Explore Our Retreat Sessions
The heART Studio: Coming Home to Creativity
This hands-on art therapy workshop offers participants a chance to connect with their creativity and imagination in a safe, supportive, and judgment-free space. Through guided art-making and reflection, participants are encouraged to embrace creativity as a way to slow down, relax, restore, and reconnect with themselves and others. No art experience is necessary—everyone is an artist here!
Connie Haw is a Registered Canadian Art Therapist and founder of Flow Art & Expressive Arts Therapy. She specializes in integrating psychotherapy with the creative process to support individuals in exploring their inner world, deepening self-understanding, and reconnecting with themselves. Connie believes creativity is innate and is dedicated to empowering individuals to rediscover the arts as a safe, supportive, and holistic path to healing.
Laughter Yoga ("Kitchi Bapita")
Laughter Yoga ("Kitchi Bapita") is a gentle wellness practice that promotes emotional healing, stress reduction, and community connection through a structured session. Each session begins with light warm-ups and guided breathwork to prepare the body, moves into interactive laughter exercises and group activities, and concludes with a drum song and grounding techniques. By creating a safe space for energetic release, this practice builds resilience and fosters connection among participants. Because the sessions are performed from a seated position, they are inclusive and adaptable for all ages and abilities.
Dawn Marie Chartrand is a visual artist originally from Rolling River First Nation and is currently based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. She began her painting career in 2017, using art to express her visions, dreams, and personal experiences. Through her business, "OM-Digenous Yoga & Wellness," she serves as a certified instructor for Yoga and Laughing Yoga. She offers "Yoga and Wellness," "Laughing Yoga," and "Painting and Wellness" classes to people of all ages. In addition to her visual and wellness work, she is a singer, songwriter, and musical entertainer.
Emotional Care Discussion
This interactive session is participant-led and supported by our group facilitators. We acknowledge and appreciate that a cancer diagnosis is a personal journey that impacts every aspect of life, including physical, emotional, social, and spiritual changes. This session is an opportunity to gather in a safe space with survivors and thrivers to reflect on topics commonly experienced before, during, and after a diagnosis of cancer. We recognize that participants may be at different places in their journey. Our hope for each session is to offer a space to reflect and share experiences on topics including grief and loss, psycho-social impacts, coping through cancer treatments, personal transformation, and life beyond cancer.
Kim Wiebe is a Registered Therapeutic Counsellor and owner of Heartland Counselling Services. She provides services in Portage la Prairie and the Central Plains Region. Kim’s education, experience, and client-centred approach help individuals overcome struggles they face in their lives. She walks alongside individuals as they learn to set and reach their own personal goals.
Melanie Gessell has been working in the field of mental health and addictions for over 20 years. She earned a master’s degree from Brandon University in Psychiatric Nursing in 2022 with a focus on advanced clinical practice and psychotherapy. Melanie is a sessional instructor at Brandon University in the Faculty of Health Studies; she owns and operates an independent therapy practice in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba, and specializes in trauma therapy using holistic approaches to wellness and integrative frameworks of care.
Finding Your Power: Gentle Strength for Cancer Survivors & Thrivers
Embrace a journey of renewed strength and well-being in this special workshop crafted for women touched by cancer. We believe in the power of movement to heal and empower. This session will introduce you to gentle yet effective strength training exercises, focusing on rebuilding your body's resilience at your own pace. Discover how strengthening your muscles can help reduce fatigue, improve balance, and bring a renewed sense of confidence to your everyday life. This is a safe and welcoming space to learn, share, and celebrate your incredible strength. No prior experience with strength training is necessary.
Shea Fust is a Kinesiologist, Certified Personal Trainer (CSEP), and Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certified coach, holding a degree in Kinesiology.
For Shea, physical activity is a cornerstone of her character, instilling in her the power of discipline, dedication, commitment, strength, perseverance, and a positive attitude.
Her business, Shea Fust Fitness, was recognized as the 2021 Outstanding Business of the Year by the Portage and District Chamber of Commerce. Shea also received the Remarkable Results with Habits Award at the ABC Trainerize Best Trainer Awards 2024 for empowering sustainable change.
With a background in competitive sports, including university soccer and bodybuilding, Shea passionately helps hundreds of clients transform their lives through a balanced, sustainable approach to fitness, nutrition, and mindset. She offers personalized programs via her custom app, known for her supportive, empathetic, and motivating coaching style in a non-judgmental environment.
Sacred Restorative Practices: Indigenous Teachings on Wellness
This restorative session provides a welcoming space to explore traditional Indigenous approaches to holistic health and healing. Guided by a local Knowledge Keeper, participants will engage in grounding practices and traditional teachings designed to foster connection, reflection, and inner peace. The session may incorporate elements such as a guided smudge and a land acknowledgement to honour our shared environment and experiences.
Rebuilding with Every Bite: Nutrition for Cancer Survivors & Thrivers
Embrace a journey of renewed well-being through the power of gentle nutrition in this special workshop crafted for women touched by cancer. We believe that food can be a powerful tool for healing and thriving. This session will introduce you to approachable and effective nutrition strategies, focusing on nourishing your body with kindness and understanding. Discover how simple dietary adjustments can help reduce inflammation, improve digestion, and bring a renewed sense of vitality to your everyday life. This is a safe and welcoming space to learn, share, and celebrate your incredible strength and commitment to health.
Shea Fust is a Kinesiologist, Certified Personal Trainer (CSEP), and Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certified coach, holding a degree in Kinesiology.
For Shea, physical activity is a cornerstone of her character, instilling in her the power of discipline, dedication, commitment, strength, perseverance, and a positive attitude.
Her business, Shea Fust Fitness, was recognized as the 2021 Outstanding Business of the Year by the Portage and District Chamber of Commerce. Shea also received the Remarkable Results with Habits Award at the ABC Trainerize Best Trainer Awards 2024 for empowering sustainable change.
With a background in competitive sports, including university soccer and bodybuilding, Shea passionately helps hundreds of clients transform their lives through a balanced, sustainable approach to fitness, nutrition, and mindset. She offers personalized programs via her custom app, known for her supportive, empathetic, and motivating coaching style in a non-judgmental environment.
Yoga
These workshops offer a gentle and restorative yoga practice specifically designed for women cancer survivors. The focus will be on mindful movement, breathwork, and gentle stretching to help you reconnect with your body, improve flexibility, and release tension. No prior yoga experience is necessary, and all movements can be modified to suit individual needs and comfort levels. These sessions are a vital opportunity to cultivate peace, reduce stress, and foster a deeper sense of well-being as you continue your journey of healing and recovery.
Lynne Bereza became a yoga teacher in 2021 after receiving her 200-hour certificate from Yoga Centre Winnipeg. She has since taken additional training in body-positive yoga, yin yoga, and chair yoga. Her mission is to guide her students’ yoga practice in a way that works for them in a safe, supportive and inclusive environment. Lynne truly believes yoga is for everybody, of every age, shape, size, and ability.
Sound, Stillness & Serenity
An immersive sound journey, featuring crystal singing bowls and other peaceful instruments, that invites you to gently connect with your mind, body, and spirit. Following a soothing guided meditation, you’ll settle into a space of stillness. Rest by candlelight as the resonate tones of the crystal singing bowls and calming soundscape fill the room, creating an environment where everyone feels welcome to simply pause, breathe, and rest.
Joanne Sullivan, founder of Serenity Yoga and Sound Meditation, is a yoga teacher and sound meditation practitioner dedicated to creating peaceful spaces. Specializing in the soothing vibrations of crystal singing bowls, Joanne invites participants to pause from the busyness of life and rest by candlelight. Her sessions offer a comforting, supportive, and deeply relaxing atmosphere for everyone.