 
Jesse and Ron, visiting with Darcy and Little Red.
 
Matt and Brandon breaking ice with the kayak. Brok's winter labyrinth walk.
 
 
Ann's first Beekeeping Workshop. They built frames, made candy boards
and set them in the hives. Good luck to the new beekeepers!
 
 
The Hermitage welcomed the first retreatants, some overnight, some for a week's stay.
Sharing lunch during the Simple Living Retreat. Quiet time in the windowseat.
 
Michelle feeding lettuce to Little Red and Linda getting a Darcy kiss
during Simple Living Retreat
 
 
Winter at Turtle Rock Farm: three snows in January. Doe Creek is very low during monthly Blue Thumb creek monitoring. Wild Turkeys down by the Pecan Grove.
And another scrumptious Oklahoma evening sky.
The Beauties of Winter Retreats
The biggest, most exciting news is a Bald Eagle visit at the big pond at Turtle Rock Farm. We watched it fly over the pond one day and then watched in amazement as it attacked a small Canada Goose on the pond the morning of our first Beekeeping Workshop. The goose was very smart, ducking under water when under attack, and Eagle finally flew off to rest atop a tree. We and the workshop guests felt very fortunate to have witnessed this stunning event in the natural world. We hope the Eagle stays to nest.
Also exciting, we welcomed the first retreatants to the straw bale and mud hermitage that we built, with tremendous help from friends and volunteers, during 2010. Our first guest there was a Kansan who has often visited Turtle Rock Farm for programs and personal retreats. We were thrilled to welcome her to this wonderful new space.
This is the third year that January has been busy around Turtle Rock Farm. We love welcoming guests in the winter. It's a special time on the prairie; fun to bundle up and venture out into the natural world. Ann led our first Beekeeping Workshop and shared her commitment to, enthusiasm for and practical suggestions for keeping bees. We held another Simple Living retreat with guests who are committed to making changes that benefit their families, communities and the planet; and shared time with individuals and a group during their retreats.
Following two days of 70-degree temperatures, this last day of January we're making provisions in case the current blizzard predictions are accurate. Oklahoma seems to define "climate change." Undaunted, we look forward to welcoming February's retreatants and workshop participants.
On Sunday, February 13, we invite everyone to join us for a Taize service and a potluck supper, beginning at 4 p.m. Friends who play acoustic instruments will lead the meditative music and readings; then we will sit at table together around warming food. On Monday, February 21 at 6:30 p.m., we will begin again our monthly book discussions around sustainability. We will discuss chapter one of Bill McKibben's Deep Economy. Let us know if you are coming to either of these events.
As always, our workshop and retreat schedule is updated frequently on our website and you can see what's happening around the farm daily on our blog. Mark your calendars for our Earth Day celebration on April 22, when we dedicate the hermitage and have a contra dance in the barn. Also, consider the special invitation to participate in the Haiku workshop (the kind of poetry that is based in the observations of the natural world - and that everyone can write!) led by our friend Jeannie Martin, from Boston, the first Saturday in June.
We look forward to seeing you soon - winter, or spring.
In beauty and peace, Pat and Ann |
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Thank You Volunteers!
Thank you Paul!
Want to be a Turtle Rock Farm Volunteer?
Have we got a deal for you!
a day at Turtle Rock Farm (on us)
for 3 hours of labor (yours)
lunch included
As we grow and expand our offerings and our facility, we couldn't get along without the wonderful people who volunteer at Turtle Rock Farm. They have become a cherished part of our community.
If you're interested in helping out, let us know. We'll work together and you can have some retreat time and some community time around a table set with home-cooked fresh food.
Note: This offer does not pertain to our programmed workshops and retreats.
Call us at 580.725.3411 or email annmcferron@hotmail.com; 580.917.6011 or email pathoerth@gmail.com
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Keep Up with Us Daily on our Blog
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A QUICK LOOK AT TRF EVENTS
February 5
Military Women Retreat
February 13 - 4 p.m.
Taize Service and Potluck Supper
February 19
Gardening: Raised Bed and Composting Workshop
February 21
Sustainability Book Discussion
February 26
Top Ten Pain Releasers Workshop
February 28-March 1
Shepherd's Retreat
March 5
Gardening: Raised Bed and Composting Workshop
March 19
Meditation and Labyrinth Retreat
March 13
Taize Service and Potluck Supper
March 21
Sustainability Book Discussion
March 26
Deep Ecology: Why Sustainability? Retreat
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and coming up later...
Mark your calendars:
April 22
Earth Day Celebration:
Hermitage Dedication, Contra Dance & more...
June 4
Haiku Retreat
Check out more in our 2011 calendar on our website:
www.turtlerockfarmretreat.com
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Upcoming
Retreats and Workshops
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Military Women Retreat
February 5
A day's get-away into the country for military women who've been deployed. Connect with Each Other - Enjoy Time in Nature
Walk with us on the Prairie...Relax on the Porch...Canoe the Pond...Explore the Creeks...Do Some Gardening...Feast on Fresh, Home-Grown Food...Visit with Friends...Relax in the Beautiful Countryside...Spend a Day in Nature.
To register, go to our website: www.turtlerockfarmretreat.com
Gardening: Build a Raised Bed Garden and/or a
Turnable Composter
February 19
We've combined two workshops into one. You can come for a full day and build both a four-by-four foot raised bed with a hoop and a turnable composter, or come half a day and build one or the other. With a growing awareness of the value to our health and the health of the planet, more and more people are growing some of their own food. In addition to going home with tools to garden and compost, you'll get information about growing vegetables and composting. We'll show you our gardens and composting projects.
To register, go to our website: www.turtlerockfarmretreat.com
Top Ten Pain Releasers
February 26
Pain is a clear message that we need to pay attention to our bodies. The Top Ten Pain Releasers is a fun, hands-on workshop for reducing stress and pain that integrates massage, energy work, kinesiology, polarity, acupressure and various reflex techniques. You will learn a wide variety of simple and highly effective self help skills to benefit yourself and your family.To register, go to our website: www.turtlerockfarmretreat.com
Shepherds' Retreat
February 28-March 1
For United Methodist Lay and Clergy 
A 24-hour retreat modeled on the Spiritual Academy with cycles of holy reading, silence, group sharing. The retreat begins and ends with Eucharist and includes Morning Prayer.
For questions and to register, email Rev. Susan Ross at ross-susan@sbcglobal.net or Pat at pathoerth@gmail.com Gardening: Build a Raised Bed Garden and/or a
Turnable Composter
March 5
We've combined two workshops into one. You can come for a full day and build both a four-by-four foot raised bed with a hoop and a turnable composter, or come half a day and build one or the other. With a growing awareness of the value to our health and the health of the planet, more and more people are growing some of their own food. In addition to going home with tools to garden and compost, you'll get information about growing vegetables and composting. We'll show you our gardens and composting projects.
To register, go to our website: www.turtlerockfarmretreat.com
Meditation and Labyrinth Retreat
March 19
Meditation is one of the oldest and most beneficial spiritual practices. On this day-long retreat, led by our spiritual director, Pat Hoerth, participants will have the opportunity to learn and practice several kinds of meditation, including centering prayer, breath prayer, guided meditation, lectio divina and walking the wonderful prairie labyrinth. The labyrinth is an ancient, spiritual tool used for centuries as a way to get in touch with the inner life and inform the outer life. Making the slow walk of twists and turns toward the center and back out again is a transformative experience. This retreat is for both beginners and those who've been practicing, but want to deepen their practice. There will be a full moon March 19 and it's a lovely time to walk the labyrinth at night. You are welcome to stay for the evening or overnight. To register, go to our website: www.turtlerockfarmretreat.com Deep Ecology: Why Sustainability?
March 25-26
Based in the work of John Seed, Joanna Macy, Pat Fleming and Arne Naess in Thinking Like A Mountain, this retreat will offer participants the chance to not only think about human connection to the natural world, but experience our intimate connection with nature. Through a series of exercises Friday evening and Saturday, including the well-known Council of Beings, participants will have the opportunity to move beyond the sense of alienation from the living Earth that we increasingly feel and find new clarity, inspiration and commitment to living and caring in our Earth home.
To register, go to our website: www.turtlerockfarmretreat.com |
Our Monthly Book Discussion
on Sustainability
Join us the third Monday of each month at 6:30 p.m. This year, we will discuss Bill McKibben's book, Deep Economy. In February, we'll begin with chapter one. Call us to let us know you're coming. 580.725.3411.
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Comments from our guests...
"If you want or need a serene, spiritual place to go, Turtle Rock is perfect for prayer and reflection. It has all the elements you need to find God and yourself." -- Cindy Bullen, Wickline UMC
"If you are looking for the opportunity to slow down so you can think, you will find it at Turtle Rock Farm. The Simpler Living Retreat gave lots of food for thought and helped me to find a focus from it that I can take home and apply to 'real life.' Your life will be impacted in ways unexpected. I feel like I not only gained more ideas for simpler living, but also acquired realistic ideas to coping with and sorting out various areas of stress in day-to-day life. Choose one small positive change you want to work on, commit to it, focus and anything is possible. Thank you Turtle Rock Farm!: -- Michelle Hamilton
"Turtle Rock Farm is a wonderful place to come and be refreshed. To relax with nature surrounding you. To come away a stronger person - more able to cope with all the pressures of our modern lifestyle. I would highly encourage people to 'escape' to Turtle Rock Farm." -- L.D., Kansas
"It was a perfect retreat...New understanding has dawned illuminating my path with added clarity and compassion...The labyrinth was transforming, as was working with the mud in building inside walls of the hermitage. These three days signified family, roots, births, mothers, grandmother and the Great Mother, Earth. Your perspectives added richness to the experience as did Ann's energy kinesiology session. Thank you both for providing a safe, sacred place and opening it to us. Favorite mental image: Grasshopper dancing in the fields!" -- J.S.
"Thank you Pat and Ann for a wonderful stay. Our Creator God blesses us to be a blessing and that's what you're doing with this farm; allowing it to be a blessing to others, so that they may come and rest in God's awesome beauty and presence and love. Peace and Joy." -- C.H.
"We felt renewed and relaxed (yes, even at the same time!) by the sense of community we experienced. Preparing the healthy and spiritual food was calming and centering for us both. I will always remember watching the momma cat affectionately loving on her white litter of kittens. The afternoon rainstorm was just what the land, and the soul needed! Thank you both!" -- Raven Crowl
"It's been rewarding and inspiring to be with people that love and care about life so much. Thanks for teaching me so many different things." -- Denise Bertoncino
"What fun, what joy, what a solid experience. To see all of us join together to create the hermitage was inspiring. This will continue to inspire me into building my own dwelling. Thank you!!!" -- Cassandra Bachrad
"What a privilege, what a blessing to be part of building the first retreat building on your beautiful property. May the love spread through all who come to experience peace in creation at its best." -- George Kilmer
"It has been a beautiful experience learning about beautiful buildings that help save the Earth and meeting such wonderful people in such a beautiful setting. Thank you all." -- Jim McKinney
"What a wonderful piece of Oklahoma! I have very much enjoyed the time I have been here and enjoyed the spirit of this place. I wish peace for all who come here. Thanks." Scott Jordan
"Your kindness and the community that has formed here make me fall in love with Oklahoma ll over again. I feel so thankful for the old, open wisdom that has been shared. So many wonderful lives. Love it!" -- Steven Wooley
"Have you ever felt as if you could see the world in every direction? The labyrinth at Turtle Rock Farm is perched on top of a rolling hill, surrounded by wildflowers and prairie grasses and as you walk the sacred path, you can see beauty in every direction. Come and see." -- Jeni Markham Clewell
"What an amazing experience! Thank you ladies for sharing your love and land with us all. The labyrinth retreat is a must for anyone seeking to dive deeper into themselves." -- Shela and Kiran, Tulsa
"When you come to Turtle Rock, the world changes. There is an intentional connection to Earth, to the past, to the present, to the future. Turtle Rock is a place of incredible grace, a place of peace." -- Paul Calkin
"Awakened to a world washed clean from thundershowers. The birds are cheerful and greet us with morning song. A lovely retreat to enjoy the wonders of creation! My only sadness - it was much too brief. Eager to return." -- Shelley R.
"Thank you so much for your hospitality and generosity. Our kids had such a blast feeding the animals and using the kayaks and canoe. The fresh eggs were delicious and your home was so cozy and comfortable. We enjoyed being out in nature and being together as a family. The kids LOVED it all!" -- Lisa, Madi and Christian
"Thank you for these great times of our lives. I'm sure we'll come back soon." -- Bethany
"A blizzard on the first day of spring. I should be worried about getting home, but I can't find it in myself. There's such peace here. Thank you for a quiet place to rest with God." -- Sara Marie Bodenstein
"We came for a gardening workshop and found so much more. We treasured our time here due to the incredible scenery and lovely people. We felt welcomed and at home. These days helped us rekindle our love and commitment to Earth. Thank you for sharing your land, passion and talents." -- Wendy
"This retreat is a great idea. Women who are military can get together to bond, share their stories and life with others who have the same experience. It is a 'happy' place." -- J
"Just knowing we, the women of the United States military are not alone is beautiful. Thank you to Turtle Rock." -- Max, US Army
"I loved camping on the hill - beautiful views of the Oklahoma prairie. Beautiful place - thanks for sharing." - M.C.
"Wow! What a peaceful, lovely place. Thank you for your hospitality. Looking forward to future visits and more peace..." -- Molly Helm
"'Unless you find belonging in your solitude, your external longing will remain needy and driven.' Thanks again for your hospitality in this Sacred Space. Gracias! Blessings! Namaste!" -- Mary Lou Bender
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"Retreat is neither whim nor luxury nor self-indulgence, but a rock-bottom staple of a healthy life. We need retreat as surely as we need oxygen or protein. While any given retreat may start out as a joyride - a few days away from spouse, kids or job; a chance to spread one's wings, loosen one's belt, kick up one's heels - it always winds up as a pilgrimage. We start to look for what really counts." -- Philip Zaleski, The Recollected Heart
How does one 'do' a Retreat?
A
"retreat" at Turtle Rock Farm is a chance to get away into the quiet
and beauty of the prairie. But not everyone is used to the quiet and
find the idea a bit intimidating, even if they know they long for it.
A
retreat can be a time when you sleep, listen to music, read, walk,
visit, play musical instruments, do art, bask in silence, get a
therapeutic massage, sit in a rocking chair on the porch, visit with a
spiritual director, receive an energy kinesiology session, explore nature, walk the labyrinth, feed an alpaca, gather eggs, garden, kayak or swim in the pond, sit at a farm table...alone, with friends, family, or with the community gathered here at the farm.
It can be what you need and what you want it to be. We are happy to guide and assist, or give you solitude.
To reserve your individual, group, couple or family retreat:
email or phone pathoerth@gmail.com; 580.917.6011
or annmcferron@hotmail.com; 580.725.3411
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our partnership
with GreenConnections...
The First Annual Green Connections
Dinner on the Prairie - October 2009
Green Connections is a 501c3 Not-for-Profit corporation committed to helping people connect with Earth, be healed in it and learn to live more sustainably. In addition to supporting the mission of Turtle Rock Farm, our dream is to build a retreat center and hermitages with sustainable building methods, including straw bale construction. We are in the process of building the first strawbale and mud hermitage.
If you believe in the work of Green Connections, please consider gifting us with your supportive wishes and hopes, with your volunteer labor, and with your dollars. All gifts, large and small, would be appreciated. If you have questions, please call 580.725.3411 or 580.917.6011.
We are seeking sponsors... ...for the Prairie Dinner and Concert.
And we are seeking grants and donations for the building of a retreat center.
You may send tax deductible donations to Green Connections, 5900 CR 90, Red Rock, OK 74651. Or, go to our website - www.turtlerockfarmretreat.com - and click on Green Connections Partner, and use Paypal to send your donation. Or, click here:
Green Connection Board members meet the Alpaca Meet our board members: Green Connections: Kay Adair, Beverly Alexander (treasurer), Elizabeth Box Price, Dorothy Gray, Pat Hoerth, Stephanie Jordan, Ann McFerron, Mary Moloney, Alan Ware (president.)
Turtle Rock Farm Advisory Council: Barbara Hagan, Bruce Johnson, Tom Temple, Corey Williams
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We Support the Buy Fresh Buy Local Movement
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Turtle Rock Farm LLC:
A Center for Sustainability, Spirituality and Healing
Mission Statement
Connecting with the Natural World
We believe that Earth - part of the Creator's good creation - has intrinsic value.
We believe that human beings are interdependent with all of creation and that the Creator is calling humans to re-connect with creation, with Earth,
and participate more consciously in the web of life. We want to provide
opportunities for people to experience our connectedness with creation
in three distinct ways:
+ organizing and leading retreats that afford people the experience of our
connection and interdependence with the web of life: all of creation, each other and the Divine.
+ promote healing - of Earth, creation and humans, through connecting with
Earth which, we believe, can heal us - as well as through the various modalities of holistic health care including Energy Kinesiology.
Learning to Live Sustainably
+ living sustainably and teaching and supporting others in their efforts to live sustainably. By sustainability, we mean honoring, bringing, enabling life rather than harming and disposing of life; learning practical things to do to sustain life on Earth. Because we believe this is done in community, we hope to promote community life.
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