Hummingbird Transformational Living Center

06/18/2023

**Announcing OUR NEW WEBSITE**

www.hummingbirdtlc.org

We are celebrating our new website, a co-creative Community project that reflects who we are, what we do, and how you can engage with us.

We invite you to explore and share our new website with your family, friends, and community.

Hummingbird Transformational Living Center Soul Centered Living in Harmony with Nature welcome We are a multi-generational intentional community, retreat location, and non-profit dedicated to exploring, embodying, and sharing soul centered ways of living in harmony with the natural world. WHO WE ARE...

04/28/2023

With spring in the air, many of us are tending our gardens, nourishing the soil, and clearing and preparing our vegetable beds in preparation for planting a diversity of seeds. Two of our avid Community gardeners, BJ and Norma, have spearheaded a project to install a drip irrigation system in our Community Garden and Growing Dome. Mannarose, our 42-foot greenhouse, is used to grow greens in the Winter, nasturtiums for cover and salads, and artichokes which grow perennially, as well as other vegetables in the Summer. The Dome is also home to lemon, fig, and pomegranate trees which are abundant in their fruit production. The flowering plants that go to seed, along with the nasturtiums and trees, provide bees with year-round Our new drip irrigation system will save water, time, and human energy. BJ and Norma have raised nearly $2,000 and need an additional $4,000 to complete the project.

If you feel inspired to support our Community gardens by flourishing with bountiful water, please donate here https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=RJTHNNUC4FHHE

For the past 11 years, BJ and Norma have contributed time, energy, and green thumbs to produce bountiful vegetables for the Community. With the ease of our new drip system, they can expand their production! If you have visited Hummingbird, then you've most likely experienced the magic of the dome, which we have been enjoying the fruits of since 2008. Thanks to Michael and Ami for all their dedicated tending through the years. And we're so grateful that the bees have returned!

01/30/2023

https://youtu.be/4RAtJtv9EZw
To our extended circle of support,

As we launch into a new year we want to take a moment to fill you in on what has been happening at Hummingbird since our post last summer. Most of the community returned to the land in September. Now in the depths of winter, a time of introspection, we are reflecting on the past year and recalibrating to what feels possible for the coming cycle.

Thanks to you, our donors, we have been able to implement post fire mitigation techniques such as sandbagging, creating berms, and clearing out the river of debris to protect our homes and structures. In addition we are in the process of converting a Community space into a living space for two of our community members who have been significantly impacted by the fires.

Though we have come back home and are stewarding the land, we are still vulnerable and under the threat of flooding for the next 3-5 years. Our acequia (traditional irrigation ditch) was severely damaged, so we will not have irrigation water flowing this year to support our soil regeneration projects.

Stay tuned as we’ll be sharing more this coming spring. Please sign up for our mailing list if you would like to be informed of our progress.

We look forward to creating ways for you and your beloveds to return to Hummingbird and experience the joy and wonder of this sacred space.

To our extended circle of support, As we launch into a new year we want to take a moment to fill you in on what has been happening at Hummingbird since our p...

06/17/2022

Aloha dear family, friends, and global community,

Greetings to you in these most tender and precarious times.

As you are aware, the fire severely burnt the once pristine watershed above us, the Community is now preparing for mudslides, debris flows, and flooding that are likely to occur. According to the official burn report, the probability of flash flooding is extremely high if we receive as little as a ¼” of rain in 15 minutes. Due to the close proximity of our home to the Rio la Casa River, we are encouraged to leave whenever the rains are coming and perhaps to consider living elsewhere during the next few months. The summer season has always been the most vital, nourishing, and fulfilling time to be here. We have many fond memories of the enriching programs, weddings and ceremonial events, the flow of dear friends and family enjoying with us the beauty of the land, and the deep and transformative moments that many have experienced through the past 25 years. The days and weeks ahead feel very precarious and de-stabilizing. We are tuning in to our best plan of action given the current reality.

At this time, we, as community, are doing everything we can to protect our homes and the surrounding areas by hiring people to remove debris out of the river, purchasing flood insurance, filling and placing sandbags and doing our best to implement other post-fire treatments with the limited experience that we have.

Please consider donating to our GoFundMe and supporting our post-fire efforts. We deeply appreciate your support and care and holding us in your thoughts during these challenging times.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/zk98z-donate-to-help?qid=4fe76a6c3a64f548a7bc7f2ae37de463

May the Phoenix rise from the ashes!
https://youtu.be/v68rN_AVo6Q

Our beloved community of Hummingbird has been greatly impacted by the largest wildfire in New Mexico history that have burned over 300,000 acres In this vid...

06/03/2022

Hello friends,
The Calf Canyon & Hermit’s Peak Fire is the largest wildfire in New Mexico history at over 300,000 acres. When the fires first came through Hummingbird land on May 2nd, our entire campground infrastructure burnt to the ground. This includes our Sanctuary Yurt, Kitchen, Bathhouse, Outhouses, Outdoor Showers, River Yurt, and 50’ Dining Tent. We have had to cancel all summer programs and retreat reservations, our primary sources of income

At this time, we need funding as we re-access our priorities and turn our attention to post-fire land treatments for the safety of our Hummingbird land, homes, and structures. Our efforts will not only support Hummingbird Community but also the surrounding community of Cleveland/Mora since Rio La Casa (the river that travels through Hummingbird) flows into the Mora River drainage basin. We have yet to see the full impact of this fire on our home. Often the rains, flooding, mudslides, and debris flow that follow a fire can be more destructive than the fire itself.

We have launched a gofundme campaign to help us hire the people needed to implement post-fire treatments and purchase the necessary tools and supplies to help mitigate flash flooding, mudslides, and debris flows that could lead to potential flooding of homes, destroying structures, and washing out the road.

Prior to this massive fire, our watershed was considered one of the most pristine in the Southwest. Now it is one of the most devastated. Our location in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains (Southern Rockies) usually has rainfall beginning in June, with the monsoon season in July and August. The fire severely burned the watershed above us and now poses an imminent threat of increased mudslides, flooding, and debris flowing down the Rio La Casa, through our land & homes, and potentially reaching the broader community of Mora. According to the official burn report, the fire burned our watershed so hot that the ground has become hydrophobic. The probability of flash flooding is extremely high if we receive as little as a ¼” of rain in 15 minutes. We have reached out to several government agencies for support and have not been assured of any government funding at this time.

We need support to implement the post-fire treatments needed for our land. Please consider supporting our post-fire efforts today by giving to our gofundme campaign. Your gift will help us hire the people required to implement post-fire treatments and purchase the necessary tools, equipment, and supplies to help mitigate flash flooding, mudslides, and debris flows. Your gift will truly make a difference in saving our Community from post-fire threats.

We would love to reach as many people as we can with our story. We invite you to share our gofundme with your family, friends, and communities!

Hello friends, The Calf Canyon & Hermit’s Peak Fire is the… Wakenda Willingham needs your support for Help Hummingbird Community from Post-Fire Threats

05/05/2022

Dear extended Hummingbird Family,

Many of you have reached out to us via text, phone, Messenger, etc., and your care is felt and appreciated. We want everyone to know that the Hummingbird community members are safe and are presently being housed at different locations.

Sunday evening, May 1st, the fire did come onto the land and burned out the campground and all its structures. Thus far the homes in the community have been spared, though we are not yet out of danger. The winds have shifted and the leading edge of the fire burning directly southwest of us continues to push toward the northeast and threaten our homes. We are so grateful to the structure protection team and the valiant firefighters who are doing everything possible to save our homes.

The larger loss has been to our surrounding communities. Many have lost their homes and are experiencing displacement as well as the loss of livestock and their livelihoods. Your continued prayers are welcomed as we wait to see what happens next. It appears it may yet be several weeks before the fire is under control enough for us to return to the land and begin the hard work of cleanup and assessing how we might rebuild the campground. Meanwhile, our campground work weekend to prep for summer programs that had been scheduled for the weekend of May 20th - 23rd has been canceled.

If you have scheduled a summer event that involves the use of the campground, please reach out to your contact person for updates.

Thank you for all your concern and care. We know the land will rejuvenate and return lusher and more beautiful than ever. We plan to be there to experience our own transformation as well.

01/26/2021

Co-founders Katharine and Makasha Roske together with long time Steward, Rich Ruster, will engage in a dynamic exploration of "the Great Unraveling: Looking through Evolutionary Eyes" this Thursday, January 28th. Join our online Patreon Community at www.patreon.com/roske

01/24/2021

As the sun was setting behind the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, Makasha (a co-founder of Hummingbird) was inspired to offer his daily prayer to the setting sun.