time and lends her critical eye to catch the things I would never see. She has a keen editorial sense, and we could not put out the paper without her. Thank you so much!
Thank you, too, Amanda, for being our advertising sales queen, our deadline general and our guiding flame. The paper would not exist without you. Thanks a million times over.
Widdershins loves you all and hopes that you know how very much we appreciate all of your contributions.
A petition is now circulating asking for a review of the ritual abuse trials that have taken place and continue in Wenatchee, Washington.
As this is written, Pastor Robeson and his wife Connie are being tried. National press coverage is focusing on the questionable nature of the investigations that resulted in charges against them and more than 20 other adults. Thousands of people, including Washington Governor Mike Lowry, have written letters to U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno asking her to authorize a federal review to investigate what exactly happened, and continues to happen, in Wenatchee.
Please add your voice to those requesting a federal review. Write: The Honorable Janet Reno, United States Attorney General, Department of Justice, Tenth and Constitution Ave. NW, Suite 4400, Washington D.C. 20530.
If you would like more information, or a copy of the petition to sign, please leave your name, phone or fax number and address at (206) 367-7756, the voice mail and fax number for NW/FACT.
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