Elevate, Cochrane’s wellness conference, offers attendees a chance to explore the many different well-being offerings available in town.
Health and wellness businesses open their doors for participants to take part in a class, workshop, seminar or service sampling to nourish their mind, body and soul. Elevate is scheduled for Sunday, Oct. 1 to recognize and honour National Truth and Reconciliation Day on Sep. 30.
Events are planned in Mini Thni and Cochrane. Ticket holders create their own schedule on the Sched App and travel from one business location to the next to experience their desired offerings.
Some of the offerings available include a hands-on workshop “Making your own Elderberry Syrup for Immune Health” at Two Pharmacy, a sound therapy class with clinical hypnotherapy with Wave Craft. The event also offers one-on-one service sessions of massage, osteopathy, chiropractic, acupuncture and facial stretch therapy at West Valley Chiropractic – and many more.
“Elevate is really about bringing the community together, with that focus on personal wellness and self-growth,” said Marni McConnach, Elevate’s founder and co-organizer for 2023. “You get to set foot into the wellness businesses themselves and experience first hand what they have to offer.”
Still Lake Listening offers online or in-person compassionate listening and spiritual companionship for people seeking a deeper understanding of self, soul, and place in the universe.
Michelle Copithorne at Still Lake Listening calls herself a “spiritual director.”
“Our section is called ‘Chaos into Clarity: Tending our Wound when Loving Hurts,’ she explained. “We’ve found people struggling with the emotion of dealing with loss, and it’s not just when people have passed away. (But) it’s more than that – it’s when people have experienced a separation or divorce, or they’ve lost their job, or the kids have left home, it can feel like chaos.”
All these different life events can trigger feelings of grief. Creating a non-judgemental space for a discussion of what’s important in people’s lives is the key, according to Copithorne.
“We’re not going to go very deep in an hour, but we want to give people an opportunity to experience what spiritual direction and compassionate listening could be,” she said.
Sandra McDonald at Still Lake said another aspect of what they do is talk to people who may be struggling with their personal belief systems – religious or otherwise.
“People encounter a disconnect between what they are longing for in their lives, (and) what they believe about God now,” she said. “When they encounter a disruption of great grief or great suffering, it can be really hard to reconcile the depth of suffering with the understanding that we hold or have held about God, or the divine, or the universe, or however we interact with that definition.”
In situations like that, McDonald said, people may end up re-examining what they believe in.
Copithorne added that anyone thinking of coming to see what this type of approach is all about need not be hesitant because they aren’t sure they’ll feel comfortable sharing with strangers.
“We allow space for them to actually not participate – if they do not feel comfortable to speak, that’s OK,” she said.
Each year, Elevate donates a portion of ticket sales to a Cochrane-based cause. This year, five dollars from every ticket is being donated to the Meira Memorial Fund.
The Meira Memorial Fund was created in memory of local resident Lindsay Sine, in support of women’s mental health.
The event is sponsored by Two Pharmacy, Amanda Kiss Real Estate and Still Lake Listening.
Ticket purchasers will be able to curate their own schedule by picking the offerings that most suit their interests. The schedule of offerings is at elevatecochrane2023.sched.com.
In conjunction with the conference, “We Are Cochrane” is happening Friday, September 29, at Found Books & Shop. This intimate evening showcases the personal stories of Cochrane where the audience can expect to get real and raw with the people who call Cochrane home.
The idea is for Cochranites to share their heartfelt accounts of hardship and triumph, grief and joy, difficult learning curves, deep insights and share how community played a part in the process.
To learn more about both events go to elevatecochrane.com or follow @elevate.cochrane on Instagram and Facebook.
