CONNECTION AND PURPOSE
Hello Friends and Family,
How are y’all feeling? Did you wake up with a smile, envisioning things that bring you joy or was it the opposite today? And were you able to shift out of the negative before you left your bed?
I can see how it might be easy to wake up focusing on the negative with the way the world looks today. I also know that if we don’t consciously choose something more loving in each moment, we will continue to experience the opposite of what 99.9999999% wish to experience… which is LOVE!
We ALL wish to BE seen and heard. We humans LOVE knowing that someone cares about us and is willing to make the effort to know who we truly are on the inside. We wish to collaborate and BE in community. We wish to FEEL like we “fit in” somewhere and that we are welcome. We wish to feel CONNECTED and PURPOSEFUL.
If we don’t feel or experience these things as a child, we will grow up practicing the patterns of unworthiness, lack, or simply “not good enough” until we have an awareness that we desire something different… Maybe even something more loving.
The call to share Sound Healing and Self-Awareness workshops with incarcerated communities, veterans, and at-risk youth came from what seemed to be “out of the blue” many years ago. I felt very aligned immediately with the idea to share in the prisons. What I didn’t know is that it would take twelve years for the first session in a prison to happen!
I have appreciated each step of the way and always share about the synchronicities that guided me to create The Adara Collective to serve these communities. And… part of the reason why I chose this way of living is to remind people that they are loved, seen, and heard… no matter what they have experienced or believe when I meet them.
The self-awareness practices help participants to become more aware of their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. By developing a greater understanding of themselves, participants are better equipped to regulate their emotions and make positive changes in their lives. Practicing mindful meditations and sound healing can have numerous benefits for mental and physical well-being. Research has shown that it can reduce stress, anxiety, and depression, and improve attention, memory, and cognitive flexibility. It can also improve relationships and increase empathy and compassion towards oneself and others.
In the context of incarcerated individuals, mindful meditation and self-awareness practices can help reduce aggression and violence and improve impulse control. It can also promote a sense of calm and relaxation, which can be particularly beneficial in high-stress environments like correctional facilities.
The United States has the highest number of incarcerated individuals in the world, with over 1.2 million people currently in prison nationwide. If you added up all the people, in all the prisons outside of America, the number does not surpass the amount of people we have incarcerated in our country currently. Texas has the largest incarcerated population with 135,000 individuals throughout the state and California comes in second with 123,000 incarcerated persons. There are 2,500 incarcerated youth in Texas and 6,000 in California and these numbers do not include people in half-way houses, on probation, or in border facilities.
According to the ACLU, there are nearly 60,000 kids in juvenile detention centers and adult prisons throughout the United States. The National Institute of Corrections reports that over 650,000 individuals are affected by the criminal justice system in Texas alone, including those in prison, jail, parole, and probation.
What most of the public is unaware of is that most youth detention centers and prison facilities predominantly offer only vocational and chaplaincy programs. The facilities rely almost completely on volunteers and non-profits to offer emotional, physical, and alternative/holistic therapy programs to create an actual space of rehabilitation. In addition, therapy and therapists are only available to those that experience severe mental illness, not the general population of the facility. Adara Collective is currently providing services within these facilities and is filling the gaps where programming is lacking. Despite the benefits, such programs are not widely available in correctional facilities due to funding.
Here's what Sound Healing sessions look like at the Ayres House Juvenile Detention Center in San Antonio with your support! Even Mr. Lido, our emotional support dog gets to join us! He really brings a smile to everyone's face... Our sessions are more interactive sometimes to engage and allow participants to understand or feel their energy. Check out the full article written by the Texas Juvenile Justice Department (TJJD) by clicking HERE!
I am here to ask ALL of you members of this community to consider supporting the work we’re doing through The Adara Collective. All of our participants benefit so greatly from the classes and workshops that we offer and are asking for more! As I am only one person, and a newly formed non-profit, funding from the community is my main support until grant money is awarded. The larger grant contributions will allow me to hire more instructors and create a more robust program offering in the future.
Currently, we could really use your support as I work on grant proposals and share 6-7 in-person classes per week with alternative high schools, prisons, and veterans. Any amount you’re able to share is welcome and greatly appreciated!
As a reminder… I’ll be in San Jose next week for business and my 30-year high school reunion. I’ll be speaking about the non-profit and sharing at the group sound healing events I’ll be facilitating.
Check out my Community Calendar for more details and a session near You!
I Love You,
Jess
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
WAYS TO CONNECT AND SUPPORT OUR MISSION AT
AGADA ENERGY HEALING and THE ADARA COLLECTIVE 501c3
CLICK HERE to View the Website and Click the DONATE BUTTON on the site
CLICK HERE to Make a Donation Online and/or Become a MONTHLY SPONSOR with Perks!
CLICK HERE to Make a Donation through the PayPal Giving Fund if you have a Paypal Account and donate here, there are no fees for donating!
Inquire about CORPORATE DONATIONS and MATCHING (Receive the Gift of a Virtual or In-Person Sound Healing Meditation Workshop for your Team!)
AND... You can still find all the information for PUBLIC GROUP SESSIONS on the Agada Energy Healing website under the commUnity page!