The Path to Freedom

A Seven-Day Jewish Meditation Retreat

March 8-15, 2009

With Sylvia Boorstein, Rabbi Joanna Katz
and Rabbi Jeff Roth

Co-Sponsored by The Awakened Heart Project

As we approach Passover we find ourselves in a time to explore the theme of liberation in our own lives. The greatest obstacle to our own liberation is ignorance. When we fail to see clearly the true working nature of our heart/mind, we tend to contract down and become concerned with meeting our smallest selfish needs, much like an inner Pharaoh that enslaves us and can lead us to act unwisely and unkindly towards those around us. This weeklong meditation retreat will give you the tools and the time to delve inward and cultivate the qualities that can help us open our hearts to wisdom and compassion, propelling us to a life of loving-kindness. We'll also explore the themes of Purim, which occurs during the retreat, through a special reading of the book of Esther and the use of humor in facing our inner struggles.

Through the vehicles of silence and a variety of Jewish meditation approaches, this retreat will help you to look deeply into your own life. The retreat includes daily periods of prayer, chant and meditative movement. Daily instruction in meditation will help guide both beginning and advanced practitioners into the sacred space of the retreat process. Throughout the retreat we will maintain social silence. There will also be times for questions and answers as well as small group and private interviews with the instructors. The week will culminate in a deep celebration of Shabbat followed by the chance to hear of each other's learning as the retreat comes to a close.

Teachers

Sylvia Boorstein has been teaching meditation retreats since 1985. She is a founding teacher of Spirit Rock Meditation Center and a psychotherapist, wife, mother and grandmother who is particularly interested in seeing daily life as practice. She has led numerous retreats and training programs for rabbis and Jewish educators.

Rabbi Joanna Katz is the co-founder of Elat Chayyim and is currently on the faculty of the Elat Chayyim Advanced Meditation Program (ECAMP). Joanna helps people work toward gaining greater insight, balance and freedom in their lives. She facilitates ongoing meditation groups and lives with her family in New York? Hudson Valley.

Rabbi Jeff Roth is the founder and Director of The Awakened Heart Project for Contemplative Judaism. He was the co-founder of Elat Chayyim where he served as Executive Director and Spiritual Director for 13 years. Currently on the faculty of ECAMP, he is an experienced meditation teacher and the facilitator of over 70 Jewish meditation retreats.

Program Fee: By Donation Only

Room and Board

Our goal is to help you feel at home while on retreat. We provide you with comfortable accommodations in a beautiful, natural setting and three homemade meals prepared each day with your health and well-being in mind.

Room and board rates are per person and include housing, meals and full use of our facility. To calculate the cost of your stay, add the program fee above and your room and board rate below.

We offer a variety of housing accommodations that enable individuals with a wide range of financial capabilities to participate in our programs. All rooms are air-conditioned in the summer, heated in the winter, and simply decorated in a country style without modern multimedia distractions.

Rooms are available as single or double occupancy, with private, shared, or hall bathrooms. If you are coming alone and request a shared room, you will be paired with a roommate of the same gender. Please note, however, that some cabins and shared bathrooms may be co-ed.

For children's rates as well as commuting and tenting options, please see below.

Standard Plus Rooms: Weinberg, May

Standard plus rooms have private bathrooms and are available with either two queen-sized beds or three twin-sized beds.

Standard Plus Rooms	Seven Nights
Single Occupancy	1820
Double Occupancy	1120

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Standard Rooms: Scheuer, Pine, Cedar, Maple, Blue Heron

Standard rooms have either a private bathroom or a bathroom shared with one other room. Most standard rooms have twin-sized beds; queen-sized beds may be available on a limited basis.

Standard Rooms	Seven Nights
Single Occupancy with Private Bath	1575
Single Occupancy with Shared Bath	1260
Double Occupancy with Private Bath	945
Double Occupancy with Shared Bath	770

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Economy Rooms: Elm, Kaufman

Economy rooms have twin-sized beds and a shared bathroom in the hall.

Economy Rooms	Seven Nights
Single Occupancy	1015
Double Occupancy	595

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Camping

Campers supply their own tents and equipment and have access to bathrooms and showers. Camping fee includes all meals and snacks, use of the facility and its amenities, and participation in any open programming provided, such as meditation, yoga or non-holiday prayer.

Camping Rates	Seven Nights
Each Camper	455

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Commuter

The commuter fee includes all meals and snacks, use of the facility and its amenities, and participation in any open programming provided, such as such as meditation, yoga or non-holiday prayer.

Commuter Rates	Seven Nights
Each Commuter	385

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Children's Rates

There is no charge for infants and children ages 3 and under. Children ages 4–17 must share a room with at least one parent or guardian. Young adults ages 18 and above must pay the regular rates.

Children's Rates	Seven Nights
Each Child	455

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Financial Assistance

One of our core values is that our programs should be accessible to everyone. We provide limited financial aid for Room and Board fees. This financial support is only available for dormitory rooms with hall baths and economy rooms for couples and families. If you would like to request financial support, please complete the Application for Financial Aid. In your request, please consider that we have a limited pool of resources.

All requests must be received at least three weeks prior to the retreat.

Please note that we are not able to make any refunds in order to grant an aid request. If you choose to register prior to being awarded aid, and your remaining balance is less than the aid award, you will forfeit any award in excess of your outstanding balance.

Please support our ability to continue to provide financial aid by making a donation online or by calling 800.398.2630.

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Cancellation Policy

Payments made will be refunded in full (less a $50 processing fee) if you cancel more than 14 days prior to your arrival. If you cancel between 13 days and 72 hours prior to a retreat for which you have registered, a non-refundable, non-transferable credit (less a $50 processing fee) will be held for one year from the date of issue. No credit or refund is available if you cancel within 72 hours of a retreat or on the retreat arrival day, if you do not show up, or if you leave a retreat early for any reason.

Isabella Freedman reserves the right to cancel any program at any time. In the event of such a cancellation, you will receive a complete refund.

Inclement Weather: Isabella Freedman reserves the right to cancel a retreat due to inclement weather if, in its judgment, it will be unable to operate safely. In the event of such a cancellation, a full refund will be made to all registrants. In the event that the retreat proceeds as scheduled, no refund or credit will be available.

Shuttle and Transportation Fees: A full transportation refund is available if you cancel a transportation reservation at least 3 days (72 hours) in advance. No refund is available if less than 3 days notice is given.

Training Institutes: If you are participating in a two-year training institute and you miss or cancel one of the weeklong retreat sessions, your room and board fee will be refunded according to the policy above, but the program fee for a missed or cancelled retreat session is still due. Withdrawal is permitted only after the first retreat session. If you withdraw from a training institute after the first retreat session, or if you are asked by faculty to leave the institute, you will receive a full refund on your program fee for any remaining pre-paid retreats.

Travel Insurance: We recommend you contact your travel agent to purchase travel insurance in the event that you need to cancel or change your travel plans.

Exceptions: Exceptions to these policies may be available in the event of severe weather emergencies or the death of a close family member. To request a non-transferable credit for one of these reasons, please submit a written request to registrar@isabellafreedman.org no more than three days after the start of the event.