The Flamekeeper Series: Summer 2025
Tending the flame of the human journey in our neighborhood
The SF Contemplarium presents The Flamekeeper Series: Summer 2025 to celebrate and support the vital work of Flamekeepers, those who tend the "flame" of the human journey in our neighborhoods through presence and support.
Join us these Sundays at 2-4pm at The Commons, 550 Laguna Street for a fireside conversation plus interactive workshop:
Jul 13
Being Present for a Friend with Mental Illness
Rabbi Jeremy Sher, Mental Health Chaplain at UCSF
How might I play the role of providing a caring presence that is distinct from the role of treatment or therapy? How might I be empathetic to my friend’s experienced reality without feeling that I’m enabling unhealthy or ungrounded thinking? How might I balance care for my friend with care for myself?
Jul 27
Being Present for a Friend Navigating Conflict
Amanda Dean, Ombudsman at Austin Community College
Maya Pace, Facilitator and Conflict Coach at Trust Labs
How might I offer genuine support without “taking sides”? How might I help expand someone’s perspective without being patronizing? How might I empower my friend’s own autonomy as they seek advice?
Aug 10
Being Present for a Neighbor on the Streets
Carmen Barsody, Co-Founder of Faithful Fools
Guest to be announced from San Francisco Night Ministry
How might I honor humanity even through feelings of discomfort, fear, or even disgust? What might I do with the feeling to “look away” when paying attention seems futile or draining? How might I bring human presence without superiority or saviorism?
Aug 24
Being Present for a Friend who is Grieving
Tida Beattie, Bereavement Educator / The Collabyrinth
Annanda Barclay, former Chaplain Fellow at Stanford Health
How might I offer empathetic support when it feels like we couldn’t possibly understand someone’s unique pain? How might I hold space when when it feels like words are inadequate? How might we walk alongside another to honor loss through presence and ritual?
About this series
Join us over four public events in July and August for Flamekeepers to gather, learn together, and support each other as we explore vital questions about how we can be present and supportive to other’s through life’s challenges.
We’ll learn from local practitioners whose daily work is steeped in the topics we’re exploring. After an exploratory fireside chat followed by Q&A, we will have a chance to practice hands-on skills of presence and accompaniment with each other through a workshop of guided exercises.
In a world that rushes to solve, advise, or move on, Flamekeepers offer something else: the gift of an honoring presence. This series invites us into the nourishing community, support, and skillbuilding that this important work deserves.
Come for one session or all four—we're excited to learn and grow together.
Dates: Jul 13, Jul 27, Aug 10, and Aug 24 – Sundays 2–4pm
Location: The Commons, 550 Laguna St.
Tickets: $15± (sliding scale tickets made possible by the Flamekeeper Fund)
Want to go deeper? These conversations are just the beginning. Join our inaugural Flamekeeper Cohort this Fall to continue exploring, practicing, and growing with like-hearted neighbors.
